Last night’s spring choir concert at Tremper was titled “How can I keep from singing?” and what a wonderful theme this turned out to be! Polly posed the question “Why do you sing?” to her students and invited each of them them to write their own answer to the question- and many of their responses were printed in the program. As I opened up the program to read what they wrote, I wasn’t expecting too much in the way of eloquence or insight. . . just youthful exuberance. But in response after response, these students expressed themselves so beautifully and sensitively. And maybe even more importantly, they demonstrated their love of singing in how skillfully and joyously they performed all night long. Another neat way in which the theme was carried forth was in three different choirs singing three different arrangements of that lovely old ‘white spiritual,’ each one more joyous than the one before. And the concert’s climax, an incredible medley from the musical “Ragtime,” was an absolutely perfect way to draw this program to a close.
Last night’s concert also included a farewell of sorts – because John Choi, who has been the director of Tremper’s freshman woman’s group for some years now, becomes full-time at Indian Trails High School as of this fall (where until now he has been part time.) After his freshman women finished their set (which opened the concert) a touching presentation was made by several of the girls as well as by Polly, who thanked John for his good work. It has been fun to watch John over these last few years, both in his work at Tremper and also in what he’s done at Indian Trails, where the choral program has gotten only stronger under his leadership. John brings an intriguing array of gifts to the podium, including a personality which blends grizzly bear with teddy bear. He is an elegant and musical conductor, for whom music is a heartfelt passion – and yet he is also a former football player and wrestler who coaches for Kenosha Unified, and there is more than a little of that sort of “bark” in the way he works with his choirs. But on the other hand, just before each of the pieces they sang last night John flashed his group a sweet, disarming smile . . . like I said, grizzly and teddy bear rolled into one. That’s part of what makes the world of music so much fun- that good directors and good singers come in all shapes and sizes and varieties. . . There is a place for just about anyone and everyone.
Before the concert began, John spoke to his group with touching openness and poignancy about how much music means to him and what a precious gift it is to be a singer. In a night full of memorable moments, this was maybe my favorite moment of all because it was so unexpected – not so much that John shared as he did, but rather that these energetic young women sat there so quietly and listened to their director. (You could have literally heard a pin drop.) Music – and especially singing – yield some very special surprises when we least expect them…. and this was one of them.
pictured above: John Choi leaves the Tremper High School stage after his group’s performance and a spoken tribute. The photo is a bit blurry, of course, but I love how it captures the joy and energy of the moment.