A group of Umatilla students returned right before spring break from an unforgettable experience overseas, where they participated in the Vox Anima London High School Festival—an international choral event that brought together over 100 students from five choir groups outside of London.
Held at the beautiful St. John’s Smith Square in Westminster on Saturday, March 15th, the festival was directed by award-winning conductor, educator, and composer Chris Manu, based in Portland, Oregon. Students were sent music to begin preparing ahead of time and practiced on their own for a few weeks. Once in London, they spent two half days in rehearsals and a final dress rehearsal with the other choirs to prepare for their performance as one big group.
Students performed eight songs at the concert, one of which was "The Landscape of Your Heart" by Sarah Quartel. They had the opportunity to world premiere the piece, meaning it was the first time anyone had ever heard it performed live.
The participating choirs included:
London Beach Concert Choir, MS
The Combined Choirs of Cordova High School, TN
Pacific Youth Choir, Portland, OR
Tillamook High School, OR
Umatilla High School, OR
Vox Anima London is an organization that provides choral festivals and concert opportunities to amateur choirs and singers from around the world. Its goal is to create meaningful musical experiences through collaboration and cultural exchange. The High School Festival is one of its signature events, giving young singers the chance to perform internationally in professional venues. To learn more about Vox Anima London, please visit https://www.voxanimalondon.com.
The opportunity was open to any high school choir student at Umatilla, as well as 8th grade choir students from Clara Brownell Middle School. Students had to commit to practicing the music and fundraising their own way to make the trip happen.
For many of them, this was about more than just performing.
“Over there it felt like a nice safe space. The people matched my own crazy energy,” said Khloe M. “There were so many people that were a part of this and they were really supportive.”
Alex E. shared how the experience pushed them as a singer. “I feel like I learned more skills from this and learned a lot more on how to sing safely. I ended up singing a lower range. I learned how to be comfortable learning to sing in a range that I normally don’t do.”
In between rehearsals, students had the chance to explore some of London’s most iconic spots, including the London Eye, Tower of London, Crown Jewels, and Buckingham Palace.
Big thank you to the staff, organizers, and chaperones who helped make this trip possible and supported students every step of the way. We’re proud of our students for representing Umatilla!
