What is an Honor Choir?

ACDA Honor Choirs Mission Statement:

The purpose of ACDA honor choirs is to provide a positive, quality musical experience that transcends a singers’ traditional level of expertise and to expose singers, chaperones and ACDA members to exceptional clinicians and accompanists and superior choral literature.

-- from the ACDA Honor Choir Policies & Procedures Handbook, 2007 Revised Edition

ACDA-PA annually sponsors two honor choirs at the state summer conference.  These summer honor choirs usually feature a junior high/middle school ensemble, and a rotation of various other R&S areas.  Past summer honor choirs have included: Elementary/Children's Choir, Vocal Jazz, Multicultural, Music in Worship, High School, and Student/Director side-by-side groups.

In addition to the summer conference honor choirs, ACDA-PA has partnered with PMEA: the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association in co-sponsoring an Elementary/Middle School honor choir at their state annual conference for several years.  This honor choir affords students who are too young for the PMEA competitive festival system (district, region, all-state) to perform for a larger audience representing directors from across the commonwealth.

Divisionally and nationally, ACDA holds honor choirs at their respective conferences.  These honor choirs are an extraordinary opportunity for singers to join in collaboration with others from many different states, working with an exceptional and well-accomplished guest conductor.