4 UMSL singers represent Missouri, lend voices to all-collegiate choir at national conference

UMSL Daily

Last fall, when leaders of the Missouri Choral Directors Association were looking for a single quartet to sing on behalf of the Show-Me State, they chose the University of Missouri–St. Louis.
Music majors Emese Mattingly, Jayde Mitchell, Christopher Stanfill and Olivia Vaughn learned in November that they’d been selected for the National Collegiate Unity Honor Choir, which recently performed at the national conference of the American Choral Directors Association held in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Selected to sing at last month’s biennial American Choral Directors Association gathering were Department of Music upperclassmen (from left) Jayde Mitchell, Emese Mattingly, Olivia Vaughn and Christopher Stanfill. (Photo courtesy of Emese Mattingly)
“It was really an experience,” said Vaughn, a soprano, looking back on the performances and the ACDA conference itself. “I never want to miss another one.”
Following many weeks of individual and group preparation earlier this semester, the UMSL quartet enjoyed an all-expenses-paid trip last month to the biennial event alongside Associate Professor of Music Jim Henry and fellow UMSL student Maria Ellis, who also received funding to attend the conference.
“We had a performance that Friday night and a performance on Saturday, but Wednesday, Thursday and Friday were the rehearsals,” said Mattingly, an alto who is double majoring in music and English. “We really only had six hours, with everyone, to get this thing beautified.”
Joining their four voices with other quartets hailing from nearly all 50 states before a packed house at both performances, the UMSL students were amazed and impressed with how it all came together.
A gospel choir and children’s choir were featured during the all-collegiate unity concerts as well, with the overall repertoire taking the singers and audience members on a sweeping musical and historical journey.
“We started off with a Hebrew piece, and by the end we were doing a Harry Belafonte song,” Mattingly said. “ ...

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