OWU Honor Choir Festival

The Ohio Wesleyan University Performing Arts Department is excited to announce the OWU Honor Choir Festival for choir students in grades 7-12. Music students and their directors are invited to rehearse and perform with our distinguished conductors and applied music faculty.

Payment & Forms

Announcement

The Monday, November 9, 2026 honor choir check-in and rehearsals are in:

• High School – University Hall's Gray Chapel
• Middle School – Hamilton-Williams Campus Center's Benes Rooms

The Honor Choir Festival 6:30 p.m. Performance is in University Hall's Gray Chapel. We will transport your child to Gray Chapel. You will pick up your child at Gray Chapel after the concert.

Featured Experience

There will be a concert in historic Gray Chapel inside University Hall on Monday, November 9, 2026 at 6:30 p.m.

Festival highlights for all students:

• Rehearsals with featured Conductors
• Optional Note-Learning Session and Vocal Masterclass with OWU faculty
• Two meals catered by OWU's The Table at Ham-Wil dining hall (lunch and dinner) in the Hamilton-Williams Campus Center.
• Grand Finale Concert performance in Gray Chapel – with OWU Choral Arts Society
• Full production concert video with live stream

Festival Fees

$55 per student covers all festival activities with conductors and full dining hall lunch & dinner.  Festival fees not received by the due date (Monday, October 12, 2026) may result in the loss of a student's spot in their ensemble. Fees may be paid online or by check. See Payment & Forms for details.

Note-Learning Session: Saturday, November 7, 2026 from 1-2:30 p.m. at OWU in Sanborn Hall for both High School and Middle School choirs. Followed by a voice masterclass for High School vocal students led by OWU voice faculty from 2:30-3:30 p.m.

Festival Schedule

Note-Learning Session and Vocal Masterclass

• Note-Learning Session – Saturday, November 7, 2026 from 1-2:30 p.m.
• Vocal Masterclass – Saturday, November 7, 2026 from 2:30-3:30 p.m.

Date of Festival

• Monday, November 9, 2026.

Check-In Times

8-8:30 a.m. for both ensembles: 

• Middle School Choir: Benes Rooms inside Hamilton-Williams Campus Center
• High School Choir: Jemison Hall inside Sanborn Hall

Grand Finale Concert

• 6:30 p.m. at Gray Chapel in University Hall
• Note: It is not required for the parent to take their child to Gray Chapel after dinner before the Grand Finale concert. We will provide transportation.

Rehearsal times include multiple activities at the conductor's discretion to balance rehearsal goals with student endurance. In addition to rehearsing festival music, holding sectionals, or leading music games, the High School ensemble will break every 90 minutes and the Middle School ensemble will break approximately every 60 minutes.

Choir Enrollment & Nomination Process

Membership in honor choir is selective based on music teacher nominations. Nominations are due September 28, 2026. Instructions as to how and where to nominate students can be found on the Nominations page.

Timeline in Preparation for the 2026 OWU Honor Choir Festival

• Nominations Due: September 28, 2026
• Payment Due: October 12, 2026
• Note-Learning Session: Saturday, November 7, 2026 from 1-2:30 p.m., Vocal Masterclass from 2:30-3:30 p.m., both at Sanborn Hall
• Festival Day: Monday, November 9, 2026 at 8 a.m. at Sanborn Hall