McKeesport Area, EF host PMEA concert

Students from roughly 60 area schools participated in the event.

The McKeesport Area and Elizabeth Forward school districts hosted students from throughout the region last week for the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association District One chorus concert.

On Friday, nearly 180 student singers from around 60 schools throughout Allegheny, Fayette, Greene, Washington and Westmoreland counties came together to sing at McKeesport Area High School.

McKeesport Choir Director Beth Eger called the event a success for the school district. She worked alongside Dr. Angie Berna Milliren, the choir sponsor at Elizabeth Forward.

“The PMEA tries to line up hosts years in advance,” Eger said. “And I knew that I wanted to do my share of hosting before I retire. My friend from Elizabeth Forward said that she would do it with me. And so we got the superintendent to write a letter of intent, and then we were put on the calendar.”

The 2026 PMEA District One Choir was conducted by Penn State Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities Dr. Christopher Kiver. Eger said it was a great opportunity for students to be exposed to other people in the field.

“(Kiver) did a fantastic job, all the kids really enjoyed him,” Eger said. “A little bit of his conducting style was very different from mine. So it’s good to get them exposed to other conductors, rather than just seeing me all the time.”

Senior Michael Pfeffercorn was among the students who represented McKeesport Area at the concert. He said the concert was a great success thanks to Eger and Milliren, adding that he also enjoyed Kiver as a conductor.

“He (Kiver) always wanted the best out of us whenever we were doing something, it didn’t matter if it was just the smallest little note ever,” Pfeffercorn. “It just always had to be the best there, because he wanted us to have fun, yes, but he also wanted us to learn something and succeed.”

The choir concert this year also featured Dr. Yana Tyolkova, a music professor from PennWest California, who played the piano accompaniment for the concert.

McKeesport Area and Elizabeth Forward were each represented by eight students in the choir. Belle Vernon Area had one student involved.

Now that the District One concert is over, a select number of students will participate in a regional concert, which could lead to participating in the All-State choir.