Director's Report: Jim Yowell

Happy New Year!  I want to thank all the parents for your kind words of encouragement and for your gracious holiday gifts.  I am truly blessed!  Thank you for attending the Winter Concert.  It is always so satisfying to sing to a full house.  As you know we followed up this successful performance with our annual trip to San Francisco.  Everyone was in awe of seeing the production of “Phantom of the Opera” but the thrill of the evening was the opportunity to meet Kyle Barisich after the performance.  Our performances in the hotels the next day delighted everyone and left us all with fond memories and ready for the holiday break.  Thank you to all the parents who traveled with us as chaperones for your help and support.  

Congratulations to Samantha Pack and Christina Lauro for being selected to the “National Honor Choir”.  This highly selective choir will perform at the up-coming ACDA Convention in Oklahoma.  Hundreds of students from every state sent in an audition CD and from Saratoga High School two of our fine singers were selected to form the 200 voiced National Honor Choir.  Also please give another round of applause for the following students who were selected to this year’s “California All State Honor Choir”.  Please congratulate Christina Lauro, Jennifer Hansen, Joshua Liu and Thomas Denq.  These students will perform in Pasadena in March.   

This time of year is always an exciting time for me.  We are now in the process of cleaning out our music folders so we can begin to work on our new literature for the spring concert and the CMEA Choral Festival.  The students really look forward to this time because we begin to work on the Jazz Cabaret music. Everyone will be impressed with the lively dance selections we will be performing.  Don’t forget to mark March 7th on your calendar.   

For those members of the choral department going to Europe we will begin our “European Tour Choir” after school rehearsals in March.  The rehearsals will be held in the choir room every Wednesday from 3:15 – 4:45 pm., beginning Wednesday, March 4th.  Please make the necessary arrangements to reserve this time slot in your busy schedule.  Please rearrange your music lessons, tutoring lessons, sport events, medical appointments or job schedule to make sure you are at every after school rehearsal.  There are only a few rehearsals and everyone is expected to attend. 

Best wishes in the New Year! – Jim Yowell