BY VICTORIA MEJICANOS, VIVIAN GOMEZ

To experience a night of a new culture, rendezvous, and serenity is exactly what the West Covina Choral Department introduced their year with this past Saturday evening. A Night In Italy featured a  three course dinner, student servers, and photo opportunities, as well as jaw-dropping performances from all ensembles including Women’s Chamber, Concert Choir, Men’s Choir, and the Wescovaires. Some Italian songs performed included Danza Danza, Amarilla Mia Bella, Lascia Temi Moire, and Caro Mio Ben. Guests also had the opportunity to get a preview of a song from their upcoming fall concert, Tshotshaloza, which was performed eagerly by Wescovaires and met with much joy and excitement from the crowd.  With a spectacular attendance, Soloist and guest Juan Serrano brought a revival of 18th century-esque singing. In addition to a beautiful solo performance, their special guest of the evening, WCHS alumni Miranda Moreno, had a comparatively chilling show with a medley of songs varying in characteristics that left attendees in awe.  Choir director Tyler Wigglesworth 

expressed his pride in his students during the concert, adding that in addition to all the pieces being in Italian they could “also be used as audition pieces, and are studied by freshmen in college”. He also expressed his joy seeing alumni perform and thanked her multiple times. However, the days leading up to their first performance were not all too easy, as Junior Jacob Bourlet stresses the “long..lots of hard work, rehearsing up to get everything right, including setting up the whole concert”. Furthermore, he adds that the preparation was well worth the time and effort, as he was “excited to show a preview of the fall song”. Bourlet conclusively believes the collaboration to organize and run events like these “bring the whole choir together to perform and get to know each other better”. Comparatively, Junior Zach Grech knows all too well that events unite the choral department by “making sure are singing as one voice, and keeping the beat of a song to tell a story”. The story the choral department told was a stunning retelling of Italian history, to which songs from the Renaissance truly peaked.  Impressively, the choir had the ability to perform without prior knowledge of singing or speaking in Italian. With the grace of the choral department, they were practically a recreation of the elegance and artistry that was lived then. 

After the performance, Grech concludes that the feeling after the concert was all but “the release of stress, but it’s leading to the next concert and loves the pieces in it”. Following this teaser from just the opening show, we can expect much more from all ensembles of choir this year. Considerably, another show with a similar aspect of having a coffee-house theme and servers is coming very soon. In sum, the introductory performance truly showcased their talent, skill, and most importantly, stands as a comparison of improvement leading to their upcoming fall concert which will take place at Bethany Church in October.