Founded in the fall of 2020 with only 15 students; our advanced treble ensemble, Sziréndal, is now home to 50 highly-qualified singers. Our name is the Hungarian for 'siren song,' and was chosen in honor of the Hungarian Kodály philosophy. The life and works of renowned composer, educator, and musicologist Zoltán Kodály inspire Sziréndal to reach the highest levels of musicianship and performance in choral singing. Admission to Sziréndal is based on rigorous audition, and is open to student of treble voice (soprano, mezzo-soprano, alto) in grades 9-12.
Sziréndal was featured as a Performing Choir at the South Carolina ACDA Conference in October 2023, and the South Carolina Music Educators Association Conference in February 2024. Since their inception in 2020, the ensemble has exclusively received superior ratings in adjudicated settings. In 2023 and 2024, Sziréndal was awarded the highly-coveted Superior with Distinction rating at SCMEA Choral Performance Assessment. In April 2023, the ensemble was awarded Gold (1st Place) in the Grade 5/6 Treble Division at Palmetto State Choral Festival, sponsored by SC ACDA. In April 2022, they were awarded Best-in-Class in the High School Treble Division at Festival Disney in Walt Disney World, as well as a Superior rating at SCMEA Choral Performance Assessment: these events, only one day apart, were the ensemble's first foray into live competition.
In October 2020, Sziréndal was selected for Grammy Music Educator Award Nominee Chris Maunu's World Premiere Consortium of his work 'Remember.' In the spring of 2021, and as a part of their first-ever adjudicated event, they received a Superior rating at SCMEA Solo & Ensemble Festival (Virtual). Members of Sziréndal are consistently accepted to South Carolina All-State Chorus, Berkeley All-County Chorus, the honor choirs of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) at the state, regional, and national level, and the national choirs of the Organization of American Kodály Educators (OAKE).