VOICES UNITED
Voices United is an annual musical gathering of sacred music open to all singers from all walks of life, aged high school through retirement. There is no audition. Registered singers participate in preliminary rehearsals, followed by a two-day workshop with a guest clinician and conductor, capped by an evening concert in conjunction with the Manassas Chorale. 2025 will be our 25th year of Voices United!
Our guest clinician and conductor for 2025 is JOSEPH MARTIN! Scroll down to see Joe’s biography!
REGISTRATION
Registration for Voices United 2025 will open in January 2025.
Pre-registration is highly recommended, but you may also bring your registration and payment to one of the preliminary rehearsals.
COST: TBD
LIMIT: TBD
DEADLINE: TBD
TO REGISTER:
Online Registration – not yet available
Hardcopy Registration Form – not yet available
TO PAY BY CREDIT CARD:
Online Registration Payment – not yet available
TO PAY BY CHECK: TBD
REHEARSALS
Singers MUST attend at least three out of seven rehearsals (more are encouraged, but optional) to be eligible to participate in the workshop and concert. All rehearsals will be held in Weston Hall at Manassas Baptist Church.
Rehearsal schedule for 2025:
TBD
WORKSHOP
Friday March 14, 2025, 7:00 PM – 9:15 PM (check-in begins at 6:30 PM)
Saturday March 15, 2025, 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM
The workshop will take place at (TBD). Wear comfortable clothes and shoes. Bring a mask if preferred, your music, pencil for marking music, and a water bottle. Snacks will be provided. Please do not wear perfume/cologne or scented body lotions; some singers may have allergies.
CONCERT
The Voices United Concert will be held Saturday March 15, 2025 at 7:30 PM at the Hylton Performing Arts Center. Singers will have a dress rehearsal prior to the concert (call time 6:00 PM). The Manassas Chorale will perform the first half of the concert, followed by the Voices United Festival Choir. The two choirs will combine for a final number directed by the guest clinician. The concert is open to the public. Tickets are available via the Hylton Box Office. Registered singers do NOT need a ticket.
ATTIRE
Manassas Chorale members will wear their concert attire. Singers in the Voices United Workshop Choir only will wear the following:
Men: dark trousers, necktie and jacket (preferably black) and white dress shirt OR black tuxedo with white shirt and black bow tie; black shoes and socks.
Women: long black skirt and black long-sleeve dressy blouse OR long black dress with long sleeves; black hose and black shoes. Simple earrings are acceptable, no dangling or large hoops; no bracelets or brooches. Pearl necklaces are acceptable.
Each singer will also need a black performance folder. Masks (if preferred) must be black.
ABOUT OUR GUEST CLINICIAN
Joseph Martin, a native of North Carolina, earned his Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance at Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina. Subsequently he earned a Master of Music degree in Piano Performance at the University of Texas, Austin. Joseph taught for five years in the Piano Pedagogy Department of the University of Texas. While at Furman University, he was accompanist for choral director and composer Milburn Price and, inspired by his teaching, Martin began to compose. He is a member of the staff of Shawnee Press as Director of Sacred Publications, with responsibilities for overseeing the editorial and creative direction of the company’s sacred publications and also coordinating the recording and production aspects of future sacred publishing efforts. Joseph has performed solo piano recitals and has been the featured artist with symphony orchestras in the United States and Mexico. As winner of the Nina Plant Wideman Competition, he performed with the Guadalajara Symphony Orchestra. His solo recital in Ex-convento del Carmen was broadcast nationally throughout the country. Though he continues to perform in concert, he now devotes his efforts to playing in churches and for conferences of church musicians His first solo piano recording, American Tapestry, was nominated for a Dove Award. This album, along with his other recordings (Songs of the Journey, Celtic Tapestry, and A Christmas Tapestry) has been enormously popular in the sacred and secular markets. He has recorded for Yamaha’s Disklavier series and has composed hundreds of commissioned works. Recognized throughout the United States for his many choral compositions, over 1200 compositions are currently in print and the list continues to grow. His composition “Pieta” was recently honored with an award from the John Ness Beck Foundation. In 2008 he was inducted as a National Patron of the Delta Omicron International Music Fraternity. Along with Mark Hayes and David Angerman, Joseph has co-authored a fully graded, progressive piano method for the Christian student called Keys for the Kingdom. His major works include nearly 40 choral cantatas and extended works and Song of Wisdom, a choral tone poem based on the best-selling children’s book, Old Turtle. His music can be heard in such diverse locations as Carnegie Hall in New York City; the Lawrence Welk Theatre in Branson, Missouri; and in hundreds of worship services in churches across the United States and Canada. In addition, his works have been performed in cathedrals in Germany, Austria, England, Ireland, Scotland and Austria. Joseph lives in Austin, Texas with his children Jonathan and Aubrey and his wife Sue.