Repertoire and Standards Chairpeople for WA- ACDA 2010-2011

Josh Viles - Editor, UNISON, R&S Chair for Male Choirs

Josh Viles is in his 4th year as choral director at Hazen High School in the Renton School District.  At Hazen, Josh conducts the Concert Choir, Divina Voce Women’s Ensemble, Man Choir and beginning Treble Chorus.  Hazen’s choirs have enjoyed enormous success over the past four years earning superior marks at league contests, participating in university invitationals and completing successful tours.  Divina Voce and Man Choir have consistently been selected to compete in the WMEA State Ensemble Contest and both earned superior ratings at the 2007 competition. 

In addition to his position on the ACDA board, Josh is also the Soundview Region President Elect and helps coordinate the region’s festival activities.  Josh lives in Federal Way with his wife Sarah.

Tim Fitzpatrick - President-Elect

A versatile musician with many areas of expertise, Tim Fitzpatrick has pursued a career that is supported by outstanding academic achievements and diverse musical endeavors. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in piano from Western Washington University in 1982. His areas of focus included piano, harpsichord, choral music and accompanying.

In 1985, Tim received his Master of Music in Piano Performance from The University of Texas in Austin where he studied piano performance and pedagogy.

After three years of teaching at Summerstar, a private music school in Bellingham, Tim moved to San Francisco While there, he conducted a male chorus entitled The Songbirds, worked as Minister of Music at St. Bartholomew’s Church in San Mateo, received voice training and studied choral conducting at San Francisco State University where he also accompanied, coached private voice and taught singing classes. Tim coached voice and taught piano privately, prepared singers for the San Francisco Symphony Chorus, coached numerous vocal ensembles and performed at Max’s Opera Café, a popular San Francisco restaurant that featured opera, classical, jazz, Broadway and pop music.

In 1996, Tim was offered a position in WWU’s music department as professional accompanist and worked there until 1998. Since his return to Bellingham, he has established a private teaching studio and worked as Director of Music with the Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship.

In the summer of 2002, Tim completed a Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting from WWU and has served there as adjunct choral faculty, directing the University Women’s Chorale, Men’s Ensemble and University Choir. In March 2006, he was hired to the position of Assistant Professor of Choral Music/ Vocal Education. His choirs have toured Canada and recently been featured at the Northwestern ACDA Division Convention.

Tim serves as ACDA R & S Chair for Men’s Music, and is active as a choral and vocal adjudicator around the Northwest. He is also founder and artistic director of the Bellingham Chamber Chorale, established in 2003.

Joel Ulrich, Music in Worship

Joel Ulrich served as Choral Director/Music Dept. Chair at Bellevue Christian H.S., 1969-2008. He has also served as Choir Director and/or Organist at Crossroads Baptist Church, 1971-1977; Newport Covenant Church, 1979-1983; 1st Presbyterian Church, Bellevue, 1983-1989; Westminster Chapel, Bellevue, 1993-1995;1st Presbyterian Church, Snohomish, 1995-2002; 1st Covenant Church, Seattle, 2006-present.  His choirs have done concert tours of all the western states/Canadian provinces as well as four European concert tours.

Brian Mitchell, Senior High Choirs

Brian Mitchell has been teaching choral music at Mark Morris High School in Longview since the fall of 1995.   Currently, Mark Morris High School has four choirs: treble choir, jazz choir, beginning large mixed choir and an advanced chamber choir.  He also co-directs the Columbian Choral Ensemble, a community choir.  In 2002, Brian received his Master of Music Education and in 1995 he received his Bachelor of Music degree, both from Central Washington University.

Leora Schwitters, Treasurer

Leora Schwitters, who is also Vice-President, retired after 25 years in public education in 2006, most of which was at the junior high level in Kent, WA. She holds a B.M. from the Yankton College Conservatory of Music in South Dakota and a M.A.T. from the University of Washington. She now directs Rainier Youth Choirs. Active as a clinician and adjudicator, Leora serves on the board of the Tahoma Chapter of NATS and has presided over the Green River Music Region organization. She and retired husband, Larry, are avid birders.

Telephone: 425-392-9161 or 425-681-5885 (C)
Email: l.schwitters@mac.com

Sue Green, Membership

Sue Lundy Green has been a K-12 vocal music specialist for twenty four years.  She is currently the choir director at Graham-Kapowsin High School in the Bethel School District and also provides some music overload instruction at Graham Elementary School.  Prior to this, Sue taught two years at Meeker Middle School and five years in elementary music and choir at Jenkins Creek Elementary in the Kent School District. In Oregon,  Sue directed secondary choirs for the Scappoose School District in Oregon, headed the music program at Portland Public Schools’ performing arts high school magnet program, and directed choirs in Banks and Roseburg, Oregon. 

