Last spring, chorus director Dr. John Odom received a letter that would not only impact his life but the lives of  57 chorus students.

The letter invited Starr’s Mill’s top choir, Chanticleer, to participate in the 2013 American Music Performance Nationals for Top Choirs. One of the performance sites was at Carnegie Hall in New York City.

The invitation was a complete surprise to Odom.

“I knew nothing about this event until we were invited,” he said. “I was extremely honored and excited for our program to be chosen for such a prestigious event.”

Only 16 choirs in the country were asked, Odom said. Preparing for the four-day trip was a massive undertaking that started as soon as Odom accepted the invitation. Students received their music months in advance with instructions to rehearse at home since the entire choir would not be going.

Singers participated in different fundraisers to help pay the trip fees. While in New York, students and their chaperones went to Times Square,  visited museums,  and had a dinner boat cruise on the Hudson River in addition to their two performances.

Students visited the Museum of American History, went to the top of the 69-floor Rockefeller Center, and ate dinner at the famous Starlight Diner on the first day. However, the next day was all business because Chanticleer  also been participated in the Aaron Copeland School of Music’s Concert Series at Queens’ College.

The choir performed four pieces that were viewed by  judges, other participating choirs and  the general public.  Judging the performances were three top college choir conductors, Jerry Blackstone of the University of Michigan, Gene Peterson of the University of Tennessee, and James John of Queens’ College.
“It was a very challenging and wonderful experience to have our choir sing for such great conductors,” Odom said. That evening the choir dressed to the nines and participated in two workshops.

First was a vocal workshop that all the choirs participated in. Next was a “Broadway 101” workshop with Ken Davenport, a successful Broadway producer. For senior Micole Mayfield, this turned out to be more than just a workshop. Mayfield volunteered to go through a mock audition for Davenport so the students could observe what a real Broadway audition looks like.

“It was a once in a lifetime experience,” Mayfield said. ” I was able to get so much advice and it was so much fun.”

The musical theater trend continued as the students attended a Broadway performance of the musical “Newsies”.

“It was one of the most amazing things I’d ever seen,” Perry said. “The dancing was incredible and everyone was so talented”.

However, nothing would compare to the performance at Carnegie Hall on Saturday. That morning, senior Rachel Edison said she woke up excited for the sightseeing in Times Square but nervous for the performance at Carnegie.

“I just couldn’t believe we were actually performing. We had been talking about this for over a year and preparing for months,” Edison said.

After spending two hours in Times Square, the singers walked over to Carnegie Hall for a two-hour rehearsal and then the concert.  Chanticleer performed Sergei Rachmaninoff’s “Bogoroditse Devo,”  which is an acapella Russian piece.

“We had done it before  and were very successful with it,” Odom said. “It was at the level you would want to perform at Carnegie Hall.”

After the choir hit the last note, they received a standing ovation from the audience. Only one other choir was able to bring 2,804 audience members to their feet.The choir then left for a dinner cruise on the Hudson River.

“It was a really great way to end the night,” Edison said. “We were all really tired though and went straight to bed right after”.

On the final day in New York, Chanticleer visited the South Side Sea Port to shop and just relax. The next stop was the 9/11 Memorial.Students walked around and explored with their chaperone groups. Many students found themselves getting emotional.

“I was really glad that we got to visit the memorial. A lot of us were really touched and there were plenty of tears,” junior Mynah Holloway said.