Colorado Choral Directors' Select Choir

The Colorado Choral Director’s Select Choir was started in 1991 by four local high school directors’ who wanted to give students with vocal talent, the opportunity to sing with a large group of quality choral singers.  The four teachers who founded this endeavor are: Cheryl Paulson, past choir teacher at Fruita Monument High School; Beverly Kamas, past choir teacher at Palisade High School; Terri Schafer, past choir teacher at Grand Junction High School, and Stan Scott, current choir teacher at Central High School.   Colorado Mesa University and Dr. Monte Atkinson, current vocal professor at Colorado Mesa University, have co-sponsored this choral activity since its inception.  The set up, organizing and technical aspects are done by the current local high school directors.  These directors spend many hours of their spare time pre-planning and doing all the behind the scene jobs, so that this event runs smoothly. 

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Often, singers would audition for other select choirs, or the Colorado All State Choir, and would not make it into those groups.  The Colorado Choral Director’s Select Choir is different, because the high school director picks the student with the most talent from their school, and there is no audition involved.  This aspect allows school districts through out the Western Slope of varying sizes, to send their most talented students to this event without feeling the fear of an audition process. It is the hope of the board that by being in an advanced group like this that the students will gain confidence and take that next step to lead in their schools choral groups and audition for other select groups.

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In September, information about this event is sent out to all Western Colorado High Schools.  Director’s wishing to participate with their students in this event, submits a list of their best vocalists.   The Colorado Choral Director’s Board of Directors then selects the students based on the director’s recommendation.  A list is compiled of all the students and the top nominations are taken.   Vocalist are chosen that will balance out each vocal part.  The list is then sent back to each participating director notifying them of the selected students from their school.  The director’s also get a list of the music to be sung and spend the next two months teaching their students the music , in preparation for this event.  The C.C.D. select choir then comes together as a whole on a Monday in November to participate in an all day rehearsal on the Colorado Mesa University campus.  The culminating activity is a concert that night at Grand Junction High School where the CCD select choir sings their selections.  A Colorado Mesa University Choral group and the Grand Valley Children’s’ Choir also perform at this concert, with the culminating song for the night being a mass number sung by all three choirs.  

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* Information provided by Mr. Stan Scott, November 2013