Choir brings students together

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This article was published 31/10/2019 (2375 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

After three days of non-stop touring, the Westman Youth Choir’s 39th season came to a close at Central United Church in Brandon on Oct. 22 with afternoon and evening performances.

But if this group of high school students was tired from performing at various schools, churches and theatres in the region, they did an excellent job of hiding it.

Not only did the group rip through 18 different songs with verve and gusto, but they also nailed the unique choreography required for each number.

At one point, the group even got off the stage and surrounded the audience to sing “Be Like the Bird” by composer Abbie Betinis.

Everything came together for the grand finale, where Crocus Plains Regional Secondary School student Temitope Fakiya brought the house down with a soulful rendition of a traditional South African song titled “Ingoma.”

Following this afternoon performance, Fakiya told the Sun that she’s perfectly comfortable closing out the show, since the level of support she receives from her conductors and fellow choir members is through the roof.

“I know they have my back, so even if I fail or flop they will be there for me,” she said. “So any time I sing, I’m able to sing with confidence.”

Since 1980, the Westman Youth Choir has provided an outlet for performers like Fakiya to spread their wings and collaborate with other musically inclined students in the region.

This year’s group comprised of 53 participants who represented 10 different Westman communities, including Brandon, Hamiota, Rivers, Virden, Neepawa, Waskada, Boissevain, Russell, Deloraine and Killarney.

To Rivers student Miriam Lade, who has been performing in the choir for the last three years, the collaborative aspect of this group is the best part.

“I didn’t know anyone my first year and I just went in it,” she said. “And it’s been so good, not only for the social connections, but also your musical experience, to learn how to read music, how to use your tone, your diction.”

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Another appealing aspect of the Westman Youth Choir is its rotating cast of conductors, who all bring something unique to the table.

This year, professional choral instructors Dorothy Dyck and Ian Campbell were in charge of steering the ship and went out of their way to give each student as much individual attention as possible.

“This year, they went the extra mile,” said École secondaire Neelin High School student Carter Martin, who is also in his third year with the group. “They even sat down with us and talked to us about our future and talked to us about our voices and about us in general.”

To Dyck, who normally serves as a choral director at Maples Collegiate in Winnipeg, providing this kind of instruction is important, especially for students who live in smaller rural communities.

“Most of them come from schools that have a choral program, but some of them don’t and this is their one chance to … be in a choir community for a short time,” she said.

Campbell, who is the music director for St. Mary’s Cathedral, said one of his biggest takeaways from this season is how quickly the students were able to gel.

While most student choirs are given several months or even a full year to learn their material and develop chemistry, the Westman Youth Choir program only provides two long weekends worth of rehearsal time.

But Campbell said any lingering sense of fatigue or nervousness among the kids completely disappeared when it was time to perform.

“We’re all tired, but we’re all really committed to the concerts,” he said on Tuesday afternoon. “Even when there’s a rehearsal that’s dragging and tough, they just come alive when it’s showtime.”

Despite ending their performance with plenty of hugs and high fives, some of the older choir members admitted that they can’t help but feel sad and nostalgic now that their time with the Westman Youth Choir has come to a end.

Even though he can’t return for next year’s program, Martin encourages any regional student who is in Grade 10-12 with even a passing interest in music to give it a shot.

“Even if they’re not a huge music person or a singer … they will definitely enjoy it,” he said. “They should just put themselves out there and audition because it can’t hurt and the experience will last a lifetime.”

» kdarbyson@brandonsun.com

» Twitter: @KyleDarbyson