Permian High School’s Cantus, conducted by Kenneth Sieloff, is the winner of The American Prize in Choral Performance, 2021, in the high school choir division. Cantus was selected from applications reviewed recently from all across the United States.
The American Prize National Nonprofit Competitions in the Performing Arts is the nation’s most comprehensive series of nonprofit competitions in the musical and theater arts, unique in scope and structure, designed to recognize and reward the best performing artists, ensembles and composers in the United States based on submitted recordings.
The Permian High School Choral Program is comprised of approximately 300 students in grades nine through twelve. Under the direction of Sieloff, the members of Cantus have received consistent UIL Concert and Sight-Reading Sweepstakes Awards, UIL Solo and Ensemble first divisions, and earned numerous positions in the All-Region and the Texas All-State Choirs, a news release said.
The choir program routinely collaborates across fine arts disciplines (band, orchestra, dance) for concerts and performances.
Cantus is an auditioned, varsity men’s choir that consists of 60 singers. Cantus was invited to perform at the Southwest Division Conference of the American Choral Directors Association in 2020. The mission of Cantus is rooted in three principles: Honorable Character, Camaraderie, and Musical Excellence.
Winners of The American Prize receive cash prizes, professional adjudication and regional, national and international recognition based on recorded performances. In addition to monetary rewards and written evaluations from judges, winners are profiled on The American Prize websites, where links will lead to video and audio excerpts of artist performances.
The American Prize National Nonprofit Competitions in the Performing Arts grew from the belief that a great deal of excellent music being made in this country goes unrecognized and unheralded, not only in major cities, but all across the country: in schools and churches, in colleges and universities, and by community and professional musicians.
