Junior Callen O’Malley and seniors Zachary Lieu and Kelly Campion qualified for PMEA Chorus Regions last Friday.
PMEA, short for Pennsylvania Music Educators Association, hosts an annual competitive chorus festival for chorus members throughout Pennsylvania. Students start at districts, then can advance to regions, all-state, and all-Eastern.
Lieu feels that the three of them performed well.
“I think we did really well. Kelly Campion got first chair — she’s incredible. Callen and I both made it,” he said.
Lieu made it to regions last year, but was unable to attend due to conflicting commitments with the spring musical.
The festival is two days long, and it consists of an audition, rehearsals, and a concert on the second night.
“For districts, it’s a two-day festival where the first day you go, and in the morning you audition, and then the rest of it is rehearsal. Then the second day is rehearsal, and then you have the concert later that night,” Lieu said.
Schools from all over Allegheny County attend and bring anywhere from two to 15 students, making the event very large. Students are able to socialize with other students from different schools during down time.
“You get a lot of downtime in between when they specialize with the girl voices, or the sopranos and altos is when the tenors of basses can talk,” he said. You just have a lot of time in between breaks, lunches, and all the other things.”
The audition consists of two songs, one testing vocal agility and the other being in a different language as a lyrical test. There is also a sight reading section. Students are given a random number as their audition number to keep the event anonymous, and judges do not look at them while auditioning.
Lieu plans to prepare for regions.
“I’ll definitely practice a lot more than I did the first time if I’m being completely honest. I was super busy, so I got lucky that they chose a song that I knew,” he said.
Overall, the festival is a great experience for those who are passionate about chorus.
“It’s super fun and it’s a great experience,” Lieu said.
Last year, Ryan Priano made it to states. Several years ago, DJ Pickell made it all the way to all-Eastern.
Regions will happen in Mohawk, Pa.
