March 18, 2024

South Central Conference Middle School Vocal Festival held at Clarke

Clarke Middle School Choirs and their director Ms. Ann March will be hosting the South Central Conference Middle School Vocal Festival Thursday, March 5.

All of the seventh and eighth grade choir members from the conference schools will be participating: Albia, Centerville, Chariton, Davis County, Eddyville-Blakesburg, Knoxville, and Clarke.

The students will arrive at Clarke for an afternoon of rehearsals followed by a festival concert, which is open to the public. The concert will begin at 7 p.m. in the Clarke Community High School gym. An admission of $5 for adults and $3 for students will be charged.

Guest director for the festival is Mr. Brent Peterson of West Des Moines.

Peterson is a vocal music director in the Waukee Community School District.

Now in his 24th year of teaching, he is currently at South Middle School, where he directs all of the eighth grade ensembles and show choir “EN FUEGO,” assists with the sixth and seventh grade mixed chorus, gives voice lessons and also assists with the other middle school and high school show choirs in the district as needed.

In addition to his work with the choirs in Waukee, he is also a volleyball and track coach in the district. Peterson was the conductor for the Boys OPUS Honor Choir in 2006, and has also received the WOI Channel 5 “My Favorite Teacher” award.

“Mr. P.,” as he is known at Waukee, graduated from Northwest Missouri State University in 1991 with a B.S. Ed. in vocal music education.

In 1999, he completed a Master of Arts in effective teaching degree from Viterbo University, where he now also serves as an adjunct professor.

When not working with students at Waukee or Viterbo, Peterson is an active guest director, show choir clinician and speaker around the Midwest. He is married to Anne Peterson, elementary music teacher at South Union Elementary in Des Moines Public Schools, and a father to 7-year-old Joel Peterson. When not working, the family loves to travel, golf and enjoy boating at their lake home on Sun Valley Lake.

The conference choirs prepared and will be performing together the songs: Exsultate and River Sleeps Beneath the Sky by Lightfoot, Let Me Ride (Swing Down Chariot) by Emerson, Fire and Rain by Gilpin and Praise His Holy Name by Hampton.

Each of the conference choirs also prepared a solo selection to be featured in the middle of the program.