Whiz Kids: 8 Royal Oak Middle School Students Qualify for State Honors Choir

Names: Abigail Walsh, Vanessa Lambrecht, Aiden Call, Alana Tyson, Benjamin Hill, Robert Wilson, Edwina Luokkala-Burckhardt and Leah Cobb

Age: eighth-graders

School: 

Accomplishment: Eight Royal Oak Middle School (ROMS) eighth-graders qualified to participate in the Michigan School Vocal Music Association (MSVMA) Middle School Honors Choir program.

“We have never had eight students qualify for the regional auditions before ... and we've never had six students accepted to State Honors Choir!” a delighted ROMS Choral Director Diane Mehringer said.

Abigail Walsh and Vanessa Lambrecht made it to Regional Honors Choir, performing in Monroe, MI.

A ROMS duet and quartet advanced to the State Honors Choir, which performed in the final concert of the Michigan Music Conference in Grand Rapids:

• Aiden Call and Alana Tyson advanced to the State Soprano-Alto Honors Choir.
• A quartet comprised of Benjamin Hill, Robert Wilson, Edwina Luokkala-Burckhardt and Leah Cobb was accepted into the State Soprano-Alto-Tenor-Bass Honors Choir.

Keys to awesomeness: The State Honors Choir students rehearsed in cities around Michigan. Their challenging repertoire included songs in English, Italian, Latin and German.

Students audition in front of one adjudicator by singing a memorized piece a capella. Students are assigned a point score in the categories of tone, memorization, intonation, phrasing, diction and vocal technique. The top scoring students are selected for the State Honors Choir.

“The auditions are difficult, because there's only one singer on each part, so you really have to know your music well,” said Mehringer, who has taught in Royal Oak Schools since 1984.  

“The music is higher level than most first-year singers can handle, so we are extremely proud that our students were selected amidst the tough competition from other schools.”

Students first qualified for Regional Honors Choir at ROMS, then they auditioned at Monroe Middle School in Monroe in October. All the auditioners then rehearsed and sang together as a Regional Honors Choir.

“Six of our students were selected to continue to the state-level Honors Choir program,” the vocal music teacher said. “They had additional rehearsals in Saline, Holland, Midland, and Grand Rapids during the fall and winter.”

The State Honors Choirs performed as the final concert of the Michigan Music Conference, the state music teachers' conference, in January.

"It was a lot of work, but it was a lot of fun to get there," Abby Walsh said. "The groups had to go in the practice rooms almost every day to work on our songs during class for a few weeks.  The other groups were really good and I'm happy that they made it to State Honors Choir."

Do you know our next Whiz Kid?

Know a great kid who made Eagle Scout? How about a school group that worked on a project for charity? Did your local soccer team take the championship? They may be our next Patch Whiz Kid honorees.

Royal Oak Patch wants your suggestions for individual children, youth groups, teens and even sports teams that wow us with their accomplishments. We want to hear about these amazing kids and select one each week as the Patch Whiz Kid. Submit your nomination in our comment box below or email the information to Beth Valone. Be sure to include all of the following information:

• Nominator's name and contact information
• Whiz Kid's name, age and school
• Whiz Kid's accomplishment
• Whiz Kid's key to awesomeness (what made him/her successful?)
• Whiz Kid photo(s)