Hello and Welcome 

     Concert Choir has been a staple ensemble at Rio Linda High School and was established in 1962.
Mr. Murray has taken the reins of this ensemble again after 10 wonderful years of having one of the finest vocal instructors in the Sacramento area, Ms. Prax, directing the ensemble. Ms. Prax has since moved to Foothill High School and is doing amazing things there. This ensemble has had the name(s) Beginning Choir, Beginning/Advanced Choir, and Concert Choir. As of today (6/3/2025) we will be calling it Voce di Rio (Voices of Rio).

     The ensemble, over the years, has performed at the Music In The Parks Music Festival - Santa Clara, Vallejo, and Anaheim and the District Festival of the Arts. We are looking to expand and attend the Golden Empire Music Festival and the Sacramento Area Honor Choir this next year. 

     We will be reviewing music fundamentals which include, but are not limited to:
*Names of the lines and spaces (note names), rest / note durations, accidentals, articulations,
          *dynamics, styles for the works we will be learning and performing.
          *We will be conversant in the musical roadmap: Clef(s), Key, Time and, Tempo, Further we will be
            working on chords, chord structures, tuning chords vocally, and learning to play the Major, minor and other chords as they appear in our literature.

     We will be focusing on melodic phrasing and the harmonies that accompany the piece of music they will be performing. We will study beginning to intermediate vocal techniques which include: vowel placement, breathing for singing, intonation, etc. 

     The three I's will be a constant, steady mantra in all of the vocal classes: In Tune, In Tone, In Time. Followed shortly after with the two B's: Balance and Blend.

     We will be performing difficulty level 1 to 2.5 songs of the solid literature that makes a great Concert Choir. Some of those style periods will be the Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic, 20th Century, Folk, Spirituals, and the National Anthem (as soloists, trios, quartets and a choir) / Alma Mater. Mr. Murray may even write a tune or two for the ensemble when they are ready.

    This ensemble is not limited in size. In fact, we would like to see a concert choir (Voce di Rio), Vox Equitum, and a Chamber Choir over the next couple of years. Voce di Rio could be up to 60 students (equally set in the SATB format), Vox Equitum will be capped at 24 and Chamber Choir would be capped at 16. 

     We perform on risers and will have choir mics to help with sound reinforcement. Solos, when there are some, will be a walk to a solo mic as opposed to the vocal jazz which is "one on a mic" for their performances.

     You will be expected to hold your part as part of a quartet in rehearsals and on stage. We will be doing from 2 to 4 part harmony plus a solo line. Currently we perform with tracks. As an accompanist becomes available we will work with that person.

Connectivity

We will use the following for communications throughout the year:
          The Band App - This is for instantaneous connections - need to be here now, kind of thing. We send information home on the app as well. Your parent /
          guardian are encouraged to be on the app. We will show you how to get it and get connected.
          eMail - As always we will send information home via email (the communications portal in Aeries).
          Printed materials - These are things that we will send home, from us to you to your folks, and need to be signed and returned in a specified time line.

Performances

     We will have three home performances (Winter Concert, Spring Concert, and Pops Concert) as well as a performance at the District Festival Of The Arts. 

     We will attend a few festivals each year. The ones with an " * " are confirmed and the ones with the " ^" are open for discussion.

Songs we are contemplating:

Wayfaring Stranger - Arranged by Cassandra Emerson
Kyrie Eleison - Music by Mary Donnelly, Arranged by George L. O. Strid
Seasons of Love - Written by: Jonathan Larson, Arranged by: Roger Emerson

Golden Empire Music Festival - 4/18/26
Music In The Parks Music Festival - Whole Department (Vallejo CA)* - 5/2/26
We will have other "outside" performances. We will be singing Christmas Carols in December for the Christmas Parade in Rio Linda. And as they come up I will let you know and see if we can do them.
National Anthem - This year we will be learning the national anthem as a soloist, trio, quartet, and choir.

