Chamber choir wins first state title

STAFF WRITER

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The Portales High School Chamber Choir recently earned the Class 4A State Championship in Albuquerque earlier this month, the first victory of its kind in the choir’s history, according to PHS Choir Director James Golden.

According to Golden, the choir hadn’t been to a state competition since 2010.

Ryann Privett, who participated in the competition, said that she wasn’t nervous because the choir had practiced and were confident that they would do well.

“We practiced so much and we prepared for this so much that it would be pointless to be nervous, because we know what we’re doing,” Privett said.

Rheagyn Gonzalez said that, unlike Privett, she was nervous to perform, mainly because the choir was competing against other groups at the competition.

“It was nerve-wracking to perform, because we never really compete against other people. We just kind of get scored on our own,” she said. “Once we got done, I felt pretty good about it.”

Getting the opportunity to compete and showcase the choir’s talent, according to Golden, was an exciting prospect for the choir.

“It’s definitely a confidence builder,” Golden said. “It’s good for students to experience that. It’s something they can apply later on in life. I’m an advocate for the arts, because here in Portales, we really push to help everybody at the school how important arts education really is.

“When you’re in these programs, you really learn a whole new set of skills that you don’t necessarily learn anywhere else. One cool thing about being in the arts is that you’re part of a team. Athletics, they’ll have their teams, but they’re for a season. The arts, we’re together all year.”