She has a Masters of Music from the University of Arizona and a Bachelors Degree in Music Education from Willamette University.  Sue is currently the Western Liaison for Washington ACDA, and was the Membership Chair for Oregon ACDA before moving to the Puget Sound area.  She is married to Jonathan and is the stepmother to two boys, Matthew & Joshua.

Howard Meharg, Webmaster

Howard Meharg taught choral music in the schools of Castle Rock, Kelso, and Longivew for 30 years. He retired from choral work at Mark Morris High School, in Longview, in 1995 and came back to Mark Morris to head a program for at-risk ninth grade students for seven years.

He is still active as a choral conductor, directed music at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Longview, and men's choir that sings a monthly Compline service in the community.

Howard holds a Master's Degree in Music Education from Western Washington University. His career includes two tours with the Norman Luboff Choir. He is also the founder of Male Ensemble Northwest, a professional ensemble made up of choral dirrectors from all across the northwest. He retired from singing in the group in 2000. In 2009 Howard founded and continues to conduct "Chor Anno," (the annual choir) made up largely of choral professionals who direct choirs in the northwest.

He has served as president of WA-ACDA twice...in 1969 and then again in 1995-96. Under his leadership (with the able assistance of a good many far-sighted board members) he helped start the Summer Institute.

Howard is webmaster for WA-ACDA, the NW division, Oregon, Alaska, Montana, Wyoming and Idaho ACDA. He also built and maintains the ACDA website for the state of Arkansas. He served as editor of the WA-ACDA newsletter, UNISON, for about ten years.

Darcy Morrissey, Children's Choirs and Community Youth Choirs

Darcy Morrissey conducts Amabile, a training choir made up of girls ages nine through thirteen, within the Northwest Girlchoir organization.  She received her Bachelors Degree in Music Education from Central Washington University and is currently pursuing a Masters of Music Education from the University of St. Thomas. During nine years as a professional public school educator, Darcy taught every age group in the Lake Washington School District and nearly every type of music class, including guitar, general music, orchestra, keyboard, and choir. She is highly sought after as a clinician for local choral festivals and as an adjudicator for Solo Ensemble Festivals. Darcy has mentored student teachers, college students, and colleagues in choral curriculum building and classroom techniques. Along with directing various district honor choirs, she also established and coordinated the annual LWSD Tenor & Bass Institute which promotes young male camaraderie through singing. Darcy received Kirkland Junior High's Golden Acorn Award for outstanding educator in 2008 and was awarded the 2009 Outstanding Educator of the Year Award from the Kirkland Rotary Club. Darcy currently serves as the WA-ACDA R&S Chair for Children and Community Youth Choirs and as secretary for WA-ACDA Board.  She also works as a professional choral singer for local churches and records movie previews, movie, and video game soundtracks. Darcy is married to Stephen and mother to two sons, Jack and Aaron.

Ron Bayer, WMEA Liaison

Ron is the director of choirs at Green River Community College, where he is also fine arts division chair and teaches courses in theory and appreciation.  He also directs Rainier Chorale, a Kent based community chorus.

Ron holds a B. A. from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, with K-12 certification in both instrumental and vocal music and a Master of Music degree in choral music from the University of Illinois where he assisted Harold Decker as rehearsal pianist.  He has also pursued post graduate work at Western Michigan University where he assisted Steve Zegree, studying jazz and traditional choral music.

Following  the lure of the mountains, he left the Midwest to teach at Mt. Vernon High School, after  successful teaching stints in Wisconsin and Minnesota.  He is currently in his fourteenth year at the college.

Ron has served three terms on the WMEA board, most recently as treasurer and was installed in the Washington State Music Teacher’s Hall of Fame in 2004. An avid mountaineer is his off time, he also finds time to relax at home and build furniture in his shop.

Barbara A. Tappa

Barbara Tappa has been the Director of Choral Music at Joel E. Ferris High School in Spokane, Washington since 2007. Barbara has directed junior and senior high school choirs in Moses Lake and Woodinville, Washington; Anaheim, California; and Havelock, North Carolina. She taught elementary school in Oslo, Norway and elementary music in Spokane. Barbara has been a cantor and choir director at churches in the United States, Japan, and Norway.

April Duvic, Two-Year College

April Brookins Duvic is the Vocal Music Program Director at Clark College where she conducts the Concert Choir, Women's Choral Ensemble and co-directs the Clark College Chorale.  She teaches courses in applied voice, music education, and music
appreciation.  She is a two-time recipient of the Clark College Exceptional Faculty Award for educational excellence.