Courtesy photo
Northern Nevada Honor Choir students rehearsed in Gardnerville last week before its joint performance.

Over 140 teens assembled together at the Pau-Wa-Lu Middle School in Gardnerville to begin rehearsals for the Northern Nevada Honor Choir performance, slated for Feb. 9 at the Churchill County High School in Fallon. Showing forth a professional sound, while students were singing and signing the vocal warmups of “Do-Re-Me”, these Northern Nevada rural school students had been hand-selected by their music teachers.

Dr. Ben Gooch, Music Teacher for the Hawthorne Middle School and Mineral County High School, sent two middle school students and four high school students, all of which showed above average skills in sight-reading and vocal abilities. This honor choir experience was open to all Northern Nevada School Districts. Participating districts included students from Douglas County, Carson City, Washoe County, Lyon County, Storey County, Churchill County and Perishing County, which covered most of the western counties closest to the performance site.

Guest conductor Dr. William Culverhouse, was Skyped into the rehearsal from his home in New York. As Culverhouse reviewed lyric pronunciation and vocal parts with the students over a live-feed, it was apparent the challenge included a high standard of sight-singing, foreign language skills and adaptation to five vocal sections of harmony parts. The rehearsal was a two-hour engaging effort of fast-tracked learning in preparation for the February concert.

As the six, local students continue rehearsing their musical parts and proper lyrical dictation with Gooch, the performance date is quickly approaching. To find out more about the concert, contact the music department of Mineral County High School at 775-945-3332.