Ohio Northern University’s Department of Music hosted its third annual All-Ohio Choral Day this fall for the campus community. High-school students from all over the state of Ohio traveled to Ada to enjoy a 12-hour day of music ending with a concert inside the Freed Center for the Performing Arts.
Throughout the day, Ohio Northern’s University Singers teamed up with the high-school students to learn new songs under the direction of Ben Ayling, PhD, and Joseph Martin. After rehearsing all morning in the English Chapel, students moved to the Freed Center for an intensive workshop and rehearsal, perfecting the songs they just learned.
During the afternoon rehearsal period, the ONU Men’s and Women’s Chorus performed two musical numbers for the students’ enjoyment.
At 7:30 p.m., the long day of rehearsing came to an end with a concert celebrating the hard day’s work.
Sixteen high-school choir groups attended this year’s All-Ohio Choral Day.
“All-Ohio Choral Day is a good way for high-school students to learn to interpret music at a fast pace,” says Sam Loomis, a sophomore music education major and one of the University Singers’ hosts for the visiting groups.
However, she believes that the day needs to have more breaks and relaxation time, rather than going back and forth between sectionals and mass choirs rehearsals.
Despite the long hours of work, the final concert was sold out – a first for the music department event. Ayling hopes that next year will have an even larger crowd of high school students.