Copyright © 2006 NLThomas
All Rights Reserved

"Cherokee National
Youth Choir"

TAHLEQUAH, OKLAHOMA – The Cherokee National Youth Choir has been nominated for an Indian Summer Music Award (ISMA) for 2006, in the spiritual category for its latest CD, “Cherokee Sunday Morning.”

“These children show the strength of Cherokee culture by continuing to sing our songs that have survived for hundreds of years. We truly appreciate their talents, and it is good to see them get recognition on a national level,” said Chad Smith, Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation.

The third annual IMSA Awards will be presented during the Indian Summer Festival to be held Sept. 8-10 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, at Henry Maier Festival Park with the awards ceremony itself held on Sat., Sept. 9. ISMA nominees for 2006 have been invited to perform at the festival’s ISMA Showcase.

“We’re always very proud when the choir is recognized for its efforts in music and language. We don’t sing for the recognition, but it is nice when people recognize our efforts,” said Mary Kay Henderson, choir director.

The 2006 Cherokee National Youth Choir consists of 44 students, between sixth and ninth grades, who live within the 14-county jurisdiction of the Cherokee Nation. The choir, founded in 2000 by Chief Smith as a way to involve children in the perpetuation of Cherokee language and culture, performs traditional Cherokee songs in the Cherokee language to demonstrate that Cherokee language and culture not only exist but thrive in today’s world.

The choir has produced four CDs, one of which features two-time Grammy® Award winner Rita Coolidge, and won two Native American Music Awards (NAMMYs) for “Best Gospel Christian Recording” in 2002 and 2003.

The Cherokee National Youth Choir is currently working on its fifth CD, “Comfort and Joy,” a collection of old and new Christmas songs that should be available for purchase during the Cherokee National Holiday over Labor Day weekend.

The Indian Summer Music Awards Festival was founded in 1985 as an American Indian ethnic festival to strengthen the American Indian community and to educate the general public on the history and unique, diverse cultures of American Indians. The festival also provides a forum through which to celebrate and showcase American Indian talent and traditions.

For more information on the choir or to request that a group of choir members perform at community events, contact Kathy Sierra, phone: 918-453-5618.

Related Cherokee Nation contact information:

Mike Miller, Cherokee Nation Director of Communications Phone: 918-456-0671 (ext.2210) Fax: 918-458-5580 E-mail: Communications@cherokee.org Larry Daugherty, Advertising Manager Cherokee Nation - Public Affairs Phone 918-456-0671 (Ex.2324) E-mail: ldaugherty@cherokee.org

Steven Swogger, Agriculture Liaison Natural Resources Department Phone: 918-456-0671 (ext.2546) FAX: 918-458-7673 E-mail: sswogger@cherokee.org Bradley D. Peak, Cherokee Nation Natural Resources Specialist Phone: 918-456-0671 (ex.2843) E-mail: bpeak@cherokee.org