Many times while working on a project or something really important, you can miss minor details. Maybe it’s because you have been working on it over and over again. Or just because you need someone to help you find it. This month, November, we had a visitor in choir! All the choir students have been working hard to be able to learn two new pieces for the upcoming concert. All sounded wonderful and beautiful together.
Mrs. Rushing was a visitor who led an adult church singing choir. Mrs. Rushing had come to our choir to hear us and give us outside input on things to improve. And we are all very grateful for her coming in and teaching us! “She was very nice, she helped us out a lot. She definitely made an impact on our singing.” Said Gavin Thomas, a tenor in the upper school choir. She helped us with many points of our singing. One of the main points that she had talked about was holding power behind how we sing. She worked with us on how to help improve our sound and volume. She did many working exercises throughout the class. By the end of the class period, we could all say we were feeling more confident in our work. During this time many of the students had to skip their last period of class to be able to go through a full 80 minutes of singing. Though the time flew past with the amount of fun everyone was having! “Yeah, I thought she was great!! Her coming in and teaching us things that she teaches her choir made a big difference to us! I think when she came in we started sounding a lot better, and ever since her visit we have continued to sound better each and every time we have choir!” Said Lou Porter, an alto singer.
During this time we worked on two of our choir song pieces for the next concert. With both pieces, we learned a part of putting emotion into a song. One of the songs is a Latin piece made of originally ten parts. We are singing in part though. Dies Irae is a Latin song about the day of judgment. It is a song with a darker and scarier theme behind the words. With this piece, we worked on learning the pronunciation and emphasis behind the words being chanted and sung. Also learning how much expression can change the theme of the song and the power behind the song. But together learning this song with Mr. Whaley we would all agree that this song is a powerful piece with lots of meaning and feelings behind it.
Being able to have someone from outside giving their input was important and very helpful to us. For each piece of music learned was an important piece of our choir’s learning this year. We would all agree that each person has grown in their own way from last year. Choir is an amazing class to learn in and experience. Being able to spread music and messages between people both in and out of our school. It is an amazing educational opportunity that has shaped our voices and perspectives in music. Showing us not only the music sung and heard online today, but also songs from years ago. Teaching and connecting us to others who have sung the songs, or have created them. Music and choir are a chance to be able to connect with everyone in any form or way. But not only connect with others, but ourselves as well. To find our talent and love for music. To be able to be heard.
So we would also like to thank Mr. Whaley. For allowing us to learn and grow in this talent. He is truly an inspiring teacher of the arts, encouraging us to find our voices not only as a single person, but as a group, a class, and a school.
