Three high school students were recently selected to represent PMEA Region 2 and Corry in their chorus competition in April. These three singers were chosen through a three tier vocal audition process. Senior Taylor Fenstermaker, who was chosen for the second consecutive year, will participate along with junior Ryah Lambert (also a second consecutive year competitor), and sophomore Lauren Thomas. They will compete at the All-State Festival in the Poconos the first week of April.

There are two festivals that individuals must compete at to make it to states. The singers start with districts (seven counties) and the top ten from each district gain the opportunity to go to audition for states. Then regionals, which consists of 13 counties, is in Franklin in a few weeks. Four individuals made it to the regional competition, three being the girls and a fourth being Kyron Helmer. The state competition has a completely different folder of music prepared for the singers to perform–most of the music being at the collegiate level–and have the singers come together for a field trip of two to three days. It is expected the singers know the music when going so that they are prepared to perform. The state competition is made up of 240 of the top singers from high schools in the state.

When talking with chorus teacher Mrs. Smrcka I asked if she was excited the girls made it this far, and to that she stated, “Absolutely.”

Talking about the opportunity Mrs. Smrcka said, “…they work hard for it.”

Time, dedication, and patience all come into play when practicing and preparing for such such event as this. According to Lauren Thomas, the singers spend about 3-5 hours a week preparing and perfecting the necessary notes and pitches.

During a short interview, Thomas was asked how she felt about making it to this opportunity as a sophomore. To this, she responded, “I am super excited about making it this far, especially as a sophomore! It’s something I love to do, so it’s amazing that I get to be challenged and grow as a singer. The experience is great!”

This opportunity sure is a special one, and we all wish you three girls good luck in your next and exciting competition.