West GA Choral Arts Festival
“West Georgia Choral Arts Festival 2023”will be held on
Saturday March 11th, 2023 with Conductor/Clinician: Andrew Harry!
Special featured choir on March 11th is the 2023 Troup County Middle School Honor Chorus with outstanding middle school choral students from: Callaway Middle School, Gardner Newman Middle School, and Long Cane Middle School – Samantha Cotton, Guest Conductor
The West Georgia Choral Arts Festival features, by invitation only, choirs from the West Georgia/East Alabama areas and provides them with a full day of rehearsing and performing great choral music together. Our geographic area is diversely rich in choral offerings, but rarely do the choirs ever perform together. This project brings a full choral contingency of singers ranging in age from eight to eighty together on the same stage under the direction of an outstanding guest choral conductor/clinician.
It began, in part, as a celebration of the Choral Society of West Georgia’s tenth anniversary in February, 2016. The result was a stunningly successful project in both size and scope. The festival brought nearly three hundred choral singers together. Each individual choir performing two chosen selections, with a grand finale performed by the Festival Collaborative Concert Choir.
All expenses: music, lunch, and concert venue, are underwritten by the Choral Society of West Georgia.
The West Georgia Choral Arts Festival 2017 featured two hundred and seventy five singers and was an equally dazzling success.
Listen to the 2017 West Georgia Choral Arts Festival recordings HERE.
The West Georgia Choral Arts Festival 2018 was co-partnered with the LaGrange College Music Department and was held March 10, 2018 in Callaway Auditorium.
Read all about the 2018 Festival and see photos HERE.
The West Georgia Choral Arts Festival 2019
Read all about the 2019 Festival and view photos HERE.
Noted Guest Directors/Clinicians
2016 Dr. Beth Everett, LaGrange College Choral Studies
2017 Dr. Byron Cartwright, Point University Fine Arts Chair
2018 Dr. Michelle Herring-Folta, Columbus State University Music Department
2019 Dr. Oliver (Nathan) Greene, Jr., Associate Professor of Music at Georgia State University
2020 Dr. Samuel Miller, Director of Choral Activities at LaGrange College
Past Performing Choral Ensembles
Callaway High School Chorus – Adam Wamsley, Director
The Choral Society of West Georgia – Elizabeth Biggs, Director
Faithful Hearts Women’s Ensemble – Sandy Blair, Director
LaGrange College Chamber Choir – Dr. Beth Everett, Director
LaGrange High School Women’s Chorus – Katie Trent, Director
Point University Singers – Dr. Byron Cartwright, Director
Sons of Lafayette Male Choir – Dr. Beth Everett, Director
Troup High School Women’s Chorus – Kathy Kirby, Director
Voices of the Valley Children’s Community Chorus – Dr. Michelle Herring Folta, Director
Young Singers of West Georgia – Stacey Hardigree, Director
LaFayette Christian School High School Choir – Darlene Shaw, Director
Masterworks Chorale – Newnan, Georgia – Kathy Bizarth, Director
CSU Phi Mu Alpha Men’s Ensemble – Josh Partridge, Director
First Baptist Music Makers Choir – Sally Traylor, Director
Long Cane Middle School Cougar Chorus – Asha Brown, Director
Harris County High School Bel Canto Women – Pam Pope, Director
Sons of Lafayette Male Choir – Darian Krimm, Director
Point University Concert Choir – Dr. Byron Cartwright, Director
The Choral Society of West Georgia – Elizabeth Biggs, Director
Atlanta Christian Fellowship Baptist Church – Dr. Oliver N. Greene, Jr., Director (collaborative festival choir only)
Personnel
Elizabeth Biggs, Program Director
Dr. Toni Anderson, LaGrange College Music Department Head
Directors or singers interested in performing with the West Georgia Choral Arts Festival should contact Elizabeth Biggs, Program Director via this email address: choralsocietyofwestgeorgia@gmail.com