About the Clinicians
Who are the conductors?
Paul Haas
As an artist, Paul Haas has a multi-decade international professional conducting career. As a pedagogue, he has conducted the Boston University Tanglewood Institute Young Artists Orchestra more than any other conductor in its history, having been invited back every year since 2007. As an audition committee member, he has listened to well over 1000 auditions.
He has taken over 30 professional conducting auditions, and every one of his guest-conducting appearances is essentially an audition for future engagements.
He knows exactly what conductors and committee members are looking and listening for, and he is highly adept at time management and scheduling, as well as creative and outside-the-box problem solving.
He has taught thousands of high school students, both at Tanglewood and as Music Director of the famed New York Youth Symphony, and his students have gone on to the best colleges and conservatories in the country, not to mention top professional orchestras in the U.S. and abroad. Haas graduated from Yale University and The Juilliard School.
Terry Hicks is in his thirty-fourth year as Director of Choirs for the Bentonville Public Schools, his seventeenth year directing the choir at First Christian Church, Bentonville, and his fourteenth year as the director of the SoNA Singers.
He holds a Bachelor of Music Education from Ithaca College and a Master of Music Education from the University of Arkansas. Mr. Hicks has also performed with the Robert Shaw Festival Chorus at Carnegie Hall.
Under his leadership, the Bentonville High School choirs have consistently earned superior ratings at regional, state, and invitational festivals. His choirs have been invited to perform at numerous prestigious events, including five performances at the Arkansas State Music Convention, the National High School Choral Festival at Carnegie Hall by the Weill Music Institute, three appearances at the Southwest ACDA Convention, and two performances at the ACDA National Convention. Notably, his choir was also invited to perform for Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex.
Terry Hicks
Under his leadership, the Bentonville High School choirs have earned numerous awards and toured extensively throughout the U.S. and Europe. In addition to his responsibilities as choir director, he also teaches AP Music Theory.
His professional affiliations include the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), the National Association for Music Education (NAfME), and Phi Mu Alpha. Mr. Hicks was awarded the ArkCDA Distinguished Director Award in 2001, 2005, and 2015. He currently serves as President of ArkCDA, having also held roles as Arkansas All-State Chairperson, Region Chairperson, and President of the Arkansas chapter of ACDA.
Mr. Hicks has been recognized with multiple awards from state choral organizations and has served in various leadership roles at both regional and state levels. As a sought-after clinician, he continues to share his expertise with choirs throughout Arkansas and central US.
He resides in Bella Vista, AR, with his wife, Peggy, and their dog, Albus. They have two children, Katie and John, a daughter-in-law, Kaitlyn, and a grandson, Ian.