OSSAA District Vocal Contest - AHS Choir

Atoka High School’s choir teacher, Jan Embry delivers us some insight on the choir’s most recent contest. The OSSAA District Contest was held at ECU (East Central University) in Ada, Oklahoma on February 22nd. According to ECU’s event calendar, there are many types of OSSAA events, those of which focus on varying secondary school activities.  

AHS Choir students are required to sing in at least one ensemble, which can consist of 12 students maximum. Students do not have to try out to go to the contest, but they do try out at the beginning of the school year. Twenty-two students are involved in Mrs. Embry’s choir class, seven of which chose to sing their own solos in front of a judge. This is very bold and nerve-wracking, so I’d like to congratulate those who stepped up to perform with no sounds but their own voice and the melody of the piano. There were two ensembles, both including eleven or twelve students. Ensemble one sang Danny Boy and Shenandoah by Greg Gilpin, and ensemble two sang O Clap Your Hands by Julie Knowles. AHS Choir began their ensembles at 11:00 a.m. and ended with solos at 11:40 a.m. All solos and ensembles received a superior or excellent rating.

I asked Mrs. Embry what her favorite performance was, “I really enjoyed all of the ensembles and solos, but if I had to choose a favorite it would be O Clap Your Hands.”She went on to explain why this song was her favorite, “It has energy and is quite difficult to perform since it is acapella. Scoring a I on this was a true testament to the talent we are blessed with!”

Scoring Chart

(from highest score to lowest)

I

Superior

II

Excellent

III

Good/Average

IV

Fair/Below Average

V

Poor/Major Deficiencies