Conductor Donald Kendrick's reach extends beyond the podium and the Sacramento Choral Society to a generation of Sacramento music leaders.

"The people he has impacted over the past 25 years are now the patrons that keep the arts alive in Sacramento," said Ron Slabbinck, a former Kendrick student who directs visual and performing arts at Christian Brothers High School.

"Had he not established and developed such a strong choral tradition in Sacramento, we could be suffering the same artistic emptiness as many other cities of our size," said Slabbinck.

Kendrick's accomplishments in choral music and education have been many since he left a Louisiana State University teaching job in 1985 to direct choral activities at California State University, Sacramento.

He has conducted six choirs, co-founded the Sacramento Children's Chorus, directed the music for the past two governors' inaugurations and earned the 2007 Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award from the California Music Educators Association.

"I'm amazed that I'm in my silver anniversary year … because I feel like I'm really just starting out," said Kendrick, 62.

To add program notes to his career, we asked 10 past and present students to weigh in on Kendrick and his impact on the local choral scene.

Eugene Chan

Resident, Theatre Basel, Switzerland

"Maestro Kendrick was the reason I came to study at Sac State in 2001. My original focus was on choral education. Back then, I had every intention of becoming a music educator. But maestro Kendrick featured me as a soloist in many of his concerts. He was a wonderful role model who taught me, through his own example, the importance of discipline, hard work, musicianship and community service."

"The many lessons I learned from maestro Kendrick have served me in some of the most important performances of my life, especially when I performed as soloist in "Carmina Burana" with the Los Angeles Philharmonic ... (with less than 24 hours notice) and soloist with the San Francisco Symphony.

Ralph Hughes

Professor and director of choir and chamber singers, American River College, Sacramento, and director of the Sacramento Master Singers

"He had a rather profound influence on my development as a conductor. At CSUS, I was one of three students Don accepted into the initial program. Don had exceedingly high aspirations for the program and demanded a lot from us. It was under his tutelage that I experienced conducting major works with orchestral accompaniment.

"I appreciate that our teacher-student relationship has shifted to one of being colleagues and friends. We now offer suggestions to one another regarding literature, and we share ideas about organizing honor choirs."

Sherry Mallory Anderson

Owner, Vocal Arts Academy, Roseville

"I had the privilege of singing in the first choir Don Kendrick directed at CSUS. I was completing my teaching credential. We all realized immediately that something good had come into our community.

"In years since, Don has become one of the three most influential people of my life. He taught me how to embrace technical excellence and historical context while always striving for the best performance possible … because the art deserves it as much as does the audience. He's one of my heroes."

Pavel Kravchuk

Choir teacher, Del Oro High School, Loomis

"One of Don's greatest gifts is his understanding of music's positive role in the community, and the benefits which the gift of classical music brings to our area.

"His influence has helped me greatly with my own choirs, most recently when I was starting a brand-new choir at House of Bread Church in Roseville."

Cecilie King

Music chairwoman and choir director, Elk Grove Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Elk Grove

"Dr. Kendrick is a consummate music maker, and not in some namby-pamby 'noodle around with an instrument in a quiet room' sense. His music making, in its most rigorous and elemental form, is making a choir out of disparate people. He makes a musical instrument out of the choir."

Call arts critic Edward Ortiz at (916) 321-1071.