OSU choirs united in song

Oregon State University’s choral groups have distinct ranges and strengths, and all showed their unique repertoires and came together with the other groups last weekend.

The First United Methodist Church in Corvallis hosted Bella Voce, OSU Meistersingers and OSU Glee on Saturday. The choirs united and offered a sampling of each group in individual and cooperative performances.

OSU Glee is a non-auditioned coed choir open to all students. Glee includes students of many different majors and levels of musicality, from beginners to advanced students.  
This choir sings a wide range of music genres and styles and performances include concerts as well as flash mobs around campus. OSU Glee Choir is directed by James Davidson and Jessica McKiernan is the assistant director.  
On Saturday, they performed an a cappella arrangement by Pentatonix of the song, “Somebody That I Used to Know,” by Gotye, “With a Lily in Your Hand,” by Eric Whitacre and “Bohemian Rhapsody,” by Freddie Mercury and Queen.

“I was looking forward to the Eric Whitacre song because it is beautiful and I felt that we were going to nail it,” said Frank Chiou, a member of the OSU Glee choir.  
Bella Voce is a female-only choir directed by Tina Bull, accompanied on the piano by Andrea Black. Erica Westendorf, a graduate teaching assistant, also helps conduct the choir. They performed the songs “Ukuthula,” “Bright Morning Stars are Rising” with a solo by soprano Diana Kramer, “For the Beauty of the Earth,” “Domini fili unigenite,” “Beside Still Waters” and “Wedding Qawwali.”  
The Bella Voce groups represented a softer and beautiful kind of music.  
“My favorite part about performing is the way that the music brings energy,” said Amanda Hammond. “A member of Bella Voce. I love the joy you get from singing in a group.”

The Meistersingers is a male-only choir directed by Russ Christensen, accompanied on the piano by Elizabeth Atchley, and student-directed by Daniel Fridley.  
This choir sung several songs before finishing with “Beaver Medley” and “Fight Song.” The Bella Voce and the OSU Glee Choir came back on stage to finish the song with the Meistersingers.  
“My favorite part about conducting and performing is watching the guys enjoy themselves singing with a lot of spirit,” Christensen said.  
Each choir faced its own stumbling blocks in the process of making this concert and the performances were considered a success.  
“We had to tackle some difficult literature [and] work hard to improve vocal technique and intonation, but they really focused and pulled through,” Christensen said.  “I’m proud of their efforts.”  

Hannah Johnson, news reporter
news@dailybarometer.com