Meet Wanda Gereben

I became a life member of ACDA in 1975 when Robert Hines, then choral director at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and I co-founded the Hawaiʻi Chapter of ACDA. At that time, I was teaching K-12 music at St. Andrew’s Priory, directing a church choir, and was the Artistic Director of the Honolulu Chorale, a 125-voice community chorus.  For a period, I conducted the Hawaiʻi Opera Children’s Chorus and later I founded the Hawaiʻi Children’s Chorus.

ACDA has connected me with many professional colleagues and opportunities that have profoundly expanded my musical world.  In Hawaiʻi, fellow ACDA members Dale Noble at Kamehameha Schools, John McCreary at St. Andrew’s Cathedral and Iolani School, Roy and Nyle Hallman at Central Union Church, and the founders of the Honolulu Boy Choir, colleague Nola Nahulu with the Hawaiʻi Youth Opera Chorus – among many others- have greatly influenced and shaped our choral community .

Something I’m looking forward to this year is our upcoming Professional Development Series, which takes place this August 30-31. This series will feature a master conducting class presented by our National ACDA President, Dr. Edith Copley. I’ve been involved in the planning of her visit. Julie Dana, the Western Division ACDA President, will also be participating in the weekend series.

Without question, the highlight of my career was the creation and production of the Pacific Rim Children’s Chorus Festival.  With the support and collaboration of many local ACDA colleagues and the abundant cultural resources available in Hawaiʻi, we were able to offer visiting choruses an authentic experience of our Pacific Rim cultures.

It was clear from the feedback of directors and singers who participated over the years that there was a deep interest in the cultural practices of Hawaiʻi and other Pacific Rim cultures. The personal interaction with the various ethnic groups that make up the Hawaiʻi population created meaningful, lifelong memories.