Going Out on a High Note

Chorus went to a competition in Hollywood and won numerous accolades this past spring

The audience weeps, the judges applaud- Langley’s Madrigals have just finished their last song, horizons, a truly moving piece. The WorldStrides on Stage Music Festival in Hollywood took place during this past spring break and was marked by beautiful songs and tremendous talent and Langley’s remarkable choir. At the festival, Langley’s choir competed with nine other choirs from across the country and won numerous accolades.

Langley’s four choirs received Gold Medal ratings of 90 or higher. Concert Choir, Madrigals, and Chamber all won First Place Awards in their categories and all received an Adjudicator’s trophy for having a combined score of 95 or higher. Having the highest score of any two choirs from one school, Langley’s choir received the Choral Sweepstakes Trophy. Likewise, Madrigals received the Most Outstanding Choral Group Trophy. Additionally the festival individually recognized Jamie Goodson and Teddy Herzfeld with Ovation Awards for their performance of solos.

Preparing and practicing for a choir competition can be anything but easy. President of the choir, Ahmad Akbari said “If we were just a regular high school choir then [yes] we could be just average, but with our [teacher] there is no average.”

Junior Sumayyah McTaggart said “[the preparation] was pretty intense because we were not only preparing for the competition but also for assessment so we were getting ready to actually be judged … it was kind of like a choir SOL.

In order to prepare for the competition, Langley’s choir practiced their songs since the beginning of January. “It is our most difficult music of the whole school year; the most challenging for all of the choirs” said Mr. Lambert, Langley’s chorus director.

Similarly, sophomore Alex Hanna said “It was a lot of work and obviously it was great to see it pay off when we won best overall choir.” Mr. Lambert ultimately stresses that he is really proud of his students. “They did an amazing job; everybody did their best.”

Overall, Langley’s choir prepared strenuously for the competition, and from all the awards Langley won it is clear that their preparation paid off.