Michigan State Children's Choir

The Michigan State University Children's Choir program began in 1993 with the founding of the MSU Community Music School. The program has a present membership of 150 singers in three choirs which represent twenty-three different school districts and communities. In August of 2002, The MSU Children’s Choir was honored to perform at the Sixth World Symposium on Choral Music as the official representative of the United States, and was a featured choir on the national NPR special broadcast highlighting concerts of the seven day symposium. The MSU Children’s Choir has been honored by their professional peers by being chosen to give performances at national, division, and state conventions of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA).

They have performed with conductors Neemi Jarvi and Leonard Slatkin, Gustav Meier, and Leon Gregorian. They have appeared in concert with William Bolcom and Joan Morris, the Canadian Brass, Peter Nero, Marilyn Horne and Marvin Hamlisch. Opera chorus engagements have included Bizet's Carmen, & Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel, as well as the national touring company’s performance of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. They sang in the premiere performance and recording of Symphony No. 4, The Gardens, by the Pulitzer Prize–winning composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, along with MSU choral ensembles and the MSU Symphony Orchestra.

Mary Alice Stollak is Director of Choral Activities for the Community Music School at Michigan State University, where she is the Founding Director of the MSU Children’s Choir. Before taking this position she was Associate Professor of Music at the University of Michigan, Flint. She also served as the choral director for the National High School Music Institute at Northwestern University for eighteen years. Recent conducting engagements include performances in Carnegie Hall; Orchestra Hall in Chicago; Illinois SATB All-State, Alabama SAB Junior High All-State; Texas-ACDA Elementary Honors Choir; Four-State (Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa) Honors Choir. Performances this year include a second engagement at Carnegie Hall; the National Cathedral in Washington D.C.; and Honors choirs in Kansas and South Carolina. In all, Stollak has conducted Junior and Senior High School All-State and Honors Choirs in fifteen states.

She was one of twenty-one American conductors to visit Germany as part of the IFCM/ACDA Conductor's Exchange and visited Sweden and Argentina in this capacity, where she was a conductor and clinician with children’s choirs. Her choirs have frequently appeared at National, Division and State ACDA conventions. The Michigan State University Children’s Choir, under her direction, performed at the 6th World Symposium on Choral Music in August of 2002 as the official U.S. representative. She has several articles published with her husband and co-author, Gary E. Stollak, in the Choral Journal. She also has articles published in the Music Educators Journal, and the NATS Journal. Her treble choral series is published by Santa Barbara Music Publishing Company. Mary Alice Stollak served as President of the ACDA Central Division, ACDA-Michigan and the Michigan School Vocal Music Association (MSVMA). She was the 2001 recipient of the Maynard Klein Award for Lifetime Achievement and Dedication to the Choral Art, given by the American Choral Directors Association of Michigan

Discography

Songs of Sorrow, Songs of Hope

Terezin Lieder
Tears
On A Sunny Evening
To Olga
I Dream Of Peace
Prelude "As If Nothing Happened"
I Am Speaking To You
War Is The Saddest Word
In My Dreams
Testimony
If I Were President
I Dream Of Peace
Ave Maria

The MSUCC, open to children in grades 4 through 9, has performed at many ACDA conventions and as guest artists with the Lansing, Rochester and MSU Symphonies. Choir founder Stollak directs them in a pair of dramatic works, Robert Jager's 6-movement "I Dream of Peace," from the 1993 book, "I Dream of Peace, Images of War by Children of the Former Yugoslavia," and Marjan Helms' "Terezin Lieder," a choral setting of poetry from "I Never Saw Another Butterfly," written by children interred at Terezin concentration camp. A touching, poignant, thought-provoking collection from a poised and talented children's choir

7921 CD $15.98

Songs From The Heart

My Hearts Friend
Marchin' To Freedom
Eilyahu Hanavi
Auld Lang Syne
Some Folks Do
Jeanie With The Light Brown Hair
Let All The World In Every Coner Sing
Hope
Jordan's Angels
For Elizabeth: Gold, Frank, Innocence, And Mirth
Ach! Synku Synku
Deep River
Epilogue From Simple Songs
Song Of The Stars
Roger Bobo Plays The Tuba
Hist whist (e.e. cummings)
Billy And Ming Do The Bebop Thing
My Lord, What A Morning

Mary Alice Stollak was the 2001 recipient of ACDA-MI's Maynard Klein Award for Lifetime Achievement and Dedication to the Choral Art, and recordings by her MSUCC show us why. 18 feel-good, lightly accompanied tunes. The songlist includes lesser-known pieces like Imant Raminsh's "My Heart's Friend" and "Song of the Stars," Rollo Dilworth's "Jordan's Angels" and "Marchin' to Freedom," Lee Kesselman's "Eiliyahu Hanavi," Brian Holmes' "Roger Bobo Plays the Tuba" and John Burge's "Epilogue from Simple Songs." Spirituals like "Deep River" and "My Lord What a Morning" segue into Stephen Foster's "Some Folks Do" and "Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair," and Ronald Newman and Sonny Wilkinson's "Billy and Ming Do the Bebop Thing." A fun, beautifully sung collection!

7923 CD $15.98

A Classic Christmas

Joy To The World
Manger Carol
Ave Maria
Wexford Carol
Oh, Leave Your Sheep
Silent Night
Ding Dong! Merrily On High
Alleluia
Sussex Carol
Angels We Have Heard On High
Still, Still, Still
O Come, All Ye Faithful

The MSU Children's Choir program began in 1993 with the founding of the MSU Community Music School. The program now has 145 singers representing 23 different school districts and communities. The Choir has been honored to perform at the 2002 6th World Symposium on Choral Music as the representative of the US, and at numerous conventions of the ACDA. Mary Alice Stollak directs the talented Choir in 12 exquisite (mostly organ accompanied) Christmas carols and a pair of sacred pieces, Bach's sublime "Ave Maria" and "Alleluia." There's some rarely heard French carols, "Manger Carol" and "Oh, Leave Your Sheep," English and Irish traditional carols, "Wexford Carol" and "Sussex Carol," and traditional German, "Still, Still, Still;" in additional to "Joy to the World," "Silent Night" and others. The Choir has a sweet, bright sound that makes "A Classic Christmas" a very special album.

7924 CD $15.98

What Sweeter Music

I Saw Three Ships
Bring A Torch, Jeannette, Isabella
A Cradle Song
La Bonne Nouvelle
Wassail Song
Hodie
Cantate Domino
Pat-A-Pan
Ding Dong! Merrily On High
What Sweeter Music
Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day
White Christmas
The Christmas Song
On Christmas Morn

"Music" is an excellent collection of Christmas Songs by Conductor and Founder Stollak's sweet-singing MSUCC, all lightly piano (and sometimes flute) accompanied. Classics like "I Saw Three Ships," "Bring A Torch, Jeanette Isabella," "Wassail Song," "Pat-a-Pan," "Ding Dong, Merrily on High" and "White Christmas" segue nicely into lesser-known tunes like Paul Carey's "A Cradle Song," Nancy Cobb's "Hodie," and Eleanor Daley's title tune. John Rutter's "Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day," Irving Berlin's "White Christmas" and Mel Torme's "The Christmas Song" are icing on a very tasty Christmas cake!

7922 CD $15.98

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