Sharing My Singing Experiences – Pt. 2

Singing In Choir and Why I Love It

In my very first article, I talked about how I joined choir in middle school and that I absolutely loved it! I’m such a choir nerd that I was even president of the Reno Chapter of American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) for 2 years during my undergrad!

A nerdy, yet professional headshot of me from 2015!

I’m going to talk about my experiences in choir and why it matters to me. (Fun fact, there are many health benefits to singing in choir and singing in general. I will talk more about this in my upcoming blogs, so stay tuned!)

I have been singing in choir for 20 years and I absolutely love it! I joined choir in middle school, sung in all 3 years of middle school, all 4 years of high school and all 5 years of college. In high school, I was the choral librarian and in college, I re-started the Reno ACDA chapter, starting out as the chapter treasurer and secretary, and then served as chapter president until I graduated college.

Here Are My 3 Most Fond Memories of Being in Choir:

1. Singing A Solo

During my senior year of college, our chamber choir grew to a really large ensemble. One day, I auditioned for the solo of Eric Whitacre’s “Oculi Omnium” and my choir director Dr. Torkeslon had me sing the solo! I was so excited and honored to sing this unique choral piece.

2. Meeting Eric Whitacre

In the choir world, Eric Whitacre, who is a Reno native, is a Grammy award-winning choral composer. He is most known on his virtual choirs, and he composes a lot of amazing choral pieces and other musical arrangements. I have been listening to his music since my sophomore year of high school.

In 2016, he came to UNR and talked to the entire Music Department, and he work shopped some of his pieces in the university band and choirs. I met him that day, he signed my score, and I took a picture with him. Here’s proof:

3.Singing at Carnegie Hall

In 2013, our university choir director, Dr. Torkeslon invited the university choirs and several high schools to sing a wonderful and etherial choral work called “The Sunrise Mass” written by Norwegian composer, Ola Gjeilo.

During the dress rehearsal in the hall, the composer came to our rehearsal and briefly talked about his piece. It was the New York premiere, so this was an extra special big deal to Ola, who lives in New York!

So one might ask, “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?…. Practice, practice, practice”

It really is true and any musician that knows about Carnegie Hall, knows this statement for a fact. Without a doubt, singing in Carnegie Hall, was an absolute dream come and I couldn’t be more grateful for this opportunity. This is a memory I will never forget. Who knows? Maybe I will get to sing in there again one day! Just have to keep practicing!

Below are more photos of the outside of Carnegie Hall, our choir and orchestra photo in Carnegie Hall and then a picture of me in Central Park, just posin’!

The reasons why choir is so important to me is because when I sing, I have a sense of connection with other people, finding my own sense of self and feeling a particular emotion to the piece of music while connecting my own personal beliefs and view of the world.

Want to hear more about my singing experiences in other musical genres? Subscribe to my blogs and stay tuned for more! Please share this article to your musical friends and family!

Photo by Jeff Sheldon on Unsplash