Established in 1959, Southern ACDA (American Choral Directors Association) has been one of the most influential institutions in the world of choral music for over 60 years. This year, our school’s advanced women’s choir, known as the Belles, was invited to Louisville, Kentucky to attend their bi-annual regional conference. This conference was not only a remarkable and fun experience for our singers, but also an incredible opportunity to show off their skills and learn from some of the best in the choir industry.
The preparation for this event began during the first week of school; the women’s choir had to put together six songs with an overall theme for their program. Senior Andreya Marie had this to say about their chosen theme, “Each song we sang represented the different types of love. Love of nature, love of people, love of self, etc, etc… One song in particular that made many shed tears was ‘I remember’. This song is about remembering the good times through the bad and not forgetting the happy memories. Many tears were brought to not only our eyes, but the audience’s as well, and it touched many hearts.” Andreya went on to talk more about the preparation involved in this event. She told us about the incredible amounts of work they put into the smallest details, from vocal techniques all the way to their presence on stage and expression of emotion.
We interviewed Senior Tariya’h Hope to ask how the event went, and she told us, “It exceeded my expectations because going to all these invitationals, small get togethers, and even our own concerts to workshop with composers/directors was nothing compared to this event. We got there, warmed up and we were on stage. The room was HUGE and almost every seat was filled and you could just see and feel the anticipation before you could even sing a note but the smiles and the cheers coming from the audience only made it more worth it.”
The actual conference wasn’t the only part of the trip, with Louisville being nearly 15 hours away, the Belles had a lot of time to kill. Andreya told us about some of the activities, “The bus ride to Louisville was SUPER fun. Although we were all tired and very drained, we sang our hearts out to Disney movies and enjoyed the views from places like Georgia and Tennessee.” The girls also passed the time by recording many fun TikTok videos, a few of which can be found on the Darter Chorus social media pages.
The Belles performance received a lot of attention and praise. In an email to the school faculty, Mrs. Shafer, our school’s choir director, shared some things that were said about the Belles performance, “Absolutely Stunning. An artistic and inspiring Performance. Speechless–Brought to tears several times. The Choir sang with incredible passion, beauty, and such strength. Pure Magic. The Highlight of my day. Inspiring Work.” The list of compliments and praise goes on.
We here at The Blue and White are so proud of the Belles for this achievement. Their hard work, dedication, and tenacity are all inspiring and we are so excited to see where these women go from here.
