sergio barer - Composer in Residence of the San Fernando Valley Master Chorale.

As a professional, being a member of ACDA allows me to keep in touch with my peers, by which I means other composers, it allows me to meet more people in the choral world and allows me to learn what is going on in that world. It also allows me to see the viewpoint of choral directors and understand how to better fit in their activities. Personally, it has opened the door to friendships and to integrate myself in a community of like-minded people. To me, "I am ACDA" means “I belong with choirs." Currently, the San Fernando Valley Master Chorale is rehearsing a new work I wrote that is an hour long called The Nightmare and the Dream which tells the story of the Jewish people from the Middle Ages to 1948. It is inspiring and dramatic and it is a very special journey to share with a choir, taking notes that have only been on paper and bringing them to life for the first time. It is akin to being an explorer or an adventurer going after a new frontier.