Page 138 - CJFeb25

ACDA NATIONAL
2025 Awards/Recognitions Continued on next page

March 18-22 Dallas, TX

retirement, he became director of the Robert Shaw James Elwin McCray (1938-2024) was an
Choral Institute. He was predeceased by his wife, Jane, influential choral music professor, college
in 2007 and survived by his daughter, Colleen. administrator, and a prolific composer.
He received degrees from Illinois Wes-
leyan and Southern Illinois University and
William D. Hall (1934-2023) passed away earned a PhD in music from the University of Iowa.
at the age of 89, having served as a pro- Before teaching at Colorado State University, where he
fessor and dean at Chapman University was department head for a decade, he held positions in
for almost 60 years. His Chapman Choirs Florida, Virginia, and Indiana. As a professor, he received
and William Hall Chorale sang at regional teaching awards from two universities, and he served in
and national conferences, sharing their hallmark vibrant several church music positions for decades. He published
choral tone and vocalism. He was the recipient of the more than one hundred compositions. He authored three
Howard Swan Award, which is the highest honor be- books, numerous professional articles, and for forty-one
stowed on a conductor by the California Choral Direc- years wrote a monthly column in the international or-
tors Association. In addition to his conducting, Dr. Hall gan journal, The Diapason. He was known for inviting
founded National Music and published hundreds of distinguished musicians, scholars, and composers from
arrangements and original octavos. Through his extraor- around the country to interact with his students; and he
dinarily resonant bass voice, he offered several rules that frequently and graciously entertained the Fort Worth
his alums share with their students, namely: Collins choral community at his home.

#1: Never subdivide unless you need to.
#2: Make it vocal. Let them sing. Albert John Joseph McNeil (1920-2022),
#3: The Prep Beat is always the most important beat. esteemed choral conductor, ethnomusicol-
#4: Don’t look down, know what you want to hear, ogist, and founder of the world-renowned
breathe, and GO. The rest will take care of itself. Albert McNeil Jubilee Singers, passed away
at 102. A native of Los Angeles, McNeil
dedicated his life to preserving Negro Spirituals and con-
cert music by African American composers. Under his
leadership, the Jubilee Singers performed in 77 countries
and across 46 U. S. states, sharing a legacy of rich cultural
heritage through choral music. McNeil earned degrees
from UCLA and his doctorate from the University of
Southern California, later receiving honorary doctorates
from CSU Northridge and Westminster Choir College. A
dedicated music educator, he taught in the Los Angeles
Unified School District and served as professor emeritus
at UC Davis, also directing the Sacramento Chorale. Ad-
ditionally, he was a minister of music at several prominent
Los Angeles churches and held leadership roles with the
Los Angeles Master Chorale and the National Endow-
ment for the Arts.

Toll-free: 1.877.246.7253 • sales@musicfolder.com

136 CHORAL JOURNAL Volume 65 Number 6 February 2025 / ACDA National Conference Program Book