Festival di Voce

Festival di Voce supplemental information for registered choirs:

The below information may reference your Festival Information and Billing Invoice. Instructions to view and print this online report is emailed to each director mid March. Your Festival Information and Billing Invoice contains your choirs’1st meet, warm-up, performance locations/times specific to your choir(s). The report’s Billing Invoice shows any remaining balance, its due date, and where to mail your check.

Final Payment: The final amount owed, and its due date, are listed at the bottom of the Billing Invoice. Our mailing address is listed at the top of the Billing Invoice page.  Please make checks or money orders payable to “Festival di Voce”

 Click Here for a Festival di Voce performance schedule (for planning your day to hear other choirs)

 

Map/Directions to Dallas Baptist University (DBU):

DBU can be accessed from Interstate Hwy 30 or Interstate Hwy 20.

From IH 30– we suggest exiting on Loop 12 heading south.  After traveling south on Loop 12- exit Spur 480 also heading south.  While there is a Mountain Creek Parkway exit- we suggest exiting Kiest Boulevard and traveling west to Mountain Creek Parkway.  Turn North on Mountain Creek Parkway and enter the campus from its west entrance.

From IH20- we suggest exiting and head north on Mountain Creek Parkway.  Shortly north of the Mountain Creek Parkway and Kiest Boulevard intersection– enter the campus from its west entrance.

 

Once you are near DBU, see the below map link and view instructions for campus entrance, arrival, and parking information:

Click Here for Bus Parking & Student Drop Off/ Pick Up Map

Enter the campus from the west entrance from Mountain Creek Parkway.  Although the map shows where the bus parking is located, and where your bus(es) will park AFTER you are dropped off at the Mahler Student Center, walking from the bus parking lots to the Mahler Student Center is uphill, and a little too far to walk.

A festival staff member, or DBU site host will be waiting to meet your bus outside Mahler Student Center, and will take you into the Hillcrest Great Hall (within the Mahler Student Center) to check in, and meet with you prior to your warm up.  Be sure that your members will have all belongings needed before the bus departs for parking since it is a far distance to walk.

After your choir members have unloaded the bus, have your driver park in the parking lots near the west campus entrance as shown on the map.  Be sure that you and your bus driver have exchanged information about your schedule and have arranged for communication methods if needed for emergencies.

When you are ready to leave anytime throughout the day, or after the awards, your bus driver can load your choir at the same location you unloaded outside of the Mahler Student Center.

Planning your Festival arrival time:  Be sure and review the times listed on your Festival Information and Billing Invoice to meet for warm-up, scheduled warm-up time, and performance time.

Late Arrivals to the Performance Site:  The festival performance schedule is 100% full.  Late arrivals will allow for no options to reschedule their performance!  Please plan for worst case scenarios when constructing your trip travel and consider any possible travel delays.   A group’s late arrival will be accommodated as best as the festival staff can, provided you can perform during, or during a portion of your scheduled performance time.  Any subsequent performing groups’ schedules cannot not be altered, the awards ceremony start time cannot be altered, and the schedule constraints as contracted with the performance site cannot be altered.  In the event your performing group arrives late to the performance site:

• You will be permitted to enter the warm-up if you there is enough time for warm-up prior to being escorted to the performance stage to begin at your scheduled performance start time. Your warm-up time would be obviously shortened to meet your scheduled performance start time.
• If your choir’s scheduled start time has passed upon your arrival and allowed performance time has not expired- a group may go directly to the stage and perform within the remaining amount of scheduled performance time. The late arrived performing group will stop performance when stage time has expired.
• If your choir’s performance time has expired before your arrival, your choir will not be able to perform, unless another choir has communicated in advance of a planned absence, and the late arriving choir can later occupy their position in the schedule.

 

After your arrival at DBU:  All choirs will have access to the Hillcrest Great Hall (inside the Mahler Student Center) located directly across from the Pilgrim Chapel.  This space will be used for: gathering prior to your warm-up meet time, a space to return to after your choir’s performance, and a place to gather while waiting to load your bus at the end of the festival. Of course, we hope that your choir members will be able to hear other choirs perform throughout the festival.  DBU site hosts and festival staff can direct your members to the chapel sanctuary as needed throughout the day.  Using a festival schedule and your meet times- make certain that you communicate with your choir members which choirs they can be an audience to.  Performances cannot be disturbed with other choir members exiting the chapel sanctuary during or between music selections of a choir on stage!  Door monitors will let you know when it is permissible to enter or exit the sanctuary. The upmost spirit behind organizing the Festival Di Voce was to provide an opportunity for your choir students to not only perform, but arrive early, and/or remain later, to hear other high school varsity level choirs throughout the day.  We hope that your students’ listening and awareness of other high school performances will add to the further development of your own choral program.

Parking for guests in personal vehicles:  There is parking throughout the campus for festival guests. However, like any college campus, the parking spaces may be limited during certain times of the day.  Parking tags or permits are not required for parking on the DBU campus.  Be aware of any reserved or special privileged spaces indicated by signage.  Parking within these spaces is enforced.  Friends and family are encouraged to park in the lot used for Bus Parking.  Campus shuttle buses will run approximately every 15-20 minutes and can be used for friends and family that want to hear your performance.

 

Warm-up and Performance: Choral ensembles will receive 20 minutes for each scheduled performance time slot.  All ensembles are provided a warm-up area at the performance site for the same amount of time as allowed with performance.  The schedule will have built in travel times to the warm-up area as well as to the performance area. The 20 minute performance time slot includes all stage setup, stage entry, performance, and stage exit.  Each group will have a dedicated festival staff member with them at all times taking your choir to warm up, performance, and back to Hillcrest Great Hall (or stay within Pilgrim Chapel to hear other choirs).

