Two-Year College R&S Standards

Standards

The following standards list is a guide to assist conductors in developing and upholding the standards of the profession.

1. Repertoire Standards
   
   1. Achieve and maintain a level of performance skill and repertoire which, at a minimum, matches the expectations for trained college-age freshman and sophomores
   2. Perform music appropriate to quality college programs
   3. Seek out challenging and interesting repertoire
   4. Keep abreast of new repertoire by attending reading sessions, searching the internet, and attending concerts
   5. Educate choir members and audiences about the historic choral repertoire as well as new compositions
   6. Promote and perform music that educates singers about the music of various world cultures and of the cultures found in their own community
   7. Include a varied repertoire of sacred and secular genres and styles in order to broaden the choral and musical education of the singers
   8. Select music which allows for healthful voice-building and training within the choral rehearsal
   9. Perform music based upon worthwhile texts of literary significance
   10. Commission works for choral ensembles at the two-year college level
   11. Research and incorporate authentic performance practices appropriate to the genre and stylistic period of the music performed
   12. Advocate for quality compositions and encourage other conductors to perform quality music
2. Professional Standards
   
   1. Become involved in professional organizations such as ACDA
   2. Attend conferences at the local, state, division, and national level
   3. Advocate for both the direct and associative educational advantages of a strong music program at two-year colleges
   4. Place ensembles on an equal experiential level with other ensembles at two- and four-year institutions by allowing comparable travel, audition, and social opportunities
   5. Place ensembles on an equal musical level with other ensembles at two- and four-year institutions by programming, performing, and teaching quality music with diversity, voice-training, theory training, historical and technical perspective, and joy
   6. Teach sight-reading regularly and make music literacy a priority
   7. Seek out associations with other two-year and four-year college programs
   8. Provide masterclasses and guest conductors at at one’s institution to widen singers’ understanding of singing and the choral art
   9. Explore and acquire performance opportunities in the community, to reinforce the function and definition of a ‘choral program’ in the community or two-year college
   10. Listen to recordings of excellent choirs to develop an ear for choral tone quality
   11. Study vocal pedagogy in order to teach healthy singing technique in the choral ensemble
   12. Read journal articles and books pertaining to the vocal training and the choral art
   13. Show support for choral composers and publishers by not illegally photocopying music
   14. Participate in and promote festivals and other events for two- and four-year college choirs
   15. Study choral acoustics and relate the information to standing arrangements, spacing, rehearsal halls and performance spaces