Since the program鈥檚 inception, vocal music students have consistently engaged in a wide range of performance opportunities. At the beginning of the first academic year in 1910, the faculty included two music teachers, and over the University鈥檚 more than 100-year history, leadership of the choral program has been shaped by numerous individuals. Since the tenure of Paul Shultz, beginning in 1936, choral conductors have included John H. Wainright, Walter Michels, Clarence Hefner, Rolland Shaw, John Guthmiller, Mark Bennett, Ray Wheeler, Gary Morris, Dr. Christopher Harris, Carlin Truong, Dr. Benjamin Johns, and Dr. Katherine Rohwer, who currently serves as Director of Choral Activities.
Over the years, the vocal program at Tech has been represented by a variety of choral ensembles that reflect the evolving needs and interests of the University community. These ensembles have included the Men鈥檚 Quartet, Women鈥檚 Trio, Glee Club, Madrigal Singers, Operetta Singers, Collegiate Choir, and Community Choir. Today, the choral program offers a diverse and comprehensive set of ensembles, including the ATU Choral Artists, University Singers鈥攚hich performs repertoire for treble voices, tenor-bass voices, and mixed SATB repertoire鈥攁nd the Concert Chorale, a non-auditioned ensemble open to both majors and non-majors. Together, these ensembles provide students with accessible and rigorous performance opportunities across a wide range of musical styles and experiences.
Throughout its history, the choral program has been an ambassador and recruiter for the University. In 1937 eight members of the choral music department, an accompanist and Professor Shultz traveled to Chicago to provide musical entertainment at the National Convention of the Lions International. While in Chicago, the ensembles also performed at two Chicago night clubs and presented a 15 minute program over NBC radio. World War II drastically curtailed travel and took its toll on the choral program. Following World War II as enrollment at Tech increased, so did the enrollment in the choral music program.
Today, the Arkansas Tech Choral Program is exceptional, with substantial enrollment growth in recent years. The program has been featured at the Arkansas All-State Music Conference (2007, 2012, 2020, 2023), and in 2019, The ATU Choral Artists performed at the National Collegiate Choral Organization (NCCO) Conference in College Park, MD. The Choral Artists were also an invited choir for the 2022 Southwestern American Choral Directors Association Conference (SW-ACDA) held in Little Rock, AR.