Some 20 students and members of the Folsom High School Choir recently returned from a trip to perform on one of the nation’s most prestigious stages, Carnegie Hall in New York City.
Under the direction of Folsom-Cordova Unified School District’s Melanie Huber, the students earned the honor to perform at the WorldStrides Festival at the famed Carnegie Hall. According to Huber, the elite festival series is open to qualified groups by audition or previous qualification at a WorldStrides Heritage Festival.
The Folsom High School choir qualified as a result of their outstanding gold ranking at a previous WorldStrides festival in Anaheim last spring. After many hours of practice, the singers continued to demonstrate their excellence and dedication to the music, doing so in New York.
Once in the big apple, the Folsom High Choir took their place alongside renowned Conductor Lynnel Joy Jenkins for a beautiful performance on Carnegie Hall’s renowned main stage.
“Our director was really, really fun to work with and she was actually the sweetest human on the planet,” student Shohini Chakraborty said as she described her experience with Jenkins,.“She had us do really fun warmups and prepared us really well.”
After being personally instructed by Jenkins, the Folsom students performed as part of the National Youth Choir, singing “Your Voices Tune” by George F. Handel and edited by Don Malin, “Stars I Shall Find” written by Sara Teasdale with music by David Dickau, “Children, Go Where I Send Thee” arranged by Kevin Phillip Johnson with rap crafted by Ayana Davis, “By Night” by Elaine Hagenberg, and “Fire” by Katerina Gimon. Outside of their lessons, the choir also explored Times Square and watched a Broadway performance of “Wicked!”
Under Huber’s direction, the students learned how to collaborate and work together to share their love of music. “My favorite thing about performing at Carnegie Hall was singing with everyone and getting to know the music, and also getting close with the people from this choir,” said Katie Morrison, a senior in the choir.
According to Huber, quality time as a choir in New York brought the students closer together and encouraged their growth as a community. In the end, the singers left New York with more than just their award–they returned home with a stronger bond.
