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Six choirs from a total of four different FCUSD schools (Folsom Middle School, Sutter Middle School, Folsom High School, and Vista del Lago High School) joined together in Folsom High School’s Jill Solberg Theater for a spectacular night of choral performance.
Folsom Choirs Join Together In Celebration Of Music
March 7, 2014
The Folsom Choir Festival marked a monumental night: it was the first night all of the Folsom choral programs have gotten together to perform, and it was a unique experience seeing all the middle school and high school choirs come together.
The night started with the youngest group, Sutter Middle School’s Beginning Chorus, directed by Ginger Ekroth. Members of this choir were a mix of 6th and 7th graders.
Sutter’s Advanced Chorus (also directed by Ginger Ekroth) was a mix of 7th and 8th graders. This group was the only middle school group in which students are required to audition to join the choir. Their repertoire included a modern rendition of “Amazing Grace”.
“It was amazing. Our choir really drew in the audience’s attention.” SMS Advanced Chorus singer Charis Tejano said.
Folsom Middle School’s choir sang three pieces, directed by Melanie Huber. Their set included the traditional Maori Folk Song “Tutira Mai,” which had choreography and a piano accompaniment by Ekroth.
Vista’s Concert Choir performed a diverse set, including a spiritual (“Ain't Judgin' No Man”, by Greg Gilpin), a modern choral arrangement (“Earth Song” by Frank Ticheli), and a musical number (“Anthem” from the musical Chess).
“My students and I loved hearing all of the other schools perform. The best thing about the concert was seeing how strong the choral music programs are in our district.” VDLHS Concert Choir instructor Elicia Spencer said.
Because of Vista’s unique block schedule, students can take choir for a semester or for a full year. As a result, the VDLHS Concert Choir has kept approximately half of its choir the full year, and the other half have just joined this semester. However, their 90 minute block periods allow for concentrated rehearsal time.
Folsom High School’s Concert Choir sang three songs, including “The Seal Lullaby” composed by Eric Whitacre. Any FHS student can join the FHS Concert Choir, and all Chamber Singers also sing in the Concert Choir.
The Folsom High School Chamber Singers sang in one of the final sets of the concert. Their pieces included an Arabic piece, an Italian madrigal, and a modern arrangement of the traditional Scottish folk song, “Wild Mountain Thyme.” Students must undergo a rigorous audition process to get into the FHS Chamber Singers, including an audition piece, pitch-matching, and various scales.
The concert ended with all six choral groups singing “Gallop” by Ken Berg. Hundreds of students make up these choir programs in our district, and it was remarkable to have all the Folsom performing groups come and sing together.
"It was amazing to be with all those wonderful choirs. Singing Gallop, the last song, with 300 people was awesome. I would very much enjoy being a part of that concert again.” Rachel Nielson, a seventh grader from FMS said.
The choral program directors are hoping to have the Rancho Cordova choirs sing along at the next Folsom Choir Festival, bringing together all the choral programs in the Folsom Cordova Unified School District.
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