Bellezza returns from Westmont Festival with new experiences

Fresno Christian Bellezza performing at the fall concert, Oct. 9.

Juliana Lozano and Juliana Lozano

Ensemble travels to SoCal for adjudication

[/media-credit] The women’s ensemble stopped to eat at the Madonna Inn on the way to Westmont.

Fresno Christian’s women’s ensemble returns from the Westmont Festival, energized and anticipating future events. After performing their fall pieces, “Sigue” and “Great Day”, in front of their peers at the Fall Choral Concert, the ensemble attended a clinic in Santa Barbara to further enhance the songs, Oct. 27.

After a quick stop at the Madonna Inn for brunch, the girls were off to warm up and perform. The clinic session began at 1:30 p.m. and students from multiple high schools, including the Rosemead High School choir and Vista Murrieta Chamber Choir participated at First United Methodist Church.

First-year ensemble member Amanda Grimmius, ‘19, compares her experiences with the Westmont and Fresno Pacific University festivals.

“I liked the festival, but now having attended Westmont and FPU, I can say I appreciated both for their differences, but I preferred FPU because the adjudicator actually had corrections and suggestions we will continue to use the rest of the year,” Grimmius said. “At Westmont, we weren’t really given any corrections, we were more used as a teaching tool for other choirs, I wish he would have given us some suggestions.

“Overall, though, I think it was a great festival, and I really appreciated hearing other choirs and the corrections they were given,” Grimmius continued. “Everyone there was very supportive and helpful to everyone else.”

Director and professor in music at Westmont Dr. Steve Hodson explained his background and the importance of the Westmont festival.

“I’m involved in some other festivals, this is one of the good ones,” Hodson said. “You also get to visit Santa Barbra and see some of our churches with their beautiful acoustics and you get to hear other fine choirs. I think this is one of the stronger high school festivals given the location and the choirs that come to it. Our staff is pretty strong in choral experience.”

[/media-credit] The Westmont Festival gave students an opportunity to work on their songs and learn new skills.

Senior Mariana Fikse shares her thoughts on the festival overall.

“I really didn’t know what to expect, but I was impressed by all of the different choirs that attended,” Fikse said. “To be honest, this was the most nervous I have been for a performance. At least at the fall concert and at the FPU event, I knew people in the crowd, however, at Westmont, it was a ton of people I didn’t know and I felt like that added pressure.”

At the end of the festival, all choirs that sang in the festival joined together with the Westmont singers for a finale of JS Bach’s “Nun Danket Alle Gott” (Now Thank we all our God). The song was chosen because of the 500th anniversary of Reformation.

For another choir article, read FC choir makes trip to Worldstrides Heritage Festival or FC Choir, Bellezza begins preparations for spring NY trip.

For another Top 5, read Student Support for Operation Christmas Child Continues.

Juliana Lozano can be reached via email and Twitter.