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| Prelude Choir and Treble Choir perform |
Parents and children filled the St. Giles Church’s main hall
on January 12, 2013 as Campanella Choir kids performed at this year’s first
semi-annual concert of the 2012-2013 season.
The concert brought together all sections of the choir and gave each one
a chance to shine. And, during the second half of the concert, the audience got
a chance to see what happens when the entire Campanella school comes together
as they watched a short musical production of Hansel and Gretel.
During the first half of the concert, the Campanella Choir
kids sang Russian songs. Three of the four sections of the choir – the Prelude
Choir, the Beginners and the Treble Choir – got a chance to shine as they took
turns singing different songs. Ariella Masarsky, a member of Campanella’s
Concert Choir, closed the first half of the concert with a solo rendition of “I
Could Have Danced All Night,” to the thunderous applause from the audience.
The second half of the concert featured Campanella kids
performing Hansel and Gretel, an abridged version of a famous 19th
century opera by German composer Engelbert Humperdinck. The production kept as
much of the original music as possible, which lent operatic quality to the performance.
Campanella artistic director Marianna Kosaya said that they
hoped that the production would help kids appreciate classical music. Too
often, kids feel that classical music is boring, or worse, something to
avoid.
It is the perception that Campanella wants to change. Kosaya
believes that associating classical music with a play, where kids get a chance
to show their creativity and contribute something to the greater whole, would
go a long way toward accomplishing it.
Putting together a play also gave Campanella a chance to
involve kids from the center’s entire education program.
“We gathered together everyone from the entire Campanella,”
said Kosaya. “The choir kids sang, the kids from piano classes performed, the
kids from art classes contributed to the creation of the set.”
Kosaya said that she was encouraged by the attendance. She
estimated that approximately 150 adults came to the concert. But most
importantly, she was happy with the performances.
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Want to see more pictures of the concert? Click on the image below to check out the album:
