These are amazing student musicians.
There really isn't much more to be said. Over the course of this semester, they have striven to establish the practice habits of good musicians, tackled difficult tasks, and overcome so much. I couldn't be more proud. You might notice that not everyone appears in every video. Flexibility is the name of the game during NTI, so some students submitted audio only for some or all of the pieces.
The first piece, Galop, is a foundational piece all sixth grade students at Noe sing as an introduction to solfege, a system we use throughout middle school and beyond to develop musical literacy. It also serves as an introduction to a wide range of dynamics, articulation, and many other musical concepts common in most notated music.
The second piece, Pie Jesu, not only serves as an introduction to foundational vowel shapes (Latin uses the five pure vowel sounds) but also as an introduction to singing in a foreign language. Noe's choirs explore music from around the world and this piece is approachable and a great way to gain confidence in singing in a foreign language (and pretty much no one actually speaks Latin, so it works for everybody!). The text does come from the Catholic tradition, which is something that is unavoidable in Western Music. At Noe, we ensure that this is balanced with music that represents traditions, cultures and religions from around the globe as part of our students' music education.
We end with How Can I Keep from Singing. This is a personal favorite of mine. Music has the power to comfort, transform and inspire. This piece is a testament to that power. As difficult as everything in the world can be today, the song says it best: "no storm can shake my inmost calm while to that rock I'm clinging. Since Love is lord of Heav'n and earth, How can I keep from singing?"