By Marisa Dawson

Under the direction of vocal music teacher Tye Hanke, our students shone brightly in two major events. On Sunday, they joined forces with five other high schools, the Omaha Symphony, and professional soloists for the Omaha Symphony Choral Collaborative at the Holland Center. The Omaha Symphony Choral Collaborative featured over 300 high school singers from six schools performing a full program of challenging choral-orchestral works with professional soloists at the Holland Performing Arts Center.

Then on Monday, our a cappella ensemble Out of the Blue represented us at the EMC Conference Choir at Gretna High School, performing two songs solo and two with the full group under clinician Doran Johnson. The EMC Conference Choir brought together select vocalists from eastern conference schools for a day of intensive rehearsal and performance under guest clinician Doran Johnson, culminating in a combined concert at Gretna High School.

Hanke shared what he’s most proud of: “The Choral Collaborative music was not written for high school students and with 1 hour of music, they are overwhelmed when we begin. We lay out a rehearsal schedule and methodically work our way through it. It is awesome to see them master so much music at the end and witness their confidence grow into the final performance at the Holland Center.” He hopes students take away “life long memories while developing musical skills they can take with them and use the rest of their life.” Students agree the hard work pays off, and Hanke said, “in the end, all of the effort is worth their time.”

Looking ahead to the holidays, the choirs have several upcoming events they are preparing to perform at: Santa Claus Visit (Nov 30, 1-3pm at Bennington Elementary), i3 Bank Luncheon Gig (Dec 11, 12:05-12:45pm at St. Johns Church with Out of the Blue/Shades of Blue), and the annual Winter Concert (Dec 11, 7pm – full department)!

Photos Courtesy of Tye Hanke