The arts program’s Choral Department held their annual winter concert last Friday in the gym. Choir teacher and Director of Choral and Vocal Activities Tyler Wigglesworth and Choir Director Kana Croissant led students in Wescovaires, an advanced mixed-voice ensemble, Chorale a new intermediate mixed-voice ensemble, Melodia a non-auditioned soprano & alto voiced ensemble, and Harmonix a non-auditioned tenor and bass voiced ensemble, to perform two acts, Act 1 consisting of 10 songs and Act 2 also with 10 songs.
With a total of 20 songs, and six of them being solos, all four groups in the choral department spent two months of rehearsal time to ensure they are prepared.
“Then you’ve got months and months of rehearsal. So like we’re singing Christmas when everybody’s starting to do Halloween,” said Wigglesworth.
Out of the six solos in the concert, three of them were sung by freshmen. Samantha Hernandez sang “Santa Baby” by Eartha Kitt, Maycee Guerrero sang “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” by Ralph Blane and Hugh Martin, and Kimberly Portillo Muro sang “All I Want for Christmas” by Mariah Carey and Walter Afanasieff. Despite it being their first year in a high school choir, their confidence empowered them to showcase their skills in front of a large audience.
“I felt very confident on stage. I didn’t feel nervous at all. I felt relaxed, like I was having fun on stage,” said Hernandez.
Although the main purpose of the choir concerts is to fundraise money for their program, they also help bring the choir students together through shared accomplishment.
“I think it’s like a fun way of connecting all of us together. And I think it’s really nice to be with your friends… I joined by myself and I made two new friends,” said Portillo Muro.
Along with creating a bond within their program, the choral department also connected with their audience. The audience primarily consisted of family members and friends who attended to support the performers and enjoy the event.
“I’m here to see my daughter Anabella de Bayona. Singing has been her passion, and I can see that she just loves singing, and I’m excited to see her perform,” said Gema Linares, mother of Melodia singer and senior Bayona.
Choir’s Winter Concert showcases the singers’ talent and unites the choral department. The evening was met with positive feedback from singers and their family, leaving both performers and attendees inspired and appreciative of the hard work that brought the event to life.
“This is a culmination of a lot of hard work for our students, and they’re developing as singers and musicians, and these pieces are just one more iteration of that, and so yeah it’s pretty incredible,” said Wigglesworth.
