2026 Nebraska All-State ChorusPAGE QUICK LINKS
2026 ALL-STATE CHORUS CONDUCTOR BIOA Virginia native, Dr. Marques L. A. Garrett (he/him) is An active conductor, Marques is the founding conductor of the Nebraska Festival Singers and previously served as artistic director of the Omaha Symphonic Chorus. He serves as a guest conductor or clinician with school, church, and community choirs throughout the country in addition to festival, honor, and all-state choirs in Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Florida, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. Among his most recent engagements were with the Colorado, Michigan, and South Carolina All-State Mixed Choirs. In 2022, he and the UNL Chamber Singers won second place in the American Prize’s Choral Performance—College/University Division—Larger Program’s category. His formal conducting studies were with Dr. André J. Thomas, Dr. Carole J. Ott, Dr. Carl G. Harris, Jr., and Mr. Royzell Dillard. He is an avid composer of choral and solo-vocal music whose compositions have been performed to acclaim by high school all-state, collegiate, and professional choirs including the Los Angeles Master Chorale, Oakwood University Aeolians, and National Lutheran Choir. His music is available through more than ten publishers. He has been commissioned by the Cincinnati Youth Choir, The Concordia Choir, Harvard University, Mendelssohn Chorus of Philadelphia, UNT A Cappella Choir, and Westminster Choir College. Among his latest commissions is his largest work to date, Dreamland: Tulsa 1921. This collaborative work with librettist Sandra Seaton for tenor-bass chorus, soloists, and chamber orchestra was commissioned by the Turtle Creek Chorale to tell the story of the Greenwood district of Tulsa, Oklahoma. As a researcher, his most advantageous topic is the non-idiomatic choral music of Black composers. His lectures at state and regional conferences of the American Choral Directors Association and at other local and national venues afford him the opportunity to showcase this underrepresented area of music resulting in the anthology The Oxford Book of Choral Music by Black Composers released in February 2023. His peer-reviewed presentations and headlining events for conferences and organizations have been in Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Kansas, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, North Dakota, South Dakota, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Canada. He serves as co-editor of the “Out from the Shadows” Series with Gentry Publications. Chorus America recognized Dr. Garrett’s contributions to the choral community with the 2023 Brazeal Wayne Dennard Award. He holds membership in the American Choral Directors Association; American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers; National Association of Negro Musicians; National Collegiate Choral Organization; and Pi Kappa Lambda. For more information, visit www.mlagmusic.com. 2026 ALL-STATE CHORUS REPERTOIRE
2026 ALL-STATE REGISTRATION & AUDITION DATES
AUDITIONS MANUAL & REGION LOOKUP GUIDEClick the link below to view the Auditions Manual for auditioned All-State ensembles. You can use the Table of Contents to jump to any specific area in the manual. Please read through this document carefully as it contains important information including All-State eligibility requirements and other policies, contact information, step-by-step instructions on how to navigate Festival Scores, and more. REMINDER: The link to the NMEA Festival Scores page is included in the All-State Auditions Manual. Please access it there so you can also review the helpful tips and instructions provided throughout the document. All-State Auditions ManualChorus directors will also need to reference the All-State Chorus Region Lookup Guide. This is specifically needed to see how voice splits should be handled. ABOUT 3-PART VOICE SPLITS: In a 3 part voice split, the top note will go to the firsts of that section, and the seconds will split the bottom based on region: evens take the middle, and odds take the bottom. For example: Soprano 1 will take the top note, and Soprano 2 will split the bottom two notes based on audition regions. Even regions take the middle note, and odd regions take the bottom. This specifically happens in Ong-Hye-Ya. All-State Chorus Region Lookup Guide2026 ALL-STATE CHORUS AUDITION MATERIALSNMEA will utilize the services of Festival Scores to collect student auditions. Auditions will include:
All available audition materials are listed below. 1. All-State Scales Scales should be performed without accompaniment. Only the tonic pitch will be sounded 4 times in tempo. Download the Scales-Arpeggio Sheet PDF for further instructions.
2. All-State Arpeggios Arpeggios should be performed with chordal accompaniment only. The tonic pitch will be sounded 4 times in tempo. Download the Scales-Arpeggio Sheet PDF for further instructions. The rehearsal tracks for scales and arpeggios can be downloaded by clicking the links below. Soprano/Tenor Scales & ArpeggiosAlto/Bass Scales & Arpeggios3. All-State Chorus Music Excerpts (will be made available when the chorus audition submission window opens) REHEARSAL TRACKSUse the direct link below to purchase and download the 2026 Nebraska All-State Chorus rehearsal track package:
Once your order is complete, a download link will be available immediately. You’ll also receive a ZIP file via email at the address you provided during checkout. Teachers and students are reminded that rehearsal tracks are intended for sale to single, individual students. NMEA asks teachers to be on the honor system and not purchase a set (a "set" is one of each voice part) and distribute them to multiple students. Anyone making an individual order is asked to NOT share their purchased MP3s with anyone else. Alternate Access: You can also find this package through the Kinnison Choral website. Go to SONG LIBRARY > All-State Choirs > Nebraska All-State Chorus 2026. Purchase All-State Chorus Rehearsal TracksREHEARSAL NOTESDr. Marques L. A. Garrett has provided rehearsal notes to help guide students' preparation for the 2026 All-State Chorus repertoire. Click the links below to view the notes. View Rehearsal NotesABOUT 3-PART VOICE SPLITS: In a 3 part voice split, the top note will go to the firsts of that section, and the seconds will split the bottom based on region: evens take the middle, and odds take the bottom. For example: Soprano 1 will take the top note, and Soprano 2 will split the bottom two notes based on audition regions. Even regions take the middle note, and odd regions take the bottom. This specifically happens in Ong-Hye-Ya. All-State Chorus Region Lookup Guide |
Associate Professor of Choral Studies at the University of North Texas. His responsibilities include conducting the University Singers and teaching graduate and undergraduate choral conducting. His previous appointments were at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and Cheyney University. Additionally, he holds a PhD in Music Education (Choral Conducting) from Florida State University, an MM from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and a BA from Hampton University.
