NAHS hosted its annual Winter Choral Concert last Wed. Dec. 12, during which the choir students synchronized and harmonized their voices to create a captivating fifty-minute performance. 

At 7 pm, the concert choir lined up around the people who were sitting in their seats and began their performance. The Concert Choir sang two songs.The first song was “Nda Wana,” by Michael Barrett and as the choir students sang the lively song, the audience could feel the energy radiating from the singers. The synchronization of tune and movements were on point, as they were wonderfully led by choir instructor Mrs. Lynne Danoff.

Then the choir performed, “I Believe,” by Mark Miller. For this song, most of the choir members took their seats, leaving only 22 singers left of the stage. The way their voices harmonized with one another was done beautifully. You could tell that the singers practiced hard to make every note they sang sound perfect. 

Even though the select choir performed one song, “Glow,” by Eric Whitacre, and was a relatively small group, it possessed had an alluring stage presence the group seem bigger than it really was. 

Afterward, the gospel choir stole the show as they sang with passion and precision, making you would think you were listening to professionals. The gospel choir sang 3 songs: “Oh, What a Wonderful Child,” “Come Let’s Adore Him,” which are both traditional songs, and ‘There is No Christmas Without You,’ by Kirk Franklin. I loved all three songs, as they all sang at a good pace and the pianist did a fantastic job not missing a beat. 

The performer that particularly stuck out to me was senior Jaime Hunt. Hunt belted her solos and sung with such raw talent. It absolutely blew my mind. I was amazed by how powerful her voice was. She, along with the other members of the choir made my concert experience a pleasant one.

To end the night, the Concert Choir reassembled to sing three more songs. ‘Hashivenu’ by Greg Gilpin, ‘The Ground’ by Ola Gjeilo, and ‘Esta Noche’ by Andy Beck. How confident their posture was as they sang and even the aura they gave off as they walked off the stage memorized me. The choir put in a lot of time and effort into the concert and their hard work was clearly shown while on stage. 

Hunt and fellow senior Anna Vogel each expressed how they felt that their last winter concert at NAHS is “bittersweet.”

“I love to play and hear the band come together,” said Vogel. “I’m sad that this is my last concert. I’m proud of how far I came.”

Like Vogel, Hunt saw this concert as representing a huge change in her life. “It shows that I’m getting older and that my childhood is over,” Hunt said. “The fact that I’m not doing choir anymore sucks.”

I could tell by the way that they explained things to me, that they are very passionate about the choir, and that they are proud of how far they have come, and how they have seen choir develop while they have been singing at NAHS.

This concert may be bittersweet to some, but to others, this is the beginning of their journey, and for them it’s sweet. While this may be the last concert for some, for other students, this is one of many more to come`. Whether it was a choir’s first winter concert or a senior’s last, NAHS’ 2019 Winter Choir Concert was a success.