2025 - 2026 
Performance Dates & Repertoire 

Winter Concert (December 11, 2025) -
Kyrie Eleison - Music by Mary Donnelly, Arranged by George L. O. Strid

Spring Concert (March 19, 2026)
Wayfaring Stranger - Arranged by Cassandra Emerson

District Festival  (March 25, 2026)
Song 1 - Will There Really Be A Morning? - Ruth Morris Gray
Song 2 - Furaha! - by Sally K. Albrecht

Golden Empire Music Festival (April XX, 2026)
Other than the District Festival of the Arts, and Music In The Parks, this will be the first time in the history of the school that the "concert" choirs will be going to this festival.

Opener - Wayfaring Stranger - Arranged by Cassandra Emerson
Ballad - Kyrie Eleison - Music by Mary Donnelly, Arranged by George L. O. Strid
Closer -  Seasons of Love - Written by: Jonathan Larson, Arranged by: Roger Emerson

Spring Tour - Six Flags MITP - Vallejo (May 2, 2026)

Opener - Wayfaring Stranger - Arranged by Cassandra Emerson
Ballad - Kyrie Eleison - Music by Mary Donnelly, Arranged by George L. O. Strid
Closer -  Seasons of Love - Written by: Jonathan Larson, Arranged by: Roger Emerson

Pops Concert - (May 14, 2026)
Opener - Will There Really Be A Morning? - Ruth Morris Gray
Closer - Seasons of Love - Written by: Jonathan Larson, Arranged by: Roger Emerson

Uniforms
Ladies: Concert Dresses, black closed toe flats (no more than 1 inch heels).

Gentlemen: 2-piece tuxedos, white white tuxedo shirts and black bow ties, black dress shoes (no boots), black dress socks.

You will have a Music Handbook packet to fill out and sign, as will your parental unit(s) (parents, guardians, etc.)

Fundraising - All funds that are raised via a fundraising effort sponsored by the Music Department (regardless of where it is held) remains in the department should you decide to leave the ensemble. 

Travel - Beginning 2021 we changed our travel patterns. We will be going to local festivals and one big festival each year. If something comes up, festival-wise, we will discuss it at length and determine if we want to do it.

MrM

2025 - 2026
Schedule for Voce di Rio

  2025

Date                           What is the performance                            Required? 

12/11/2025               Winter Concert (Large Gym)                           Required
    12/13/2025 Christmas Caroling - Rio Linda Required

2026

Date                           What is the performance                                       Required?

02/XX/2026 Small Ensemble Concert Required
    03/18/2026       District Festival of the Arts (w/tracks)     Required
    03/26/2026 Spring Concert (Large Gym) Required

                           04/18/2026   Golden Empire Music Festival - All Day   Required

05/02/2026               Department Spring Tour – Vallejo Six Flags            Required

05/08/2026 National Anthem Auditions Required

05/14/2025               Pops Concert / Awards Ceremony                          Required

From the beginning of the program, 2005-2006, the rules for performances and tech rehearsals are:

You must attend all vocal performances that have been listed at the outset of the year as well as the rehearsals known as combo rehearsals or tech rehearsals (these are required). If we get a performance that doesn't give you at least 2 weeks advance notice that performance is up for debate.  If you should choose to miss a performance and/or a tech/combo rehearsal you will fail this class for the entire semester. Performances are not optional. Tech/Combo Rehearsals are NOT optional.

A family emergency is: mother, father, brother, sister, grandmother, grandfather have had a life threatening injury or accident (all others are not valid), or a death of said family members. Not my great aunt has to fill out her EBT forms. This is an academic, CSU/UC  "F"  credit bearing class/ensemble. No other excuses will trigger the "save my grade" portion of the grading policy.

To save your grade from missing a performance and/or a tech/combo rehearsal that your director has deemed worthy of triggering  you must do the following:

You are to write a 5,000 word essay in APA format
The title is "Vocal Music and it's Growth in the 20th Century."
You must attend a vocal performance of either a CSUS or ARC vocal jazz performance as set forth by your director.
You must get a program for said performance and have 3 players/singers and the director (if possible) sign the program
You must connect what they performed to your paper in such a way that we can see the way music has grown through out the 20th century.