Westwood Choirs Come Together For a Night of Music at Fall Concert

Aanika Hirode, Arts & Entertainment Editor| October 25, 2021

  • Cantare Choir performed a variety of songs. They performed songs such as ‘Pure Imagination’ by Matthew D. Nielsen and ‘Adiemus’ by Karl Jenkins.

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  • Marching in with a unique entrance, Bellator Choir fueled the audience with adrenaline. They performed light hearted songs such as ‘Tongo’ by Greg Gilpin, ‘Sing Gently’ by Eric Whitacre, and ‘A Serenade to a Girl’ by choir’s own director, Mr. Andre Clark.

    Eshaan Chopra
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  • Just like their beautiful sounding name, Innova, this choir sounded amazing. They performed songs such as ‘In Time of Silver Rain’ by Sarah Quartel, ‘Lineage’ by Andrea Ramsey, and ‘Let the River Run’ by Craig Hella Johnson.

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  • Varsity choir, or Chamber Choir, brought the house down with their closing performance. The choir performed ‘The Last Words of David’ by Randall Thompson, ‘Sing Me to Heaven’ by Daniel Gawthrop, and ‘When the Earth Stands Still’ by Don MacDonald.

    Eshaan Chopra
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  • The Cantilena Choir is a female audition-based choir. They performed ‘GOLDWING’ by Billie Eilish and ‘The Storm is Passing Over’ by Barbara Baker.

    Eshaan Chopra
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On Tuesday, Oct. 20, the Westwood Choirs gathered at Hope Presbyterian Church to perform at their annual Fall Concert. In preparation for the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) Region Concert and Clinic, this production gave the students a chance to showcase the pieces they have been preparing all year. 

The concert opened with the tenor bass Bellator Choir, who made a distinctive entrance from the sides of the church while singing and clapping. They first performed Tongo, a traditional canoe song that was uniquely arranged to suit their voices. They then stood on the stage to perform Sing Gently, a soft acoustic song, before closing their performance with A Serenade to a Girl. 

“This song is dedicated to all the ladies in the room,” choir director Mr. Andre Clark said about the final song that Bellator Choir performed.

Next to perform was the treble Cantilena Choir made up of singers in all grades. They first performed an acoustic arrangement of GOLDWING by Billie Eilish off of her studio album Happier than Ever. They then performed an inspiring rendition of The Storm is Passing Over accompanied by voice teacher Stephen Maus on the piano. 

“GOLDWING was more of a fun activity during class, and then they said, ‘We have to do this [for the concert],’” choir director Ms. Robin King said. “It was a challenging piece for them, but it was something that they cared a lot about.”

The Cantare Choir enchanted the audience with their performance of the song Pure Imagination, most noted for its feature in the 1971 film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. They also sang a peaceful arrangement of the Latin song Adiemus. 

“[Cantare] is our choir composed of treble singers, who are mainly new to Westwood Choirs,” events team officer Lasya Adivi ‘23 said. “These singers have worked extremely hard over these past couple months to refine their sight-reading skills and develop a good tone.”

 The treble ensemble Innova performed a layered arrangement of In Time of Silver Rain, as well as Lineage, a tribute to grandmothers all around the world. They concluded their performance with Let the River Run, a gorgeous piece that began with a simple layered harmony before blossoming into a complex arrangement accompanied by a piano. 

“My favorite song was Let The River Run because of the hard work we put into that song,” Innova choir member Aubrianna Carter ‘23 said. “ As a small varsity treble choir, [we] made that song into seven parts in the beginning which is crazy. [I felt] as if we were really working for what we made that night.”

The varsity mixed Chamber Choir concluded the performance with three moving songs, including The Last Words of David, Sing Me to Heaven, and When the Earth Stands Still. 

“Everybody worked so hard in trying to put this together,” Vice President of Publicity and Chamber Choir member Gabriel Paredes ‘23 said. “It was such a nice change to be able to hear everybody sing together and enjoy a night of music.”

Overall, the Westwood Choirs were thrilled to reconnect with each other and showcase their hard work for a live audience. 

“It’s been very difficult for [the students] to have the ‘why’ for our performances,” Mr. Clark said. “Tonight, that instant feedback from the audience helped them make what we do tangible again.”