The Virden Collegiate Institute Choir hosted the Senior Divisional Choir from the St. James-Assiniboia School Division (SJASD) in Winnipeg for an afternoon concert in the Virden Aud Theatre on Apr. 13.
The 45-member ensemble, comprised of Grade 9 to 12 students from four SJASD high schools, took in the final Konektis concert of this season at Brandon’s Knox United Church before coming to Virden where they performed a varied repertoire for a small, but appreciative crowd.
“I think I counted about 17 (singers) that I knew in that choir,” said director Avonlea Armstrong-Green of Konektis. “It was great to see people from different walks of life. They sound fantastic...a great community choir and an example for our group to hear. Their tone was lovely...such creative work that they’re doing, so it was very inspiring for our students.”
Armstrong-Green teaches vocal jazz, high school choir, musical theatre and family studies at Sturgeon Heights Collegiate in Winnipeg and has led the divisional choir for about 13 years. She has been the vocal adjudicator at the Virden Music and Arts Festival on two occasions and has also had a long-standing connection with local choral and drama director Michelle Chyzyk.
“My first time here was as a student teacher with Michelle,” she said. “I have also had Michelle as a director in the Westman Youth Choir when I was in high school, so I knew that she was amazing. Since that time, we’ve kept in touch and I’ve come back to Virden to watch a couple of musicals. I know there’s a big music scene here, which is incredible.”
For the SJASD choristers, this is their first trip to Virden, however taking their show on the road is an annual occurrence
“We tour every year,” Armstrong-Green said. “The trip is often a highlight of our season. Sometimes it’s a bigger trip and sometimes just a local Manitoba tour. We’ve been to New York and Edmonton and Toronto and then sometimes our small tours include things like this where we’re in Brandon, Souris and Virden. We had a day in Winnipeg where we toured four high schools in our division and we went to the opera, the train station (and) the legislative building...just kind of singing wherever we can.”
Armstrong-Green said that although the choir is an extra-curricular activity, with no course credit given, participation affords the students considerable opportunity to learn and grow, both personally and musically.
“We rehearse once a week, on Wednesdays after school from September to May,” she said. “We sing at festivals during the year, divisional concerts and other events as they arise.” Their diverse repertoire includes everything from Latin to folk songs, to ABBA. “We try to have lots of styles, languages, tempos, accompaniments and options for choreography or staging.
“I think they would say they love the advanced music-making. They know that it’s hard... they have to keep up when [rehearsal] is only once a week. I would say they love the joy and satisfaction of performing the music, telling the story and making the audience feel something (while) also connecting with each other.”
With three choirs at the divisional level, she is pleased that some students have availed themselves of the opportunity to perform in front of an audience right through their school years, and have some fun while doing it.
“A lot of these students that are in Grade 12 have sung in the choirs since Grade 5,” she said. “Once they start they often stay with it, which is so neat because it does kind of become a family. They don’t know what to do with their Wednesdays after high school’s done because they’re so used to having that weekly rehearsal and some of them do go on to sing in other community choirs.
“Two of our alumni are actually singing in the Konektis concert. That’s neat to see when kids get hooked and want to keep singing and growing and to have choir as part of their lives for a longer time than just high school.”
Armstrong-Green holds auditions for the Senior Divisional Choir each year at the end of May.
“We try to have representation from the four different high schools and local balance between the different parts,” she said. “We hope that they’ll want to sing with us. It’s a very strong program and we’re very lucky to have the support of our school division.”
