Just for a minute, think back to middle school when you went to summer camp. What was it like? Was it your first time away from home? Did you miss Mom? Did you get poison ivy?
The Texas Youth Chorale held its first annual QUICK START Choir Camp on August 4th We didn’t have bugs, or poison ivy, or miss Mom (it was a morning camp) – but we did learn some challenging music, made new friends, and composed Leadership Songs.
The QUICK START camp presented us with a unique opportunity to introduce new and challenging music in a focused environment. We look forward to sharing these with you as we perform these select pieces in the 2014-2015 season. Be sure to check our Calendar [insert link] page for a list of our upcoming performances! In addition, we took time to hone our leadership skills by starting each day with physical exercise and listening to the various direction from our “fearless leader” Mrs. Smith! It was a fun way to focus our minds, prepare for our Ireland tour and to get our hearts ready to sing!!
We dedicated a part of camp each day to developing friendships within TYC. As with sports teams, it is very difficult for a musical group to perform well without knowing and trusting your “teammates”. We discovered that we all share the deepest emotion of the soul – passion, love, heart. This love of music drives us to success – beyond the confines of talent – by overcoming all challenges as a team with the common goal of singing the message of the heart.
Lastly, the singers were put into their voice sections and were , challenged to compose an original piece of music, with an assignment each day that built on top of each other to produce– a Leadership Song. This composition exercise was intended to develop teamwork, communication among singers, and creative music. We were stunned by the results! Not only were these Leadership Songs well thought out, they truly displayed the talents of our TYC members as team players and leaders.
Overall, the TYC singers’ willingness to work together and persevere through challenging music and creating new music together during this QUICK START camp was inspiring. We can’t wait for next year!