Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What are the different choirs at Mayde Creek and how
is my student's placement determined?
Just as there are different levels in other
subject areas, it is also necessary to have different levels within the choir
program. All choirs are equally important performing organizations.
The six choirs available at Mayde Creek are:
For more information on each of the choirs and the placement guidelines see
our Choir page.
How does the All-State process work?
The All-State audition process for high school
choir students leads ultimately to qualification in one of three All-State
Choirs that perform at the annual TMEA Clinic/Convention: Women’s Choir, Men’s
Choir, and Mixed Choir.
Music for the All-State auditions will be made available for purchase during
the summer months. By early August, practice tracks will be available for
students to download from the website or on CD which can be obtained from Mr. Alcala.
Students may also choose to attend one of the many All-State Choir
Camps that are offered during the summer at university campuses around the state
of Texas.
All-State is the highest honor a Texas music student can receive. This
competitive process begins in September with the District Auditions. At this
audition (which includes 100′s of students) individual students perform selected
music for a panel of judges who rank each voice part. From this ranking, a
select group of musicians (usually around 40 students per voice part) advances
from their District to compete against students from other Districts in the
Region Auditions. These auditions are held on a Saturday and take most of the
day.
The Region Auditions are identical to the District auditions except that
there are fewer students and the music selected for the auditions is different.
The highest-ranking voices judged at the Region Auditions (usually the top 15 on
each voice part) will advance to the Pre-Area Auditions. All students who
are ranked in the top 40 in their voice part will perform in a Region Choir
Concert. These auditions are held on a Saturday and take most of the
day.
Students who were selected to continue to the Pre-Area auditions will
audition again, with different music than was used in the first two auditions
and will also be judged on sight reading. The top 5 students on each voice part
will advance to the Area auditions where they will compete against the other
Areas in the state. These auditions usually take place one evening after
school and go until around 10PM.
The Area auditions also consist of selections of music as well as sight
reading. Students judged at the TMEA Area competitions qualify to perform
in a TMEA All-State music group. These All-State students participate in three
days of rehearsals directed by nationally recognized conductors during the
annual state TMEA Clinic/Convention. Their performances before thousands of
attendees bring this extraordinary event to a close.
Parent volunteers will be needed as chaperones for the District, Region and
Pre-Area auditions.
What is the UIL Solo & Ensemble
Contest?
Each year, usually in the early Spring,
students are required to participate in the UIL Solo & Ensemble Contest.
This competition is held on a Saturday and take most of the day.
Parent volunteers will be needed to chaperone this event. Students should
dress in attire like they would wear to a nice event or church — no jeans or
shorts.
The students will select (choir directors and voice teachers often help in
the music selection process) a piece of music appropriate to their ability to
learn and then perform in front of a judge. On the day of the contest, the
student will sing in front of one judge and will be judged on a number of
qualities (including tone, technique, interpretation and general effect).
Rankings range from 1 (highest) to 3 (lowest). Students receiving a 1 on a level
1 solo may choose to participate in the UIL Texas State Solo & Ensemble
Contest (TSSEC) at the end of the school year.
What is Follies?
Follies is the school wide talent show and any kid that is enrolled in choir can
participate in the show after they audition.
What is UIL?
UIL Concert and Sight-reading contest is held
each year during the Spring semester. This is a choir competition rather
than an individual competition.
Each choir will perform 3 pieces of music. At least one of the pieces
must be sung A cappella. They will be judged by three judges and will
receive a ranking based on their performance. Following their concert,
they will be taken to the sight-reading room, where they will be given a piece
of music they have never seen before. They will be 6 minutes to practice
before they must perform it for the judges. They will again be ranked
based on their performance.
Parent chaperones will be required to accompany each choir.
What Volunteer opportunities are there?
There are many opportunities for you to get involved with choir at Mayde
Creek. For more information on getting involved please see our Booster Club
Volunteer Opportunities page.
What does the Booster Club do and how do I sign
up?
The Booster Club at Mayde Creek is very active. In addition to
organizing many of the extra curricular events during the year, the Booster
Club also works hard to provide extra funding for the choir. For more
information on Booster Club activities see our Booster Club General
Information page.
We encourage all parents to join the Booster Club. For more information on
pricing and to download the form see our Booster Club Membership page.
is my student's placement determined?
