On Jan. 29, four girls from Wenatchee High School and Dawn McCormick, the choir director, had the opportunity to travel to New York and sing in Carnegie Hall. Carnegie Hall is the most prestigious concert stage in the United States. Ever since 1891, performers have been dreaming of singing and playing on the famous stage. 

    The Honors Performance Series is a program that allows high school students to perform at renowned performance halls all over the world. Locations of this program include New York, Vienna, London and Sydney. This year, forty-eight states and eight countries were represented at the Honors Performance Series. Students are able to rehearse and perform with talented conductors, building their music resume and improving their skills.

    Last fall, seniors Giselle Jensen and Daniela Alpire, and juniors Lulu Pray and Ava Rosvold auditioned for a chance to travel to New York and sing in Carnegie Hall. The four Wenatchee High School students prepared resumes and sent in audition videos of them singing a classical song in a foreign language. In October, they received news that they had been accepted and would be traveling to New York in January. You might have even seen them singing around town to fundraise for their trip.

    Before their concert in New York, the girls spent months learning and perfecting their music. In addition to fundraising for their trip, they practiced, practiced and practiced some more to be ready to sing in Carnegie Hall three months later. 

    “I loved watching the rehearsals with the amazing conductors and exploring New York. I loved being in New York and getting to go to Carnegie Hall,” McCormick said.

    Even though they came to perform, the program allowed time for them to see a Broadway show, explore New York and even have a celebration on a private yacht for the performers. After a day of exploring the city, it was time to get to work. Over the course of two days the group had a seventeen hour practice with their choirs. After the two days of rehearsal, they ended the trip with a final concert in Carnegie Hall. In past years students from WHS have participated in this program, but never this many at once.

    “The whole experience was very inspiring and helped me become a better musician,” Alpire said. 

    The Honors Performance Series allows students to perform in one of two choirs. Alpire and Pray sang in a coed choir of around 350 high school students from around the country. Their conductor, Dr. Jeffery Reid, even won a Grammy! Jensen and Rosvold  sang in a treble choir of 140 other women. 

    “My favorite part was getting to meet people from all over the country and learning from and talking to my conductor for twenty minutes after just asking him a simple question,” Jensen said.