The Little Miami Select Choirs

The Little Miami Chorale (formerly Select Women’s Chorale) was established in 2003 as an extra -curricular ensemble until being added to the daily schedule in 2005. The LM Chorale is the premiere performance ensemble at Little Miami High School, earning consistent Superior ratings in Ohio Music Education Association events. Maintaining a demanding schedule throughout the community, the chorale is a frequent guest of local and regional organizations, and special military recognition ceremonies conducted in Warren County and at the Ohio State Capitol.

Honors include invitations to perform at the Ohio Music Education Association and American Choral Directors Association conferences, World Choir Games Champions Divisions in Cincinnati and Riga, Latvia, the premiere Music for All National Choir Festival, University of Cincinnati-CCM Feast of Carols, and the May Festival Chorus 25 for 25 Community Choral Showcase. The Little Miami Tour Chorale, an expansion of the LM Chorale which includes present members and alumni, has earned Gold medals and championships in the Female Choir and Spiritual categories, making Grand Prix appearances in Musica Mundi International Choir Festivals in Rome and Berlin. Tour Chorale was slated to perform in the Grand Prix division in Budapest (2020).

The Little Miami Select Mixed Choir was created in 2007 to provide the tenor-bass voices of the LMHS choir program the opportunity to perform at a more challenging level with mixed choir repertoire. The ensemble was added to the curriculum in 2010. Since its beginning, the select mixed choir has grown to earn superior ratings at OMEA district and state-adjudicated events, while also traveling with the LM Chorale to perform in local and regional events, choral festivals and tours. Having enjoyed domestic tours to Chicago, New
York City, Nashville, Louisville, Indianapolis, Cleveland, and Philadelphia, the select choirs returned to Chicago in March 2024 for an exciting tour, performing in venues including the Field Museum, Vandercook College of Music, and the North Shore Unitarian Church.

The 2023-2024 Little Miami Select Choirs were honored with invitations to perform with the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra’s performance of Cecilia McDowell’s The Girl from Aleppo and the Walk with Little Amal events at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center and the We Are One: HOPE presentation held at St. Catharine of Siena Church, the 2023 UC-CCM Feast of Carols, and the Comstock Chamber Choir Festival
sponsored by the University of Louisville Cardinal Singers.

The Little Miami Select Choirs and the Tour Chorale serve as the demonstration ensembles for director, Sarah J. Baker, where she employs her synesthesia (blending of senses) to achieve balance and blend within the choral ensemble. Each member wears a sash/ribbon/bowtie representing the color Mrs. Baker “sees” when the
individual sings. Not only a trademark of her choirs, this strategy recognizes every singer as they are naturally while bonding them as members of a community where each voice is important.