SUPERIOR … MHS’s Concert Choir shows their excitement about earning a Superior (I) rating.
On April 6, the Montpelier High School Concert Choir earned a Superior rating at the district competition in Archbold, Ohio. According to a release on the school’s website, choir members “participated at the OMEA District 1 Large Group Adjudicated Event in Archbold. At this event, students are adjudicated by three clinicians on a set of three prepared pieces for a rating. They then sing a song by sight and are judged on this “sight reading” of this new piece of music. The choir earned a first division “superior” rating at district, which qualifies them for state contest later next month. This marks the first time in more than 30 years that a chorus from Montpelier has qualified for this event.” The choir was one of a small number of groups who qualified for the state competition.
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Concert Choir member will travel to the state concert in Van Buren, Ohio, on April 26. Says choir director Mr. Ben Lupo, the choir “must sing three pieces of music from memory for a panel of three judged, and read a three to four page piece of music by sight (for the first time) for a judge. Choruses are judged on a number of criterions and earn a rating based on the level of their performance.”
Lupo added that he was “absolutely ecstatic about my students performing so well at large group. As a choral program, we have been working very hard to meet this particular benchmark, and I am very glad that this particular group has earned it. They have grown markedly over the course of this year, and I look forward to seeing these young men and women continue to develop through their high school careers.”
As for the reaction of the concert choir, upon hearing they had earned a Superior rating, they “went absolutely nuts. I’m relatively certain that the Concert Choir members just about overloaded Facebook, Twitter, and the nearest cell phone tower sharing the good news. They were so proud and excited!” And right fully so.
Thirty-seven students comprise the Concert Choir, and congratulations go to the following young men and women:
Sabrina Beck, Zoe Bolen, Keaton Byers, Cody Caudill, Donovan Chamberlain, Amber Chapin, Austin Cook, Trymecia Ford, Adreanna Gigax, Dyllon Godfrey, Savannah Graham, Amber Grewe, Mikaela Gulick, Makayla Hildebrandt, Warren Hulbert, Brandon Jones, Lindsey Kohlbeck, Vincent Konoff, Luke Malone, Gunnar Matson, Nathaniel McCord, Cheyenne Miller, Keisha Miller, Zackary Murray, Britneigh Newland, Martine Ortega, Cassandra Rudolph, Hope Scholma, Chase Steffes, Regan Steffes, Lane Strubbing, Jerry Teats, Kearstin Tingle, Taylor Wells, Mikayla Williams, Katelynn York, Abi Brink
Mr. Lupo had “come to an agreement earlier in the year that I would shave an “M” in my hair if they earned a “I” and grow a beard.” He went through with it as promised, much to the delight of his students, and he adds that his beard is growing in “somewhat.”
The concert choir director is clearly proud of his group, and congratulations are in order to Mr. Lupo and the young people who worked hard to achieve this rating. Good luck to the Montpelier Concert Choir as they perform on April 26.
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