If someone asked me, "What comes to mind when you think of your high school experience?" my first and probably only answer would be "chorus!" Personally, I attended an all-girls high school, so the chorus was filled with glorious soprano and alto voices! My four years in this chorus has taught me a lot, but here are a good handful of things I will always remember:
1. Soprano life is the best life
As a soprano, I will be the first to admit that life gets hard. High notes get higher, and longer, and even higher, and even longer. HOWEVER, the truth of the matter is, 99 percent of the time, sopranos get the luxury of singing the melody! They really never have to worry about the awkward harmony lines, or the manly notes, or even the unreasonable amount of "ooo's" in a song. They just get the pleasure of singing the top line while looking at the envious faces of the altos!
2. Every Good Boy Does Fine
Or is it ...Good Boys Do Fine Always?! Either way, these treble and bass notes will NEVER be forgotten!
3. "One more time" really means 100 more times
I don't think I have ever legitimately went over a song "one more time." No matter how great we sounded, there was no such thing as "one more time." I'll always remember at the end of almost every rehearsal, my teacher would still be playing and we would still be singing. "One more time" was the performance. Honestly, going over the same piece 100+ times was extremely annoying and the amount of eye-rolling that occurred was priceless, but in the end, the song sounded great. To this day I will never forget my harmony in any song that was sung in chorus.
4. Wait....singing with boys is an actual thing?!?!?!?
There comes a time in every all-girls chorus' life when they get to sing with ... BOYS!!! I know I know, it seems unheard of, but it does happen! Who knew boys sound so glorious?! (Sometimes even better than us girls!) Don't get me wrong, singing with sopranos and altos is great, but nothing beats the sound of tenors and basses, and when we come together, it's like magic!
5. I will never be able to listen to the radio the same anymore
Let's be real here, after singing a popular song in chorus, it is extremely difficult to listen to that song without wanting to harmonize with the lead singer. The harmonies are always remembered no matter how hard you try to forget them! My non-chorus friends can tell you from experience that you DO NOT want to be with me if you're trying to enjoy a song. If I've sang it in chorus, I will NOT shut up and I will probably make the whole song really complex and confusing!
6. The bond created with your chorus director is forever unbreakable
Leading an all-girls chorus can be tough. It takes EXTREME patience! Not only does the director have to teach the music, but they always end up being the fly-on-the-wall during all the girly gossip, the heartbreaks, the temper-tantrums, and the complaints. If you're lucky like I was, you'll get a chorus director who will be there for you even after hours. They will teach you lessons that have nothing to do with music. They will be the person you can turn to no matter what the situation is. They will tell you straight up if you're being completely ridiculous, or if the song you want to sing just isn't for you. Most importantly, they will always be your biggest supporter throughout your time in chorus, and in your life!
