High School Choir
Policies and Procedures

Auditions are open to students in grades 9-12.

Eligibility
Since the ECKMEA High School Choir, State HS Choirs, and ECKMEA Middle Level Choirs include 9th graders, it is up to the director's professional discretion to decide which of these opportunities is best for his/her 9th graders as individuals. If a 9th grade student is registered to audition for the ECKMEA High School Choir, that student is NOT eligible to be submitted for the ECKMEA Middle Level Choir. See Middle Level Choir Policies for more information on Middle Level policies and procedures. Any student auditioning or submitted for more than one group will be disqualified from participation at the district level.

Registration
Each school is allowed to register a maximum of 40 singers, including no more than 12 singers per voice part (twelve sopranos, twelve altos, twelve tenors, twelve basses). If a school does not enter the maximum twelve singers on any part, additional singers cannot be added to other voice parts. No substitutions will be allowed on audition day. Only students registered by the deadline will be eligible for the KMEA All-State Choirs. Students entered as late auditions are only eligible for the ECKMEA District Choirs.

9th graders are eligible for either a middle level OR high school level track. 9th grade students registered for ECKMEA Middle Level Choir may NOT audition for the ECKMEA High School Choir.

Ensembles and Voicing
ECKMEA will have an SATB choir and an SSAA choir. Audition scores will be used to populate these choirs on an alternating and rotating system. For example, the top soprano 1 score is placed in the SATB choir, the next score placed in the SSAA, and so on. The following year, the top score goes to the SSAA choir. ECKMEA may require students to learn a part different than their specific audition part in order to ensure balanced voicing in the honor choirs. Sopranos and Altos earning membership to state choir may or may not be placed in the similarly voiced choir for state. Audition Repertoire: The audition pieces and information concerning the mp3 practice files may be found by visiting ksmea.org/hschoir. Students will sing a portion of each selection for the audition. Audition cuts will be posted on the ECKMEA website by 8:00 AM on the Friday morning before auditions. Directors should share these audition cuts with their students so that the cuts are marked in music prior to audition day. After the repertoire portion is complete, students will remain in the room to perform the sight-reading portion of the audition. (See Sight Reading Procedures) Audition Times and Blocks: Participating schools will be assigned times in either the morning or afternoon session, all students form each school auditioning during the same session. AM/PM session lists will be published on the ECKMEA website after the registration deadline so the number of auditions within the blocks can be balanced.

Audition Check-In Procedures
All students auditioning in the morning must report to the check in table by 7:30 AM or they will not be permitted to audition. Students auditioning in the afternoon must report to the check in table by 12:30 PM or they will not be permitted to audition. Special scheduling requests must be made by the director through the audition chair. Students should bring audition music and a pencil. Dress is casual. Upon check in, students will receive a nametag with audition number, place the name tag in an easily visible place on their clothing, then move into the auditorium to receive instructions and to hear a recording of all audition passages as well as sight-singing instructions. Students should have cuts marked in both excerpts prior to arrival. Audition excerpts will be played every 30 minutes. Audition numbers will be called in order to move from the auditorium to the audition rooms.

Audition Process
Auditions are blind: students will not see judges, and judges will not see students. No student should speak or move into the view of judges while in the audition room. The door monitor will announce the student's audition number. After the audition selections are complete, a recording will begin to initiate the sight-singing process. (See Sight-Singing Procedures). Three judges will individually score the student's performance. If you have a student who is visually impaired, please contact the high school choir chair prior to the audition so that the necessary accommodations can be made.