Chorus students competed in their Large Group Performance Evaluation (LGPE) at Lassiter High School on March 2, 2017. As they study melodic music that will echo through judges and audience members, they must prepare for the criticism they will face.

LGPE allows local judges to score NC’s various choruses and other music departments on their selected pieces of music; each fine arts student must attend to officially complete their year of music education.

Students traveled to Lassiter by 11 a.m. and began to listen to the school choirs in the county. NC performed one acapella piece called “Allelujah” by Emma Lou Diemer and another piece called “Bloom” by Philip Silvey with an accompanist.

“It is time for us to prove to the entire county and the judges that we didn’t just memorize words, but we put our hearts into something we enjoy every day: to make music,” senior Logan Peng said.

After many minutes spent watching other schools prove their talents, students enter the sight-singing room. The moment students walk in, the room fills with mysterious tension as they receive the 2016-2017 sight-reading packet, which tests students’ ability to sing notes while pertaining the accurate rhythm. The packet consists of varying categories for the judge to choose from, which the chorus must perform after only three minutes of practice.

“Every time I enter the sight-singing room, I feel like we all just dread every moment of it. We manage to go through it but it doesn’t mean that it isn’t challenging for us,” Sophomore Ellaya Johnson said.

The director of NC’s choral program, Holly Botella, praised her students’ melodic tunes and their adequate behavior throughout the major event. The advanced women’s choir later received a text message from her that read, “I can’t tell you enough how extremely proud I am to make music with you all every day. You sang so beautifully and musically! Thank you.”

As results for the competition release on March 3, 2017, students remain on the edge of their seats and hopeful to receive a superior for their hard work.

“We are getting our results today,” sophomore Zaarah Ukechir said. “In all honesty, I could hear the mesmerizing tune we had; we were like a group of birds that fly in the same direction and stick with each other. This is our goal anyway, for many voices to become one big voice that leaves the audience wanting more.”