Northwestern’s A capella Choir will be going on a tour over spring break to Seattle, Washington. They plan to leave on Saturday, March 3, and return on Tuesday, March 13. Accoring to current plans, the choir will travel over 5,000 miles during their trip. They plan to perform 11 concerts and host several workshops for high school students.
NW’s choir and band take turns touring every year over spring break.
“This year it is the choir’s turn to travel over break,” said director of A capella Choir Thomas Holm. “We are headed to Seattle and will stop and perform at schools and churches all along the way there and back.”
This is the first time the choir has traveled to Seattle in at least 20 years, as they go to a different location each tour. There are 43 singers going on the trip, along with Holm.
The choir has paid great attention to detail in preparation for the trip. Choir members will often make recordings of themselves singing to review with Holm.
“Our director has been working with us on spots that are challenging,” senior Ben Grev said. “Just the other day, we had a memory quiz to make sure we have a handle on the lyrics of some of the harder pieces.”
The tour will incorporate a wide variety of songs.
“We are singing some Taiwanese songs and actually a couple of Christmas songs too,” Grev said. “Many of the songs are in English and have some great stories behind them. There are some with soloists, and we are singing one that is really fun and is basically all nonsense sounds.”
Grev is especially excited to spend more time with the rest of the choir.
“I am very excited to get to know [members of the choir] more and spend time with those friends that I already know really well,” Grev said.
Freshman Vanessa Stokes said, “The choir started preparing for this trip before we left for Christmas break. A number of the songs we have sung for past concerts will be used on the trip as well as many new songs that we have memorized in the short span we’ve had.”
After their tour, the choir will perform their entire tour program for the NW community at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, March 16 in Christ Chapel and will perform a few of their pieces in chapel on Tuesday, March 20.
