The University of Arizona High School Honor Choir Festival, conducted by Nicole Davis, is a “one-weekend opportunity for distinguished student singers who were selected by audition. This performance caps off a weekend of rehearsals, educational opportunities and social activities for the students and their directors.” Two of Sahuaro’s Concert Choir students – senior Valerie Juarez and sophomore Kaiana Anderson were selected and presented with an amazing opportunity. They performed a concert on October 21, 2023 with students who are majoring in music at the UofA. This 2-day process was exciting for the two of them, but also nerve-racking.
The girls had to audition for their spots before they were handpicked by the directors at the U of A. Choir students from all around Tucson and surrounding towns auditioned for a role in the concert, but Kaiana and Valerie actually made it. For these two girls, this experience was very impactful, especially for Kaiana, who, as a sophomore, is young for such an incredible opportunity. Kaiana stated, “It felt very exciting to learn that I was selected for Honor Choir, but I was also very nervous because I would be singing with a bunch of people I didn’t know.
All members of the competed in a very challenging audition. It was very exhilarating to perform in front of the crowd. It helped that I didn’t wear my glasses, so I couldn’t see the audience.”
Kaiana and Valerie explained how the event unfolded: on Friday they both went in and were brought into their sectionals – small workshops or rehearsals for their voice sections – where they warmed up for their parts in the concert with students from different schools. Then they had a lunch break after around two hours of warmups. After that, they went to a workshop that helped them with their breathing, anxiety, and the loosening of their vocal cords. For the rest of the session on Friday, they were rehearsing for the big performance on Saturday. Valerie said that she was, “nervous at the beginning of the day, but when Saturday came around, my nerves faded and I was ready to perform.” They both agreed that the workshops they went to had helped them a lot when it came to their performance anxiety and they were grateful to be involved in the event.
On Saturday, Valerie and Kaiana spent most of their time rehearsing for the concert. The concert consisted of 6 songs – one of which was with the U of A choir.
According to Ms. Barnes, the choir teacher, “The two days were very fulfilling for me, but especially for Valerie and Kaiana. This was an experience they wouldn’t forget, and I felt like it could benefit them in ways they wouldn’t think it could: helping with social skills, being able to talk to different professors at the U of A, and helping them get a bigger view of having choir as a career.”
