Choir vocalists are the heart of any good choir group. On the Seminole High School (SHS) campus, we have various choir groups, ranging from Concert choir to Gospel, each with their own extremely talented singers. Festival Choir, another one of SHS’s talented choral groups, is a close knit group of singers that are very passionate for their love of musical arts. Together, we will delve into the world of music and the choral arts, exploring these teenagers’ appreciation for performance and voice.
Festival choir is a group of about 40 high schoolers that are split into three different sections and organized by voice parts: Tenor/Bass, Sopranos, and Altos. Tenor/Bass students normally have deeper voices, becoming the strong foundation of any good choral song. Altos are a little higher, but not quite as high as a Soprano. Sopranos will usually get the melody of the song while all the other voice parts harmonize with them.
“I’ve been singing for about 6-7 years,” says Kelani Taitano, an SHS senior. “I love chorus so I felt that joining Festival would be the best way to challenge myself and advance my singing. I remember being in the freshman ensemble and thinking to myself, ‘Wow, these people are so cool,’ after seeing Festival perform at the winter concert. I think that was the moment I decided that I was going to join them.”
Of course, Festival Choir is also one of the more serious choir groups that SHS has on this campus. “If you enjoy music and are willing to put in the work, I would absolutely recommend joining Festival,” SHS senior Annelise White advises. “It’s not always easy, but we get to do things most other choirs on campus do not.”
Many Festival students say that, to be a part of Festival, being dedicated to art is one of the most important things. Even so, while they are committed to doing well in both concerts and judged performances, Festival makes many fun and happy memories. “Two years ago, we went to MPA,” White describes. “It’s one of the biggest choral competitions held by region. After the first round, we got the news we were going to state. It was one of the best things I’d ever experienced.”
“Everyone was so excited,” Taitano agrees.“Listening back to when we first started singing the songs to what we had now was also just really emotional. You could hear how much growth we’d made, and that felt amazing.”
It’s no surprise that the choir students say that choir is emotionally gratifying. They are being led and conducted by quite the amazing director, a teacher by the name of Ms. Jamie Poss.
Poss, growing up, was an avid enjoyer of all things music. She went through elementary school all the way to college joining choir programs. She ended up following music as a profession in college, and arrived upon SHS as the school’s new choir director not long after.
“It’s a lot to be teaching so many choir classes, but it’s absolutely wonderful.” Poss says. “I honestly don’t even consider this to be a job. Being able to make music every single day and getting paid to do it is pretty cool.”
“While it’s difficult at first, we have so many opportunities for so many people, and it does get easier after a bit. I mean, Festival does a lot of different things. From sight-reading to musicianship and even some pretty big performances.” Poss admits. “It’s hard, but you just have to keep at it.”
Music is a part of everyone’s life. For these students however, they’re quite passionate with how they employ it in their life. Joining Festival choir has changed these students’ lives, and they’re proud of it too. As a school, we applaud them for their efforts and dedication!