Along with a new semester in 2021, there is also a group of new and returning students who make up the Harrisburg High School choir; many new excitements arise while the students return from winter break, a common one being the spring concert. Noah Green, an HHS senior, stated, “The spring concert, as I feel with the coming of the New Year, is a perfect way to help put the bad parts of 2020 behind us.”
Although it is a new year, some difficulties continue to stay in the Performing Arts Center. Explaining the latest guidelines in place, senior Addi Jensen noted, “We must sing in masks, which can be difficult. We’ve all had to learn different ways to breathe and strain to hear our section members.” That is a prominent struggle among choir students, along with having to maintain distance between each other. As expressed by Ellysia McElroy, a senior alto, “The largest effect COVID has had on choir class is the distance between singers. Due to the breath-ie nature of singing, the class is held in the PAC with three seats between us, which makes it hard to hear others in both your own voice and other parts.”
Although many obstacles have appeared within the past year, both the students and the teachers have persisted while making great memories along the way. Senior Rylin Yerdon recalled, “My favorite memory from the choir was a dance we did to the song “Santa Baby” during my freshman year. There was this one really cute dance move that somehow was incorporated into every other Christmas Concert.” Even while facing a pandemic, the choir continues the tradition and makes the best of every day. The group is looking forward to their spring concert, which will be held on May 3.