Being a member of the Barack Obama Male Leadership Academy at A. Maceo Smith choir is more than a chance to sing – it creates community.
“My main goal is to ensure that every young man who enters my room feels accepted and appreciated and leaves each day knowing that someone loves them, cares for them, and values their contribution to the group,” said Dustin Barksdale, choir director. “I firmly believe that a child’s entire trajectory can be changed by knowing that someone believes in them.”
His efforts don’t go unnoticed.
“I love the environment because it truly feels like a brotherhood,” said Teh’Darreon B.
A rising senior at BOMLA, Teh’Darreon joined the choir six years ago. He never looked back.
“I have a passion for music, and I like the idea of working in a team to achieve great things,” he said.
In fact, supporting one another while forming a community in the process is a big piece of the puzzle, Barksdale said.
“The most rewarding thing is the relationships that we build and maintain in choir,” he said. “We learn to work together for a greater cause, learn to accept each other and ourselves, and work each day to not only create music, but to uphold our school’s core values – academia, brotherhood, character, perseverance, and service.”
At BOMLA, students can take up to seven levels of choir, starting in middle school and through their senior year.
“The audition process is simple, consisting of sight-singing and a self-assessment of exemplifying the campus core values in choir for the previous year,” Barksdale said. “Citizenship and musicianship run hand in hand at BOMLA.”
When Christian R. was in fourth grade, he joined the choir at Victor H. Hexter Elementary School. It is there where he discovered a talent for singing.
“I wanted to keep pursuing choir because of how enjoyable I found it to sing,” he said.
Now a junior at BOMLA, Christian has been a member of the choir for five years.
Throughout the school year, the BOMLA choir participates in various competitions and performs at local events. They recently sang “The Star-Spangled Banner” before a Dallas Mavericks game and performed at a swearing-in ceremony for the Dallas Police Department. When school is in session, choir practice includes choral warm-ups, sectional practice, and rehearsing for upcoming concerts.
“A typical choir practice is high-energy and requires 100% engagement from each choir member,” Barksdale said. “They are often still singing when the bell rings. Students are usually singing as they exit the room, which makes their choir director happy.”
But the work doesn’t stop when the school year ends.
Auditions for the Texas Music Educators Association All-State Choir begin in September, so BOMLA choir members use the break to prepare. This summer, 34 students will attend an All-State Choir Camp at Dallas College at Brookhaven.
“This camp enables students to start the school year off ahead of the game as we continue to work toward the goal of having students placed in the Texas All-State Choir, which would be the first in the school’s history,” Barksdale said.
Andres J., a senior, is one of the choir members participating in the camp.
“I like the All-State Choir Camp because it’s a massive choir with people of various talent levels,” he said.
Looking ahead to the upcoming year, Christian is excited to flex the choir’s sight- reading skills. In order to successfully sight-read, members perform a song without having seen it before, and with no preparation.
“A trip that I am excited for this upcoming year is UIL. The UIL Concert & Sight-Reading Assessment is basically the STAAR test for choir,” he said. “Students perform three songs for three judges and receive a rating. The students then sight-sing a piece they have never seen before for three additional judges and receive a rating.”
His advice to fellow BOMLA students interested in auditioning for choir is simple.
“Do not underestimate how good you can be at something,” he said.