Warm-up meet time/location:  Please refer to page 2 on your Festival Information and Billing Invoice for your choir’s warm-up time.  You will meet the festival staff 15 minutes prior to your scheduled warm-up time, within the Hillcrest Great Hall, inside Mahler Student Center, where you will unload from your bus.

Warm-up time/location:  Please refer to page 2 on your Festival Information and Billing Invoice for your choir’s warm-up time.  The festival staff, or site host will lead your group from the Hillcrest Great Hall to warm-up.   The warm-up area will have 3 step risers and a piano for your warm-up. just as on stage.

Performance time/location:  Please refer to page 2 on your Festival Information and Billing Invoice for your choir’s performance time, or for each choir. The festival staff, or site host will lead your group from the warm-up area to the performance area within Pilgrim Chapel.  Stairwells will be used to access the performance area. If you have any persons in need of an elevator, please inform a festival staff member, or site host of this need.  Please prepare to not exceed your maximum stage time of 20 minutes.  Stage time will be timed for stage entrance, performance, and stage exit.

Original Scores with Published Music (copyright laws):  Choirs performing published music are required to provide 3 original scores for the adjudicators.  Photocopied scores are not allowed unless accompanied by a letter from the publisher stating that the music is no longer in print or not available.  Please contact the festival office with any questions regarding this topic well before the date of the festival.

Equipment Provided:  The warm-up area will have 3 or 4  step choral risers, a piano, and a few music stands.   The Pilgrim Chapel performance space will have 3 or 4 step choral risers, piano, and a few music stands and individual chairs.  There will not be an organ available for warm-up or performance.

 

Inclement Weather Contingency Plan:

Arrivals and Departures. In the event of inclement weather upon your arrival to Dallas Baptist University, we still ask that your bus arrive outside of the Mahler Student Center, as detailed on the bus parking and student drop-off/pick-up map, and await a festival staff member, or DBU site host to meet you.  Please do not unload your bus, as an alternative bus unload area and warm-up meet location may be utilized within the lower levels of Pilgrim Chapel, allowing a covered and dry unload area for your choir members.  During an inclement weather contingency plan, the covered unload area will also be utilized by all choirs, unloading, and loading buses.  As a result, your bus can only be in this covered area long enough to quickly unload or load your members.  It is very important that each director have already exchanged contact cell numbers with their bus drivers, so communication can be made with the alternative covered unload/loading location, only when your choir members are ready to quickly load the bus.

Meet and Warm-up areas.  In the event of an inclement weather contingency plan, your meeting space prior to warm-up and warm-up space may be a different location as stated within your Festival Information and Billing Invoice .

 

Awards Ceremony: Admission into Dallas Baptist University’s Pilgrim Chapel will be at allowed from 7:05-7:15 pm for the festival awards ceremony. We expect the awards ceremony to last no longer than one hour.  The ceremony will begin with two featured choir performances:

• Dallas Baptist University Chorale directed by Dr. Josh Brown
• Midway HS Treble Choir directed by Caleb Overstreet (2025 Festival di Voce Grand Champion)

Ensemble Recognition: All performing ensembles will be recognized.

Category Recognition*:  Trophies will be awarded to the Best in Category winners for Mixed Choirs, Tenor/Bass Choirs, and Treble Choirs as selected by the adjudication panel.

Overall Recognition*:  Trophies will be awarded to the overall top five ensembles as selected by the adjudication panel.  Three of these ensembles will be awarded an un-ranked Honorable Mention.  One ensemble will be awarded Overall Reserve Grand Champion.  One ensemble will be awarded Overall Grand Champion.

*We will ask for two representatives from each performing ensemble to represent their choir onstage to receive trophies.  Please have two representatives chosen prior to the awards ceremony.

Optional Overall Grand Champion performance:  For the 2026 Festival di Voce, after the judges have determined the Overall Grand Champion, the director of the awarded 2026 Overall Grand Champion choir will be contacted by the festival staff prior to the evening awards ceremony.  Anticipating the director’s complete secrecy of this information to anyone, the director will be asked if they are willing to perform one selection of that day’s performance, without a warm-up, to conclude the awards ceremony.  If the director is unwilling, or perhaps the students/accompanist are not present to perform, the award ceremony will conclude without a performance by that day’s Overall Grand Champion but concluded in a fashion that passes the previous year champion’s “traveling trophy cup” to the 2026 Grand Champion choir, a portion of its members, and/or director.

Perhaps some thought, or instruction could be given, as to what music selection would be performed, or what type of voice warm-up could be achieved (from audience seating to stage), prior to that evening, if your choir were possibly awarded Overall Grand Champion.

Choirs CANNOT purchase meals at the Patriot Cafe’, (Chick-fil-A and SubConnection) located in Mahler Student Center, next to Hillcrest Great Hall.  These eating establishments are large enough in size and staff to only accommodate the typical meal crowds for DBU students.  These two meal providers cannot accept greater volumes of customers, without affecting the DBU student body they were intended to serve.  Directors: Please inform your students these eating facilities cannot and will not accept Festival di Voce student members as customers during FDV. 

 

Festival Staff Emergency Contact Numbers: Festival di Voce is proud that our entire festival staff is always present at our performance sites.  In the event an EMERGENCY, and contact with a festival staff member is necessary during the festival event- please call or text us at the following cell numbers.

Patrick Archer- (214) 288-5214

Christopher Jones- (817) 996-3646

Shane Henry- (404) 643-8827

 

In the event of a medical emergency at Dallas Baptist University, please call (214) 333-5555 first, and/or 911