Last Friday, Oct. 4, Lawrence University’s choirs performed their first concert of the year. The concert consisted of Viking Chorale, Cantala and Concert Choir, and each choir did an amazing job. This concert’s theme was “All Things New,” and it truly reflected that. Not only was it the first concert of the year, but this was also the concert that introduced Dr. Shannon Gravelle as the new co-director of the choir program, directing both Viking Chorale and Concert Choir.
This concert changed things up compared to past years, because Dr. Gravelle added an audience participation section. The audience was taught the chorus and sang along with the choirs. At first, I was nervous about this new section of the concert, but it was overall really cool. When asked about the addition, junior Jazmine Cool, a singer in Concert Choir, said, “I was a little like ‘oh boy.’ But like, also, I’m excited because I kind of like stuff like that. Like, I think it’s cute, and I really like Dr. Gravelle’s philosophy around it.” When asked if audience participation will be part of future concerts, Cool admitted that she does not know.
The choirs only had three weeks to prepare for this concert. Sophomore Jo Matchette, a singer in Cantala, described the prep as “stressful.” Matchette said that to ensure that the concert went smoothly, Cantala learned “less difficult” music. Matchette also said that because there were a lot of first-years in the group, it was necessary to help them get used to the choir.
Cool described the three weeks as “very, very tight.” While she felt that the choir did not have enough time to perfect the music, Cool was “very proud of how clean and moving everything was, even in three weeks.”
The concert also celebrated the 150th anniversary of the Conservatory. Both Cool and Matchette expressed how happy they are to be a part of the Con. Matchette said that they are glad to be here for such a big anniversary and hopes that the Con “continues to be just a wonderful place to learn and grow and perform and make community.”
Cool and Matchette expressed how much fun they have performing and being part of choir, and that the Conservatory is the reason they are able to keep doing what they love. “I like seeing people’s reactions to or hearing about them after the concert from the audience’s perspective,” Cool said.
Overall, the choir concert was very fun, and all the choirs involved did an amazing job. Each choir is unique and does their own thing. I highly recommend going to future choir concerts. Perhaps future concerts will have audience participation again.