It is the school’s most prestigious honor. The recipients are nominated by the faculty in recognition of their professional career accomplishments and as an inspiration to those who follow in their footsteps.
"I am thrilled to be presenting this distinguished honor to Sally," says Dean Shelton G. Berg. “She is truly a role model for this award, not only for her celebrated professional achievements but as an alumna who has stayed involved and remained active in our school. We are so grateful she is part of our Frost family and offer her our most heartfelt congratulations.”
It is most befitting that Albrecht would be honored at the Frost Chorale Concert, which marks the talented ensemble’s final concert of the season prior to their embarking on a European tour. When Albrecht was a student at the University of Miami, she accompanied and performed with the famed Chamber Singers under the leadership of "Doc" Lee Kjelson. Today she is a renowned choral music pedagogue, known for her groundbreaking work with school music choirs, both as a choral music editor for leading educational music publishers for over 30 years and as an honor choir clinician and composer in the choral movement realm. "Conducting honor choirs absolutely still gives me goosebumps and emotional chills," states Albrecht, who has been the annual recipient of the ASCAP Special Music Award since 1987.
Sally Albrecht’s achievements as a choral composer, conductor, and clinician are legendary and she considers one of the turning points in her life “to be at UM when she was a choral graduate assistant, working on her master’s in accompanying.” Albrecht has more than 600 popular choral publications, 75 larger songbooks, and musicals, plus 20 instructional choral movement DVDs in print. She has directed and staged the half-time show singers performing during two Florida Citrus Bowls, and has conducted hundreds of honor choir events, including festivals at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and The Kennedy Center. For over three decades, she was the Director of School Choral and Classroom Publications for two major educational music publishing companies, most recently for Alfred Music. She was an accompanist for Fred Waring and has taught in the music departments at Oakland University (MI), Jersey City State College (NJ), and Meredith College (NC). Albrecht has worked with literally thousands of teachers, presenting sessions at music conventions and choral music workshops in over 40 states, Canada, Singapore, and Australia.
Albrecht considers her composition co-written with husband composer/arranger Jay Althouse, “I Hear America Singing!" "as one of the highlights of her career," when it premiered at the Kennedy Center in 2006 and was later performed during the 2009 Presidential Inauguration. Albrecht currently serves as the Past Chair of the Board of Trustees for the Omicron Delta Kappa national leadership honor society and is a proud recipient of their "Pillar of Leadership" award.
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Sally K. Albrecht to Receive the Frost Distinguished Alumna Award
Amanda Quist, conductor
Anita Castiglione, piano
Friday, April 29, 2022 @ 7:30 p.m.
Gusman Concert Hall
1314 Miller Drive, Coral Gables, FL 33146
