By Dana Self, Upper School Performing Arts Teacher
MICDS had one student selected to perform with the 2026 Missouri All-State Choir and two students named Honorable Mention. A total of 192 singers from throughout the state of Missouri are selected to perform each year with this prestigious choir. Four students from throughout the St. Louis Metropolitan area were selected for each voice part, along with two alternates per voice part, following a challenging audition process.
Round one of the blind audition process was held in early October. Each student performed a 90-second vocal solo for a panel of three adjudicators, where they were evaluated on their tone quality, intonation, rhythm and pitch accuracy, diction, and overall musical effect. Following their solo audition, each student had 20 seconds to study and perform two challenging sight-singing examples and identify two randomly selected key signatures. The top 20 juniors and seniors in each voice part from throughout the St. Louis Metro area were given the opportunity to advance to round two in the audition process.
On Thursday, November 6, 2025, MICDS hosted the 2026 Missouri All-State Choir auditions. During this second round of blind auditions, each student prepared and performed the same choral work, O Sing Joyfully, by Adrian Batten (1591-1637). The students were evaluated on the same criteria as in round one, with their scores from round one being added to the scores in round two. The top four scoring students in each voice part are named to the Missouri All-State Choir.
Soprano Reina Banerjee ’27 was selected to perform with the 2026 Missouri All-State Choir.
Congratulations to Ezra Ewald ’27, soprano, and Milton Duckworth ’27, bass, for being named Missouri All-State Choir Honorable Mention in recognition of their excellent audition preparation and strong performance.
The Missouri All-State Choir will perform on Saturday, January 31, 2026, as the finale of the Missouri Music Educators Association In-Service Workshop and Conference at Tan-Tar-A Conference Center. The conductor will be Dr. Edith Copley, a Regent’s Professor Emeritus at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, where she conducted the highly acclaimed Shrine of the Ages Choir. Dr. Copley was the conductor of the Master Chorale of Flagstaff, a 100-voice community chorus, which she directed for 23 years, in addition to serving as the chorusmaster for the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra for 27 years.
Bravo to Reina, Ezra, and Milton!