Mississippi Boychoir is composed of boys and young men, ages 6-18, who rehearse weekly in Jackson or Hattiesburg and represent 15-20 communities within the State of Mississippi.  They gather to present 15 to 20 performances each year and sing music for both SATB and treble voices.

The choir’s size varies from year to year between 20 to 40 members.  Since its inception, the choir has sent representatives to festivals, including all six of the international festivals for men and boys sponsored by the Alliance for Arts and Understanding (AmericaFest), as well as others in Vancouver, London, and Carnegie Hall.  In July 2009 several members attended the Golden Gate International Festival for Children and Youth in Oakland, California. While this summer, several members participated in the Crescent City Choral Festival in New Orleans.

The choir has been featured at Disney World, two Atlanta Braves games, the regional premier of John Rutter’s Mass of the Children with the Millsaps [College] Singers, and Carmina Burana performances with the Mississippi Chorus and with the choirs of the University of Southern Miss.  It commissioned and premiered in a state tour Samuel Jones’ 45-minute setting of Eudora Welty’s The Shoe Bird, in collaboration with the University of Southern Mississippi Symphony Orchestra and narrator Lester Senter.  The choir has been featured at Mississippi’s ACDA convention, and its choirboys have participated in ACDA honor choirs at the state, regional, and national levels.

The Choir was founded in 1995 by Artistic and Administrative Director, Margaret Ewing Thomas.  Mrs. Thomas retired in the Spring of 2010 after 15 years of leading the Mississippi Boychoir.  Taking over the leadership roll is the new Artistic Director, Lelon Thompson.