High School Choral Festival

17Feb2024 APM Festval (61 of 122)

 

ABOUT THE 2027 FESTIVAL

Albany Pro Musica’s annual Pro Musica High School Choral Festival is now in its 27th year – and you are invited! We are thrilled host the 2027 Festival this year at the University at Albany. This season’s Festival brings exciting opportunities, challenging and interesting repertoire, and a world-class vocal educator as our guest conductor!

Presented by Albany Pro Musica
with Guest Conductor Elizabeth Eschen Cacciola

Saturday, January 23, 2027
University at Albany

Festival Finale Concert: 6:00 PM
Featuring the Student Festival Chorus and Cantantes Pro Musica, APM’s chamber ensemble

Tickets Available Soon!

This year’s guest conductor is the former Resident Conductor of the Radcliffe Choral Society and Director of the Holden Voice Program at Harvard University, Elizabeth (Liz) Eschen Cacciola. As a mezzo-soprano, Liz’s singing career spans everything from new music (Lorelei Ensemble founding member) to opera (Boston Lyric Opera’s 2016 Carmen) to musical theatre (Ensemble in the 2016 Studio Cast Album of Hunchback of Notre Dame), and she finds herself now enjoying a career in choral music and solo oratorio. Liz works with students of all ages and meets them wherever they are on their musical journey. Her students have earned entrance into top voice programs and Honors choirs across the country, and perhaps more importantly, have been inspired to make singing an integral part of their lives. Liz has chosen an exciting program of music for this festival, which will be announced to singers in December.  

Highlights include: 

  • Full day of rehearsals, sectionals, lunch, and concert at the University at Albany  
  • Select Honor Choir of 24 students, who will rehearse and perform one work during the concert 
    • This year, all Honor Choir students are automatically admitted to the highly competitive, week-long Pro Musica International Choral Festival — no additional auditions required. The Festival is led by Rollo Dilworth and will be held on the Queen’s University campus (Kingston, Ontario) from July 19-24, 2027. Festival tuition, room and board, and transportation to and from Kingston are covered in full for all Honor Choir singers!  

 

APPLICATIONS 

All interested students must submit their own individual application. Choral directors are encouraged to share the Festival information with any of their students whom they feel would be interested and capable of preparing the music to sing at an exceptional level, and to recommend outstanding students for the Honor Choir. Albany Pro Musica will review all applications with an eye toward school representation and ensemble balance, and will seek input from directors as needed. 

HONOR CHOIR

The Festival Honor Choir is an auditioned chamber ensemble of 24 students who prepare a special piece to perform as a featured group during the concert under the direction of Dr. José Daniel Flores-Caraballo. 

This season, Honor Choir participants also have automatic entry into the Pro Musica International Choral Festival (July 19-24, 2027), with all expenses covered; full participation in both programs is expected for all accepted Honor Choir students. 

Please note the following mandatory dates and deadlines for Honor Choir applicants:

  • December 1, 2026                   Teacher recommendation form due
  • December 2 or 3, 2026          Student auditions at SUNY Schenectady (6:30-9:30 pm)
  • January 19, 2027                    Rehearsal with Maestro Flores-Caraballo at UAlbany (8:30-9:30pm)
  • July 19-24, 2027                     Pro Musica International Choral Festival in Kingston, Ontario


PARTICIPATION FEE

There is a participation fee of $25 per student to be paid to Albany Pro Musica AFTER students are accepted. This fee covers lunch and sheet music expenses. APM is committed to providing a high-quality educational experience to students regardless of their financial situation. If the participation fee presents a hardship for any student, we encourage you to seek support from your school booster clubs or friends of music/arts organizations. Please reach out to APM Operations Director (Jared Shortmeier at jared@albanypromusica.org) if there is any further need for assistance.

APPLICATION PROCEDURES

  1. General Application: Every student must complete and submit the online application by Tuesday, December 1, 2026. 
  2. Honor Choir ONLY:  
    1. Recommendation Form: High School Choral Directors must submit a teacher recommendation form for students who plan to audition for the Festival Honor Choir; these are due by Tuesday, December 1, 2026.  
    2. Audition: Students applying for the Honor Choir must attend an audition on Wednesday or Thursday, December 2 or 3, 2026. Audition timeslots will be between 6:30-9:30 pm.  
  3. Application review: Albany Pro Musica will review all applications during the first week of December. During that time, we may contact teachers for additional input about their students; please be sure to check your email for communication.  
  4. Acceptance Notifications: Students will be notified by Monday, December 14, 2026 if they have been accepted or placed on our waiting list. 
  5. Festival Materials: Accepted students will gain access to their digital music & learning tracks on December 14, 2026. 

 

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