Jackson teens chosen for national choir

A big adventure in the big city was a "life-changing" experience for three Jackson Middle School teens.

Megan Hawk, Emily Smith and Kailey Stanek recently traveled to Chicago to participate in a national honor choir. The seventh-graders spent four days at the American Choral Directors Association national conference.

They were among 800 applicants nationwide competing for 300 positions in the choir, led by Henry Leck, founder and artistic director of the Indianapolis Children's Choir and the Indianapolis Youth Chorale. About a dozen Missouri students were selected through the audition.

The sessions were exhausting, with rehearsals scheduled from early morning to late evening, stopping only for meal breaks. But Kailey said the experience was well worth the hard work.

"It changed the way I look at music," she said. "It was an awesome experience."

Stephanie Fridley, a K-7 music teacher at Jackson and the teens' sponsor, said the girls were tired but enthralled at the end of each day.

"I would get texts from them at 9:30 [p.m.] after rehearsal was over," Fridley said. "I would get these messages about how much fun they were having."

The conference's crescendo occurred Saturday, when the full choir performed several pieces.

"My favorite part was hearing the choir sing together for the first time," Megan said. "It changed my life."

It was a lot of work, but it wasn't all work. The teens squeezed in some time to see the city. They skipped lunch one day, ate beef jerky instead, and went ice skating. They rode cabs and took the train, some of the big-city stuff that seemed to intrigue these small-town girls.

"It was my first time in a big city," Emily said.

It was quite a time to take in Chicago, too. The conference took place during the city's huge St. Patrick's Day parade, and the Jackson girls got to see the Chicago River dyed green.

More than anything, the teens say they found their voice in the honor choir.

"It helped us all become better singers," Emily said.

mkittle@semissourian.com

388-3627

1651 W. Independence St., Jackson, Mo.