Choir students from all over the East Central Conference joined together to prepare and then perform a concert after only practicing together for two days. The choir is known as the ECC Honors Choir and it takes place each year during January.

“I became part of the honors choir by being nominated by Mrs. Utecht. Every student attending the event was recommended by their choir director,” senior Ethan Brunke said.

Once a student is nominated, it is up to them to decide if they would like to be part of the honors choir. 

“I decided to join because I wanted the opportunity to sing with a group of people that shared my interests in music,” sophomore Aleea Lichtenburg said. 

The director of the honors choir is typically a college professor. This year, Dr. Shannon Gravelle from UW-Oshkosh was the director. Students practice the music on their own, and then come together for two days to put a concert together. 

“They spend about three and a half hours on Friday working on the music with the clinician as well as breakout groups of their particular section as needed. On Saturday, they gather again for another four hours of rehearsal and then perform a concert for the public,” Choir teacher Lisa Utecht said. “They are exposed to another director’s ideas and techniques as well as being surrounded by other students’ voices they’ve never worked with. Usually these are some of the higher level singers from each of the school choirs.”

Typically, a high school choral concert is prepared for multiple weeks beforehand. The honors choir only practices for two days all together. 

“It was stressful as we only had two days to meet each-other and put together a concert, but the end product was worth it,” Lichtenburg said. 

The honors choir is much more demanding than a high school choir class. 

“I think this opportunity also pushes our singers to work on their musicianship at a higher and more independent level – they need to be able to hold their own as much as possible. I’m always proud and impressed with our singers that attend this event!” Utecht said.