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homerhorizon.com life & arts
the Homer Horizon | January 24, 2019 | 17
LTHS music programs invite eighth-graders to Step-Up Days
Oak Prairie among
three schools to
participate in choir
event at high school
Laurie Fanelli
Freelance Reporter
Music is a powerful form
of expression.
Not only does it allow artists
to share thoughts, emotions
and melodies, it also
has the power to create a
whole greater than the sum
of its parts.
On Jan. 16, the Lockport
Township High School
choir program welcomed
eighth-grade singers from
Kelvin Grove, Richland
and Oak Prairie Junior High
schools to the East Campus
auditorium to get to
know current students and
staff at its annual Step-Up
Days event. The program
— which also provided an
event for band students on
Jan. 10 — is designed to alleviate
any stress associated
with starting the high school
music program through
helpful tips and a whole lot
of fun.
Chad Goetz, director of
choirs at LTHS, and Nathaniel
Hendrix, assistant
choir director, began the
day by introducing themselves
to visiting eighthgraders
before welcoming
them on stage for a fun,
ice-breaking game to set the
tone for a day of harmony.
The exercise also forced
students to switch seats with
choir members from other
schools so everyone had the
opportunity to mix it up and
make new friends.
“This day is a chance for
us to get the eighth-grade
students involved with our
choir program,” Hendrix
explained. “They get to
know me and Mr. Goetz,
Eighth-graders Michael Erickson (left), from Kelvin Grove, and Dylan Bozen, from Oak
Prairie, warm up during the choir’s Step-Up Day.
get familiar with the way
we work and the way we
interact with our students.
They also get a chance to interact
with some of our high
school students and become
familiar with the way the
program will work.”
The LTHS choir program’s
warmup techniques,
rote songs, harmonies and
teaching methods were
shared during the choir’s
Step-Up Days program.
Visiting eighth-graders even
had the chance to learn one
of the most popular songs in
the LTHS choir’s repertoire,
“Noel,” the closing piece to
every holiday concert.
Goetz noted that his favorite
part of Step-Up Days
is watching the confidence
of all of the eighth-grade
students grow as they come
together as a group to sing
songs that are part of the
high school curriculum.
Mixed Choir member and
LTHS junior Emily Baio explained
that getting to know
high school choir members
when she attended Step-Up
Days as an Oak Prairie student
was inspiring and motivating.
“I liked interacting with
and learning from all the
experiences of the older
choir kids, because when
we’re younger, we look up
to good role models,” Baio
said. “And seeing how expressive
they were and how
passionate they were with
the music really triggered
me. Being in choir since
third grade, I’ve always had
a love for it.”
Senior LTHS choir student
Grace Miller added
that the music program is
comprised of an encouraging
community built on camaraderie
and friendship,
while junior Tyler Dooley,
a member of the Men’s Ensemble
and Mixed Choir,
explained that participating
in a variety of curricular
choir groups only adds to
the experience.
“It helps you explore different
aspects of music,
helps you make friends. It’s
a family that you get to be a
part of, and it’s just great,”
Dooley said.
Oak Prairie Choir Director
Nicole Tolentino enjoys
watching her students
have fun and make friends
through a shared love of
music during Step-Up Days
each year.
“They have a lot of fun,
and I feel like they can really
be themselves in this
class,” Tolentino said. “I
hope that they find their
passion, and they experience
music as an outlet and
as a way to make friends.”
Kelvin Grove Music,
Technology and Choir Director
Sarah Randolph
added that she enjoys helping
her students build their
skills to continue their
passion and love of music
throughout high school and
beyond.
“Music does last a lifetime,”
Randolph said. “And
it’s not just about an organization
that they’re with now
— and making friends here
— but music can connect
people all around the world.
Music is the universal language.
This is such a wonderful
opportunity for the
Oak Prairie Junior High eighth-grader Mallory Bianchi
shares a fun fact about herself with fellow singers at the
Step-Up Days event held Jan. 16 at LTHS’s East Campus
auditorium by the high school’s choir program. Photos by
Laurie Fanelli/22nd Century Media
A combination of eighth-graders from Kelvin Grove,
Richland and Oak Prairie schools sing together.
students to be able to realize
that their voices will be with
them all of their life.”
For more information
about the LTHS music programs,
visit www.lockpor
tchoirs.org and www.lock
portbands.org.