Choir: The Unknown

By Ellie Haveman

staff writer

Dresses. Tuxedos. Learning parts. Sight reading. Concerts. Choir is an unknown to many people within the school, yet they’re heard at most school events. Not many students know the struggles that every choir student faces in auditions, concerts, and learning new songs.

 
All choir students are included in either concert choir, chorale, women’s chorus, or varsity voices. Concert Choir and Chorale is made up of any student who wants to be in choir and don’t require any auditions, Chorale consists of just freshman girls, while Concert Choir is made up of everyone else. Taking a step up is Women’s chorus and Varsity Voices. Auditions are essential for each of these groups. Women’s Chorus, another choir containing only girls, is hard to get into, however, Varsity Voices is the most selective group, picking the best boys and girls out of all the grades. Both Women’s Chorus and Varsity Voices also have a dress code. During concerts the girls wear formal dresses, while the boys wear tuxedos. In the beginning of the year, there are several days dedicated to picking dresses, and fittings, for both the girls and boys. 

To an outsider, choir can seem just like singing and having a grand time, however it is competitive and difficult to every student involved. During the auditions, students have to sing the national anthem, a song of their choice, and also have to sight read. Sight reading is by definition, reading a song without any preparation, and because of this, it can be the hardest part of an audition. When asked why sight reading is considered the hardest part, senior Alexus Voss, a member of Varsity Voices, says “It’s like reading a different so when you’re reading it, it's different than what you’ve been taught your whole life.”

Once a student gets into a choir, they’re faced with a whole new set of challenges. Within the year there are a total of 4 concerts: Festival of Arts concert (previously called the foreign language concert), Coffee Concert, Christmas Concert, and the Pop Concert. In previous years, there was another concert called the Select Ensemble Concert, showcasing both select bands and choirs, however it was cancelled this year. During a concert, each choirs perform multiple songs, ranging in difficulty. Making the members of each choir work hard to learn their parts in each song and sometimes, learn choreography.

Although choir is sometimes frustrating, it has its benefits. Since the students spend a lot of time together, they form tight bonds, sometimes becoming really close friends. Talking about other positives in choir, Voss says “Making music itself with other people is really fun. It feels good to be in choir and have other people that enjoy what you enjoy doing.” 

Choir can be something that requires a lot of time and effort, however, most students come back every year, repeating the process all over again.

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