I’ve been meaning to get my feet back into the music scene for a long time. I joined the church choir back in Carmel, which whet my appetite for being part of a group of like-minded music makers. I was on the verge of auditioning for the Indianapolis Symphonic Choir and Indy Civic’s “The Music Man” when we made the decision to move to England, so that dream never came to fruition.

After some research into the local music scene, I decided to audition for the prestigious City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO) Chorus, which is the choir that performs with the CBSO. The audition was to comprise of a set of vocal exercises to determine range, a song, sight singing, and aural tests. I haven’t auditioned for anything since August of 2004 (unless you count being judged for singing onstage in a pageant as an audition?), so this was only slightly intimidating given the length of time.

I sought out a voice teacher, pulled out my old ISSMA sight-reading materials, and found my aural skills books from my years at the Jacobs School of Music. For five weeks, I poured a ton of time and energy into the preparation for this audition, hoping I could finally be a part of large symphonic choral works.

My audition was last Tuesday, and I felt like it went very well. It was a pleasure to once again sing with a proper accompanist, rather than a background track. Even just the run-through with the accompanist brought joy to my heart!

My preparation for the audition paid off, and I was invited to sing this season with the CBSO as a second soprano (my absolute favourite voice part)! Rehearsals start at the end of August and the first concert is September 21.

I cannot emphasize how excited I am to have a social niche within this new country and to sing once again challenging new music – and to learn it at a fast pace! My mind has been stirring for some musical challenge recently, which I’ve been getting through learning several new pieces on the piano, but I’ve definitely needed to stretch my vocal muscles.

You’ll see a bit more on my Instagram stories soon about the CBSO Chorus. And if you ever want to see a particular topic on the blog, write a message below. I love to hear from all of you!

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