"I start every morning at the junior high, and we co-teach together. It's great for alignment in the program, for familiarity with the students and getting to know them and hopefully continuing in choir. Our students see that we collaborate. I like that they can see that because it shows them how to go about relationships. People need be modeled how to treat each other and work together and talk to each other.” -Daniel Gutierrez

"It was super rewarding to be so invested in those pieces, and that's something that our middle schoolers are getting with conference performances. They're getting a set of songs for an extended period of time. We try to get our students to really invest so it can have an impact on them and in turn have an impact on the audience. That journey is just something that the kids don't forget, and that's why I keep submitting for conferences." - Blake Richter

Daniel Gutierrez, the head choir director at Nixa High School, is an acclaimed conductor, clinician, and speaker nationwide. He has earned several prestigious awards, including Teacher of the Year for Springfield Public Schools, a finalist for the state award, the Springfield Rotary Award for Community Service, and honors from the Springfield Business Journal’s 40 Under 40. Daniel has received the Missouri Choral Directors Association Podium Award. His choirs are renowned, frequently winning at music festivals and performing at notable conferences, including regional and national ACDA events and the National Conference for MS/JH Choral Music.

Blake Richter is a middle school choir director in his hometown of Nixa, Missouri. Blake directs over 250 seventh and eighth grade students in his various ensembles at Nixa Junior High. Blake’s choirs have been selected to perform at the Missouri Music Educators Association Conference multiple times. In 2017, Blake was named one of Missouri’s 32 Regional Teachers of the Year, in 2019, Blake was awarded the Prelude Award from the Missouri Choral Directors Association for demonstrating exemplary work as a young choral professional, and in 2020, Blake was named a Semifinalist for the GRAMMY Music Educator Award. In his spare time, Blake runs his Blake Richter Productions business which specializes in video production, audio engineering, photography, and music composition.

To get in touch with the Choir Guys, you can find them on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. You can find Danny on Instagram and find Blake on X, TikTok, and Instagram (@drrichternixa).

Email choirfampodcast@gmail.com to contact our hosts.

Podcast music from Podcast.co
Photo in episode artwork by Trace Hudson