The American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), headquartered in Oklahoma City

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Oklahoma City is the capital and the largest city in the state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, the city ranks 31st among United States cities in population. The city's population, from the 2010 census, was 579,999, with a metro-area population of 1,252,987 . In 2010, the Oklahoma...

, Oklahoma

Oklahoma

Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...

, is a non-profit organization with the stated purpose of promoting excellence in the field of choral music. Its membership comprises approximately 22,000 choral directors representing over a million singers.

Background information

ACDA is organized in seven Divisions, i.e., Central, Eastern, North Central, Northwestern, Southern, Southwestern, and Western. Every year, conferences with topics pertaining to choral conductors are held - in even numbered years, a division conference is held in each division, and in odd numbered years, a national conference takes place in a major U.S. city. In 2009, ACDA celebrated its 50th Anniversary in Oklahoma City; in 2011, the national conference will be held in Chicago, Illinois. James Madison University will be the host for the national chapter for 2011. Each year a different university hosts the yearly ACDA chapter.

Conductors can apply to have their choirs perform at these conferences through a blind audition

Blind audition

-Theatre:In the context of a theatrical audition, a blind audition is an audition for an actor where there is no script for them to read from and they have to improvise lines...

-CD process. Being accepted to sing at an ACDA conference is considered a great honor, both for a choir and for its conductor. Individual singers may also apply to sing with ACDA National Honor Choirs. About 300 singers are selected from around the country to sing in each national choir.

The official publication is the Choral Journal.

In addition to the division organization, a similar break out is done along specialization
lines. The specialties are:

• Boychoirs
• Children's Choirs
• College and University Choirs
• Community Choirs
• Ethnic and Multicultural Perspectives
• Jazz Choirs
• Junior High & Middle School Choirs
• Male Choirs
• Music in Worship
• Show Choirs
• Senior High School Choirs
• Two-Year College Choirs
• Women's Choirs
• Youth & Student Activities

Each specialty is organized under a Repertoire and Standards (R&S) Committee system, with a National Committee, Division Committees, and State chairpersons. The National Chairperson for each specialty is also a member of the National R&S Committee which meets annually to discuss issues common to all specialties.

Divisions

The Divisions are organized by state chapters as follows:

Eastern Division

• Connecticut
• Delaware
• Maine
• Maryland and District of Columbia
• Massachusetts
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New York
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• Vermont

Southern Division

• Alabama
• Florida
• Georgia
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Mississippi
• North Carolina
• South Carolina
• Tennessee
• Virginia
• West Virginia