I'll bet you or someone you know has a couple of stories about the effects of being in the school choir, or band or orchestra. But what happens when school students themselves get together and form a whole new ensemble?
Eight students at Great Hearts Monte Vista North Academy found out. At the beginning of this year, they formed a new school choir, the Monte Vista Octet, led and directed by themselves — they choose the music, rehearse it, and perform.
Says Greta Brake, the group's founder, "At our school, we have multiple choirs, including an extracurricular for the high school choir. And I wanted a choir where we could sing different songs, and a choir that's a little more nimble." The result is eight voices, often singing one to a part for an eight-part piece. Isaac Greenaway, a member/leader, likes the fact that "This ensemble gives everybody in it a chance to get a solo for every single song." He adds that "I find that a more fun experience than being in a full choir."
They dropped by our studios to perform a few pieces. It was fun to see a musical democracy in action, with students chipping in and discussing which number should come first, second, and last.
There's nothing quite like a small chamber choir, with individual singers really carrying weight and resting on each other — and all the more so when it was their idea to begin with.
Hear the entire interview, with performances, using the audio player at the top of this page.
