Garden City Community College

The Garden City Community College Concert choir has a long and proud tradition of excellence. They perform a variety of choral works and consist of many of the finest vocalists on our campus. Since 2019 the choir has started to see a rise in members and currently sits between 35-40 singers a semester. No auditions are required to become a member of the Concert Choir and is one hour of credit per semester. Scholarships are available to all performers enrolled in the class. For more information contact Sean Boller at sean.boller@gcccks.edu.

College Singers is an auditioned extension of the Concert Choir. Students must be enrolled in Concert Choir in order to audition for College Singers. College Singers perform for several school and community functions each year and perform a variety of music from the Renaissance to vocal jazz.

The Southwest Kansas Chorale is a community-based group of members ages 16 and up. This is for anybody who wants to sing with a choir again. The ability to read music is preferred but not necessary. This group is a nonauditioned choir and meets twice a month at Garden City community College Pauline Joyce Fine Arts Building in the choir room. The purpose of this group is to bring musicians from all different backgrounds to perform as a choir. Our goal at GCCC is to promote lifelong musicians and this provides that opportunity.

GCCC Orchestra (String Ensemble) was revived in the Fall of 2020. The department is proud to announce that the group is growing in numbers and musicianship. The group has grown from 13 to the 20s in the Fall of 2022. The director, Renee Carmichael, hopes to add a community-based symphony orchestra in the future. The ensemble is open to all students for one hour of credit per semester. It is a non-auditioned performance group with a focus on traditional and contemporary string literature. Orchestra performs 2-4 times per year. Experience playing a string instrument is preferred but not required. Scholarships are available. Contact Matt McGrory at matthew.mcgrory@gcccks.edu for more information.

Membership in the Buster Band program is open to all students for one hour of credit per semester. Previous band experience is preferred but open to new learners too. If you are new to band, we will ask you to enroll in an instrumental lesson.

The Jazz Ensemble is the select group of the Band Department, being open by permission from the director. The group performs jazz literature in all styles including big band, swing, bop, Latin, funk, and rock. The Jazz Ensemble is open to any student regardless of major and must be concurrently enrolled in band. Members receive an additional instrumental scholarship when enrolled in Jazz Ensemble. This group rehearses on Monday and Wednesday for one hour of college credit per semester. For more information, please contact Makenzi Johnson at makenzi.johnson@ gcccks.edu or CJ Johnson at christopher.johnson@gcccks.edu.

Garden City Community College offers several small ensemble settings. They offer a brass choir, woodwind ensemble, and percussion ensemble. These ensembles are open to any member of the community regardless of age or level of experience. Students will receive an additional scholarship for involvement in these groups. The college is also excited to offer a new ensemble called Banda, which is open to any community members or students. For more information, please contact Makenzi Johnson at makenzi.johnson@gcccks.edu or CJ Johnson at christopher.johnson@gcccks.edu.

Private instrumental and vocal lessons are required for all music majors and are available for any student or community member. Lessons are one half hour a week for one college credit a semester. For more information, please contact the following instructor for your instruments type.

• Woodwinds/Percussion – Makenzi Johnson, makenzi.johnson@gcccks.edu
• Brass – Renee Carmichael, matthew.mcgrory@gcccks.edu
• Voice – Sean Boller, sean.boller@gcccks.edu 

GCCC offers an Associate in Arts Degree in Music that will transfer to any public university in Kansas as the first two years of a bachelor’s program. Courses for the music major student include general education courses such as English, math, and science, as well as music-intensive courses such as music theory, aural skills, and class piano. Contact Sean Boller at sean.boller@gcccks.edu or CJ Johnson at christopher.johnson@gcccks.edu for more information.

Music Technology