Nine Glen Crest students were recently selected to participate in the prestigious Illinois American Choral Directors Association Junior Honors Chorus.
The selected students are: seventh graders Meegan Frega, Macey Hilliard, Tessa Howard, and Sofia Schlicher; as well as eighth graders Anika Hitaj, Kate Iolani Boquiron, Megan Lowman Elizondo, Romina Hidalgo Rivera, and Sienna Walsh.
To audition, students had to learn excerpts from three songs – “Horizon”, “JAM!”, and “Blue Moon” – and record their performances. The audio recordings were submitted to be judged by professional musicians.
The Glen Crest students who were chosen then joined middle school students from across the state at the IL-ACDA Junior Honors Chorus festival at Bradley University on September 27. On that day, the students rehearsed for three hours, took a lunch break, rehearsed for three more hours, and finished the day by performing as a full choir.
Glen Crest choir teacher Sam Koppitz believes the audition, selection, and performance process helps students improve their craft and look ahead.
“It’s truly an incredible opportunity to work with world-class musicians,” he said. “For some students, it was their first visit to a college campus. It gave all of the students a chance to think about what music looks like if they continue into high school and then onto higher education.”