"the People's Paths!" Cherokee News Path - CNYC To Hold Auditions in January

"Cherokee National
Youth Choir 2007"

TAHLEQUAH, OK — The award-winning Cherokee Nation Youth Choir will hold auditions for the upcoming year on Monday, January 7 and Tuesday, January 8, from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m., in the Administration Conference Room, located in the Cherokee Nation Complex south of Tahlequah.

“This is a wonderful opportunity for Cherokee youth,” said Mary Kay Henderson, choir director. “The Cherokee National Youth Choir is a wonderful way for students to learn the Cherokee language and act as representatives of our great nation.”

To audition, students must be a citizen of the Cherokee Nation and a copy of the participant’s tribal citizenship card must be presented at the time of the audition. In addition, participants must live in the 14-county jurisdictional area of the Cherokee Nation and be in grades 6-11.

“The youth choir opens a lot of doors for the members,” said Kathy Sierra, choir coordinator. “Just this year, we took part in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and won a Native American Music Award. Students don’t have to sing in Cherokee to audition, they just have to sing and want to take part in an educational opportunity.”

The Cherokee National Youth Choir performs traditional Cherokee songs in the Cherokee language. The choir came into existence from the vision of Principal Chief Chad Smith, who saw it as a way to keep children involved in the Cherokee language and culture. They function as an important symbol to the world, demonstrating that Cherokee language and culture continues to thrive in modern society.

Since being founded in 2000, the group has recorded six CDs, including Voices of the Creator’s Children, featuring two-time Grammy® Award winner Rita Coolidge, which garnered two Native American Music Awards nominations and a win for “Best Gospel Christian Recording” in 2002. Their second CD, Building One Fire won the award again in 2003. Jesus Is Born Today, their third release, was nominated in this same category in 2005, and also received a nomination for “Best Religious Recording” at The Indian Summer Music Awards. Their fourth CD, Cherokee Sunday Morning, released in 2005, received the “Best Native Gospel” award at the 2005 International Cherokee Film Festival. Their fifth CD, Comfort and Joy, arrived just in time for the 2006 holiday season and their newest CD, Precious Memories, is now on store shelves.

The Youth Choir acts as ambassadors for the Cherokee Nation, their beautiful voices showing the strength of the Cherokee Nation and its culture more than 160 years after the Cherokees’ forced removal from its eastern homelands. The goal of the choir is to increase awareness of Cherokee culture both within the Cherokee Nation as well as among the dominant culture.

Through the success of the group, interest in the Cherokee language has been rekindled among young people throughout the Cherokee Nation. Several area schools now use the CDs as learning tools, and other schools are interested in developing curriculum to teach Cherokee language and music. Principal Chief Smith and Deputy Principal Chief Joe Grayson, Jr. have pledged to make preserving language and culture a priority at the Cherokee Nation, and the success of the Cherokee National Youth Choir has helped spark a cultural renaissance among the Cherokee people.

“I can’t tell you enough what a wonderful opportunity this is for young people,” said Henderson. “I encourage all eligible young Cherokees to audition. It’s a lot of fun and a great way to become involved with Cherokee culture and traditions. I look forward to seeing you all at the audition.”

For more information or to schedule an audition, contact Kathy Sierra, phone: 918-453-5618 or by email: youth-choir@cherokee.org