Owensboro Youth Chorale is hosting its first concert of the season today, performing Just Sing at Third Baptist Church. This year’s group ranges from 8 to 15 years old.
Director Madison Wells said that leading this ensemble has been really fun to watch them continue to grow as artists. The season started in August, so the group has recently started rehearsing for their show.
“They have just really exceeded our expectations and we are looking forward to hearing wonderful music from them,” Wells said.
When it comes to directing children across a 7-year age gap, Wells said that it can be a challenge, especially as it pertains to vocal and musical development. However, she said the class has an amazing camaraderie with each other that makes them blend very well.
She said the oldest kids have taken the younger ones under their wings and helped them get better. Often the younger kids will opt to sit next to an older student during rehearsal to get help with the music.
“As teachers, we help our students obviously, but what we love the most is when we look at our ensemble and we see that the kids are helping one another,” Wells said.
All the pieces at the show will have a theme about how music makes a person feel. To Wells, music has lots of different meanings and outcomes, ranging from something that can cut deeply emotionally to really upbeat songs.
“We just wanted to encapsulate the joy of music and the joy of singing,” Wells said.
The show is free to the public and they will be accepting donations from viewers. There are no tickets, and the show starts at 6 p.m.
