Continuing a 15-year tradition, the 184 members of the Northwestern Michigan Children's Choir raised their voices together in beautiful harmony Sunday afternoon at the Lars Hockstad Auditorium.
Joining together to sing two songs, the children in grades 2-9 also divided into their four choirs by age for the rest of the annual winter concert.
Piling up a steady stream of successful and challenging years, the NMCC has garnered a reputation in the community for vocal and musical excellence as well as being a premier training ground for singers.
"Everyone in this choir is just passionate about music and maybe wants to pursue it,” said Izzy Cooper, 13, an eighth grade student at Traverse City East Junior High and a member of the Concert Choir. "You really have to put your best foot forward here, you always have to be on your game — 200 percent!”
High standards form the foundation of the school-year program for both instructors and students, many of whom stay with the program for years. Cooper is in her sixth year while fellow Concert Choir member Eric Fegan is in the midst of his fourth year. Both plan to continue through ninth grade and know they will be well prepared for high school and beyond.
"I really do like to sing and I really want to be in the musicals in high school,” said Fegan, a seventh grade student at Traverse City West Junior High.
Anderson Nunnelly , a six-year NMCC veteran and a 2005 West High School graduate, was a guest performer Sunday afternoon. A voice major at the Roosevelt University in Chicago, Nunnelly was thrilled to join his former directors and lend his talent for some numbers.
"As a children's musical experience, it's really important,” said Nunnelly of the NMCC.
Mark and Barbara Puchala founded the children's choir 15 years ago after realizing how few schools in the five counties area offered choir to their students. Puchala, an instructor at Northwestern Michigan College and chair of the music department, based the program in the college's Extended Education Services Program.
With a mission to promote singing and provide another venue, NMCC attracts members from the Traverse City Area Public Schools, the area's charter and parochial schools as well as homeschoolers.
"They are learning how to sing and be young artists and make really beautiful music with great compositions,” noted Puchala. "It's working really well, every year I'm seeing a higher level of artistry that's being produced by the choir.”
The first year, the Puchalas had just under 40 students in the Concert Choir. Within three or four years, they added two more choirs and a few years after that, two more. These five choirs included students in grades 3-9, a set up that worked well for about four years and one year drew a high of 220 students.
The Puchalas have since trimmed back to four choirs for children in grades 2-9. They direct the Concert and Chamber Choirs for junior high and sixth grade students. Stephanie Schall-Brazee directs the Advanced Choir for upper elementary age singers while Dave and Mary Parrish direct the Treble Choir for second and third graders.
"It's far exceeded what I had envisioned, I never really thought it would have the vigorous following that it has,” said Puchala, who also directs the Grand Traverse Chorale. "Nor did I think that I would have seven people on staff supporting the program, directing and all the wonderful indirect support we get from Extended Educational Services.”
"And then on top of all that, all of the incredible parent volunteerism,” he added.
For more information about the Northwestern Michigan Children's Choir, see their Web site at www.nmc.edu/childrenschoir. Students in second through ninth grades may still join the Northwestern Michigan Children's Choir. The Treble Choir does not require an audition; parents of second and third grade students may call Dave and Mary Parrish at 946-6615. Auditions for older students may be arranged by calling Mark Puchala at 995-1338.