Chamber choir 3/16/12

Celina Choirs Are Going to State!! (AND BAND!!)

Last weekend (3/16-3/17) I had one of my proudest moments as a teacher in my 10 year career. My chamber choir qualified for state contest in class A (the 2nd most difficult classification) with straight Superior (I) ratings. This was our first time attempting contest in Class A- we were the only choir in the district to compete in that class. The sang their best and deserved the ratings they received- I was very very proud Friday night! THEN, the next morning, my A Cappella choir students came to contest with a fierce energy in their warm up that I really had not seen before from them as an ensemble. They sang the best I had ever heard them. We walked into the sight-reading room, and were so focused and determined to succeed in their sight-reading exercise. Many of us cried together when the judge announced to us that their sight-reading rating was a Superior (I). We had to work hard, almost daily to get their sight-reading to that level, but their hard work paid off and what a fantastic feeling that was!! The A Cappella choir found out soon afterward that their overall rating was a Superior and that they qualified for state contest! The A Cappella Choir students were (and still are) so excited at the opportunity to establish themselves as one of the state's best choirs. They are continuing to work hard in class, and we are having more fun working/singing than we have had in a very long time! I am so proud of all of my high school students and their efforts! We will be headed to Van Buren High School on Friday 5/4 for state contest! I hope that our ratings at state match the amount of effort we are putting in during our rehearsals!

Test upload of pics

Chamber choir District contest 2011
A Cappella choir contest 2011

Messiah Rehearsals have begun!

We are excited to have begun our rehearsing for our annual Messiah performance! A Cappella students have been rehearsing Messiah music on Tuesdays and Thursdays in class with Ms. Smith and Mr. VanTilburg. And on Sunday 11/6, we will have our 2nd combined rehearsal in the choir room from 3-4:30pm with the A Cappella Choir, Chamber Choir, and many adult staff and community members. Choir students are allowed to miss TWO of the Sunday rehearsals without a grade penalty. Please see calendar at the right for scheduled rehearsals. There are also schedules available for students to take home at the Sunday rehearsals. If you are a parent who is a singer, consider joining your son/daughter on our Messiah experience! Rehearsal CD's have been made available this year for all students and adults who wanted one. Students have also been encouraged to purchase their own Messiah music score, if personal finances allow. The Celina music store sells them for around $8.50. You might find a used score online for even less. Having their own score allows the students to highlight their own part and mark the music as they wish- they can also take home their own scores to have for individual practice. Students without their own scores use the choir department's scores which are in various states of condition from years of use.

Rehearsal for Night at the Opera

On Wednesday November 16th, HS choirs will rehearse their music and be placed onstage for the coming weekend's performances at the following times:

A Cappella Choir: 1:00-3:00pm

Chamber Choir: 2:40pm-4:00pm

Please note this is the ONLY time A Cappella choir will be onstage to rehearse before the concert.

Our first performances of the year are 11/18-11/19 in the Ed Complex Auditorium! Tickets will go on sale during the week of 11/7. All seats are general admission and will be sold for $5. This will cover the costs of the music, performing rights, and costumes for the production, as well as supplement the cheese and sausage fundraiser. By the way- we earned just over $1800 in profits from our sale. Thank you to all who purchased items and of course to the many students who sold items!

Welcome to the 2011-2012 school year!

We are almost finished with our first FULL week of school, and all of the choirs are starting on some exciting music and projects. In November, the A Cappella Choir and Chamber Choir at the high school will be presenting "A Night At the Opera" at the Ed Complex Auditorium. We will sing many of the most famous chorsuses and arias- many of which can be heard on TV commercials and in movies. The idea is to educate students and the audience on what opera IS and IS NOT, and have a little fun along the way! The students are off to a great start! The chamber choir will also be presenting a 40 minute operetta titled "The Trial of Goldilocks" based, as one might guess, on Goldilocks and the Three Bears. The show is full of comedy and aimed to please audiences of all ages, especially the younger (10 and under) crowd.

The middle school choirs have been learning all sorts of vocal warm ups that will: improve their ranges, encourage active, engaged listening as they sing, teach them melody versus harmony, hear intervals (distances between notes), singer's diction, and more! We are enjoying learning about harmony through music of the Beach Boys. Although we probably will not perform Beach Boys on their first performance in December, the songs may just appear on their May program!

Celina Chamber Choir earns I (Superior) Rating at OMEA State Large Group Contest

I am very proud to announce that yesterday the chamber choir earned a Superior rating in Class B at OMEA State Large Group Contest, held at Van Buren High School. This rating was the result of much hard focused work on their stage performance and sight-reading. They managed to do this even after most of them were up late attending prom and after prom activities the night before! Thank you, Chamber Choir, and also to Mr. Dave VanTilburg, our wonderful accompanist, for your hard work and dedication!

Thanks also go to the students who were able to provide music for the high school Art Show this afternoon. Kirsten Fuelling, Hannah Jones, Greg Hirt, Zoe Kriegel, Brittany Bullock, and Alex Anderson (as well as Mrs. Kalcec, Mr. VanTilburg, and myself) shared their solo talents and were much appreciated by Mrs. Place and the art show goers! What a big weekend this was!

Don't forget about our upcoming May choir events:
Sunday May 8th- HS Choir Recital 4pm in the Ed Complex Auditorium
Tuesday May 17th- MS Band and Choir Spring Concert 7pm in MS Gym
Thursday May 19th-HS Spring Choir Concert 7:30 in Ed Complex Auditorium
Friday May 20th- 7th Grade Choir Large Group Performance at Parkway Schools
Saturday May 21st- 8th Grade Choir Large Group Performance at Parkway Schools