Aurora singers shine at Kent State

It’s no secret Aurora High School is home to a multitude of talented artists, musicians, and vocalists. Most work on their craft both during school hours and on their own time, but some have the opportunity to share unique experiences with their peers.

Last October, several Aurora students got the chance to participate in the Kent State All-Star Choir Festival. The All-Star Choir festival takes place on the campus of Kent State University in Kent, Ohio. Aurora was represented by Seniors Ashlyn White, Elizabeth Keller, and Salma Youssef, as well as Juniors Samuel Siedel, Chae Seals, Emma Hesse, and Sara Gerber.

Students are nominated by their choir directors to participate, and if chosen by Kent State’s choral faculty, spend two days learning different musical pieces. The first day is spent strictly learning and practicing. The first half of the second day is spent rehearsing, and the other half is spent in a performance at Cartwright Hall on the campus of Kent State.

Participants not only got to learn new, advanced pieces but also got a true taste of what it’s like to be in a college choir. During downtime, students could walk the campus of Kent State, grab a bite to eat in a local restaurant, and meet students from other schools who were also selected to participate.

The vocal selections the students were taught gave them the opportunity to learn new, more advanced types of music. Youssef explains, "We learned about four, maybe five advanced, very differently styled musical pieces. There was an acapella piece, a female-voices piece, a male-voices piece, and some mixed group pieces. The genres ranged from jazz to pop, and even something in another language."

Aurora’s choir director Sarah Dixon said the students learned "Funeral March on the Deaths of Heroes" by Brock McElheran, “My Romance” arranged by Greg Jasperse, “Remember” by Stephen Chatman, “Jesu dulcis memoria” by Tomas Luis de Victoria, and “Unclouded Day” arranged by Shawn Kirchner. The male-only piece was “Father of Light” by Craig Courtney, and the female-only piece was “OYE!” by Jim Papoulis.

Over 200 students participated in the All-Star Choir Festival. Seals said, “It was the largest choir I have ever sung with, and I had the opportunity to sing with my friends and even Mrs. Dixon. It was weird seeing her learn the music and acting like a student.”

The final performance at Kent State’s Cartwright Hall was a highlight of the experience. Though the rehearsals leading up to it were long and intense, all agreed the end result was worth it. White says, “My favorite part of the experience was hearing everyone sing together. It was a new experience to have so many voices singing all at once. Also, we had the ability to do six or seven different harmonies at one time, which sounds very cool.”

All students who participated said they would keep attending if given the chance, and Dixon agreed.

“I hope we can continue attending! This was a great opportunity for our singers!”