Hello, Chesnee Choirs friends, family, and followers!
October has been super busy but so much fun! It has probably been my favorite month yet. Here’s a look at all we accomplished:
Clemson - Ranky Tanky!
On October 2nd, we took a trip after school to my alma mater, Clemson University. We arrived at the Brooks Center for the Performing Arts and received a short tour of the facility, and we got to sit in on the end of TakeNote’s rehearsal. TakeNote is the female a cappella group at Clemson, and the girls were enamored with them! TakeNote will be coming to our classroom to perform and work with us next week, and we are SO excited. Everyone loves pop a cappella, right?
After our tour we went to the Chick-fil-A on campus and had dinner. The walk from the Brooks Center to the Chick-fil-A gave the girls a small glimpse of the campus, which for some was the first time they stepped foot onto a college campus. Very exciting!
We ended our night seeing Ranky Tanky, a musical group from Charleston that shared the music, poetry, and culture of the Gullah communities of the low country. They were incredible musicians, and it was fun to sit back and listen to a concert without the pressure of completing an assignment for it, or even being the ones preparing the concert!
It was such a fun night, or as we called it, Girls Night Out! We’ll get to do it again next semester and see Cantus, a world-renowned choral group. I’m super excited!
Coffee House
We hosted our first Coffee House fundraiser on Tuesday, October 16th in the choir room. We rearranged the choir room to accommodate table seating, rows of chairs, a cozy stage, plenty of Christmas lights and lamps, and a buffet table of treats and coffee! Each act sang wonderfully, and without any nerves or stage fright! (Or at least they didn’t show it!) We made a little under $200, which will go towards audition fees for future honors choir opportunities. If you came out, thanks so much for supporting our program! If you missed it, come see us next semester! We will host one Coffee House per semester.
Clinic with Dr. Bernaducci
The Clemson Director of Choral Activities, Dr. Anthony Bernaducci, came to our classroom on Thursday, October 18th to work with our choir ladies for an entire class period! He showed them some unique vocal warm-ups, choral singing technique, and worked on some of their concert repertoire with them. Not only did the girls learn a lot, but I did too! We will definitely be incorporating some of the things he taught us into our daily rehearsals. He also brought us some Clemson Choral Exchange t-shirts! Who doesn’t love a free t-shirt?
Senior Recognition Assembly Performance
We were asked to sing the Chesnee Alma Mater at the Senior Recognition ceremony, which the entire school attends. With such a busy month behind us, we felt a lot of pressure to make sure it was polished and ready for their school-wide debut as an ensemble! I think we were all a little nervous, but as soon as they started singing the auditorium became silent, intently listening! They received much applause, and left with their spirits so high! I’m so proud of how much they have grown as a choir since August, and I am so glad they are proud of their group!
Looking ahead to November.
If you thought October was busy, wait until you see November!
First, TakeNote is coming to sing for us and teach us a little about pop a cappella performance. That same week, I’ll be taking 4 girls to audition for the SC All State Choir in Columbia. There, they will sing the audition piece in a quintet and then move to individual sight singing.
Then we will participate in the Veteran’s Day performance on Monday, November 12th, and then our Winter Concert is on Tuesday, December 4th at 7:00pm! We hope you’ll come hear our program! We’ve been working hard every day!
Until next month,
Mrs. Brazell