Just as there are different levels in other
subject areas, it is also necessary to have different levels within the choir
program. All choirs are equally important performing organizations.
The six choirs available at Mayde Creek are:
- Concert Men
- Concert Women
- Chamber Women
- Kantori
- Chorale Women
- Taking Notes
For more information on each of the choirs and the placement guidelines see
our Choir page.
How does the All-State process work?
The All-State audition process for high school
choir students leads ultimately to qualification in one of three All-State
Choirs that perform at the annual TMEA Clinic/Convention: Women’s Choir, Men’s
Choir, and Mixed Choir.
Music for the All-State auditions will be made available for purchase during
the summer months. By early August, practice tracks will be available for
students to download from the website or on CD which can be obtained from Mr. Alcala.
Students may also choose to attend one of the many All-State Choir
Camps that are offered during the summer at university campuses around the state
of Texas.
All-State is the highest honor a Texas music student can receive. This
competitive process begins in September with the District Auditions. At this
audition (which includes 100′s of students) individual students perform selected
music for a panel of judges who rank each voice part. From this ranking, a
select group of musicians (usually around 40 students per voice part) advances
from their District to compete against students from other Districts in the
Region Auditions. These auditions are held on a Saturday and take most of the
day.
The Region Auditions are identical to the District auditions except that
there are fewer students and the music selected for the auditions is different.
The highest-ranking voices judged at the Region Auditions (usually the top 15 on
each voice part) will advance to the Pre-Area Auditions. All students who
are ranked in the top 40 in their voice part will perform in a Region Choir
Concert. These auditions are held on a Saturday and take most of the
day.
Students who were selected to continue to the Pre-Area auditions will
audition again, with different music than was used in the first two auditions
and will also be judged on sight reading. The top 5 students on each voice part
will advance to the Area auditions where they will compete against the other
Areas in the state. These auditions usually take place one evening after
school and go until around 10PM.
The Area auditions also consist of selections of music as well as sight
reading. Students judged at the TMEA Area competitions qualify to perform
in a TMEA All-State music group. These All-State students participate in three
days of rehearsals directed by nationally recognized conductors during the
annual state TMEA Clinic/Convention. Their performances before thousands of
attendees bring this extraordinary event to a close.
Parent volunteers will be needed as chaperones for the District, Region and
Pre-Area auditions.
What is the UIL Solo & Ensemble
Contest?
Each year, usually in the early Spring,
students are required to participate in the UIL Solo & Ensemble Contest.
This competition is held on a Saturday and take most of the day.
Parent volunteers will be needed to chaperone this event. Students should
dress in attire like they would wear to a nice event or church — no jeans or
shorts.
The students will select (choir directors and voice teachers often help in
the music selection process) a piece of music appropriate to their ability to
learn and then perform in front of a judge. On the day of the contest, the
student will sing in front of one judge and will be judged on a number of
qualities (including tone, technique, interpretation and general effect).
Rankings range from 1 (highest) to 3 (lowest). Students receiving a 1 on a level
1 solo may choose to participate in the UIL Texas State Solo & Ensemble
Contest (TSSEC) at the end of the school year.
What is Follies?
Follies is the school wide talent show and any kid that is enrolled in choir can
participate in the show after they audition.
What is UIL?
UIL Concert and Sight-reading contest is held
each year during the Spring semester. This is a choir competition rather
than an individual competition.
Each choir will perform 3 pieces of music. At least one of the pieces
must be sung A cappella. They will be judged by three judges and will
receive a ranking based on their performance. Following their concert,
they will be taken to the sight-reading room, where they will be given a piece
of music they have never seen before. They will be 6 minutes to practice
before they must perform it for the judges. They will again be ranked
based on their performance.
Parent chaperones will be required to accompany each choir.
What Volunteer opportunities are there?
There are many opportunities for you to get involved with choir at Mayde
Creek. For more information on getting involved please see our Booster Club
Volunteer Opportunities page.
What does the Booster Club do and how do I sign
up?
The Booster Club at Mayde Creek is very active. In addition to
organizing many of the extra curricular events during the year, the Booster
Club also works hard to provide extra funding for the choir. For more
information on Booster Club activities see our Booster Club General
Information page.
We encourage all parents to join the Booster Club. For more information on
pricing and to download the form see our Booster Club Membership page.