As a way to perform for new audiences and create a closer bond within the music community, the choir and jazz band went to Orlando, Florida November 18-23 where they performed at Disney Springs and Sea World.
This was the music department’s first visit to Disney World since the beginning of Covid in March 2020.
According to chorus director Jon Timmons, a lot of time and planning has gone into the trip in order for things to go smoothly.
“This is my first time doing a big trip for choir… I will say it is a lot of work and it is very stressful, but that’s not to say that it’s not worth it or that it won’t be worth it. It’s just the logistics,” Timmons said.
Senior Molly Kreag is “excited” for the chance to spend time with the people in all of the music department despite the challenges of the trip’s preparations.
“There has been a lot of planning going into the trip and a lot of obstacles that we have had to overcome with logistics and coordinating with the parks,” Kreag said. “However, this is going to be a great experience for both the choir and the band to get better exposure and comradery.”
For choir, students are split into different classes based on grade and skill level.
Timmons feels that this trip will be an “excellent opportunity” for all choir members to build “friendships.”
“I think often what happens is people get stuck like ‘Oh, I’m only in treble choir, I’m just in concert choir, I’m only advanced choir’ and they don’t really get to interact or see each other,” Timmons said. “To just bring everyone together and do something fun that is not just a performance that we do twice a year but is a really cool event will, hopefully, just be a blast.”
Advanced choir president Ava Mills also feels that getting to bond with the members of different choir classes is beneficial for the choir as a whole.
“I think it’s good because there’s not really any other chances other than this for all of the choirs to get together and hang out,” Mills said. “I think that us traveling around in little groups and mixing everyone up has been really helpful.”
With this being the first trip that the music department has gone on in five years, their audiences have been limited to the local community. This trip gave them the opportunity to showcase their talent in new places.
“I think that this will give us a lot more opportunities to show how talented we are and give us more opportunities back home in the community,” senior Margaret Donelly said. “Getting the exposure that we need to show that we are a big group of talented people and we deserve to be heard [is good.]”
Mills said the friendships and memories that students will make on this trip will not only benefit them in the classroom, but help them with their music, as well.
“I think that it is really bonding everyone and I think that when we get back and we have our next chorus class, it’s going to be more of a family and a lot more coherent,” Mills said. “I think when we are more of a family and more bonded our music is going to sound better so it’s a win-win.”
Senior Will Stover is looking forward to more possible trips in the future that can also help the jazz band bond and performance.
“Doing similar trips in the future would be awesome. First of all, everyone loves Disney. Everyone loves big trips, in general,” Stover said. “No matter where the band goes, it will bring everyone closer together. The closer the band is, the more fun everyone’s jazz band experience will be.”
