The West Linn High School Symphonic Choir qualified for the State Choir Competition in the Three Rivers League State Choir Competition on April 7. The St. Mary’s Choir won the competition, but the places of other choirs are not revealed.

“This could give the choir will have a chance to compete in the state competition or even go to New York to perform,” Barb Fontana, choir director, said. The scores awarded from the judges determined which choirs will qualify for the state competition, and could move on to larger competitions.

Each choir was required to exemplify certain strengths for the judges to score. These include being able to sing a foreign language, perform multiple genres of music, as well as the overall performance of the songs. The WLHS choir sang in genres dating back to the 17th Century and the late 18th Century to a more modern Bollywood song.

Twenty-six choirs from class 6A schools with the “top scores” will move on to the state competition from all over the state. The top 17 scores will automatically qualify for a spot in the competition, and the other nine will be admitted based on other the auditions they send to state judges. At the state competition, the Symphonic Choir will compete against the best choirs from around the state according to Fontana.

“I am confident that the choir will perform very well against other choirs,” she said before the competition. Their most challenging competitors are Lakeridge, St. Mary’s and Canby choirs.

“The Canby choir has a very different sound,” Fontana said. They have so many kids, so listening to them perform is like being hit with a wall of sound.

Although Symphonic Choir is a class, students are expected to practice on their own time for at least an hour each week. This will help to maintain their voices for the three competitions, around ten performances expected each year, and the high-stake state competition.