By DANI BARKEY
Chief Accountability Officer, Warsaw Community Schools

Five Lakeview Middle School students participated in the Indiana Music Education All-State Honor Choir in Ft. Wayne last week.

Maren Andrews, Annalise Harstine, Abigail Seese, Ethan Thompson and Kayla Wentz joined 145 other elite singers to form the Middle School All-State Honor Choir.

The ensemble graced the Embassy Theatre stage in Fort Wayne. The performance, at the historic 2500 seat venue, is a highlight of the Indiana Music Education Association conference, which ran from Thursday, Jan. 15 through Sunday, Jan. 18 at the Grand Wayne Center and surrounding venues.

The students arrived for two days of intensive rehearsals. Individually these students sound great, but when they united with singers from Valparaiso to Evansville and everywhere in between, they created something special.

For over 20 years, music teachers from around the state have selected gifted students for a weekend of intensive singing.

This year’s guest conductor was Cynthia Gray from Cincinnati, Ohio.

Music teachers from middle schools and junior highs can submit student auditions. The All-State Honor Choir committee received more than 500 auditions for the 150 spots. Audio submissions were judged based on a prepared song, harmonic examples and part singing, tone quality and singing an A Capella example.

The students are in the choir at Lakeview Middle School under the direction of Judy Becker.