Tyler Consolidated's High School Choir traveled to New York City last weekend and took the Big Apple by storm, returning home with several impressive awards.

The Tyler Consolidated High School Choir returned from their trip to New York City with the honor of earning a First Place in the high school choir division at competition. The students also won the Overall Champion High School Choir Award. Tyler Consolidated Choir performed level 6 (professional) choral literature and were the only group to do so. Most other groups performed level one or two material. “The difficulty level of the music performed by Tyler Consolidated Choir members makes it much more difficult to earn a first place position when competing against other groups who perform easy music,” said Choir Director, Clara Glover.

“Judges do not look at the level of difficulty and simply rate the groups based on the quality of the performance. This makes this first place award that much more meaningful when you consider that the students were at a great disadvantage by taking on others who did not set their bar nearly as high.”

The Consolidated Choir also performed a capella literature which means that there was no piano support on the competition pieces.

The choir performed “Come Let’s Rejoice,” a selection from the Renaissance written by John Amner and “Piping Anne and Husky Paul,” a contemporary madrigal by British composer Daniel Pinkham.

In addition to performing for competition, the choir members and chaperones spent a day in New York City touring. The students took the harbor cruise from Battery Park to see the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Islands as well as the New York Harbor sights. They also had tickets (which are difficult to get) to enter and tour the 9/11 Memorial.

While at Rockefeller Center the choir drew a crowd of onlookers with their rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner" and "Come Let's Rejoice".

“This was a very emotional and moving experience for all of us,” Glover said.

The students then travelled to Times Square, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and Rockefeller Center. While at Rockefeller Center, the students sang “The Star Spangled Banner” and “Come Let’s Rejoice.” They drew quite a crowd and received great comments from tourists and bystanders. The students returned to Times Square to shop for souvenirs, ate at Hard Rock Cafe and then moved on to Broadway. The evening ended with a live Broadway performance of “Phantom of the Opera” which was one of the highlights of the trip.

“The Tyler Consolidated students were great representatives for West Virginia, Tyler County, and Tyler Consolidated High School,” said the Choir Director. “The tour guide commented multiple times on what great kids we have and how great their behavior was. They were always on time and behaved in a very mature manner.”

Students who performed and earned top honors included: Seniors – Chad Brightwell, Cortney Daugherty, Jay Earley, Tori Hizer, Ricky Hooks, Katie Hoyes, Chelsea Rosenlieb, Danielle Seckman, Katie Smith, Randy Taylor, Zach Thomas, Devon Thompson, and Emily Wade; Juniors – Alec Bubenchik, Timmy Chichick, Shawna Dennis, Shawnia Doll, Aubrey Henderson, Emily Knowlton, Nikki Moore, Hannah Phillips; Sophomores – Kim Boito, Kelsey Bonar, Mikayla Eads, Ashley Grant, Bryanna Munoz, Lilli Orr, Tiffany Spencer, Mason West; Freshmen – McKayla Anderson, Brittany Bishop, Chase Cooper, Karalynn Dalrymple, Colby Lash, Katlyn Seckman, Martha Shepherd, Krissy Smith, Tiffany Smith, and Joshua Wayne.

The Tyler Consolidated Choir and Director Clara Glover offer a special “thank you” to the parent chaperones who really made the trip enjoyable and worry-free: Erica Bonar, Karen Hoyes, Lori Knowlton, Neil Munoz, Marsha Spencer, and Kristy Wade.

Also special thank you’s were extended to the parents who have truly supported their children in their choir careers and to Mr. Yoho, Mrs. Daquilante, and the Tyler County Board of Education for their approval of the trip.

“It was a once-in-a-lifetime event for many of the students. Special thanks to the Tyler county citizens who in any way helped to finance the students’ trip through donations, purchasing of fundraiser products, or concert attendance and moral support,” Glover said.