Our choir here at Lewis Cass just recently went to ISSMA and had an amazing turnout. ISSMA stands for Indiana State School Music Association. Preparing for ISSMA, the choir worked on their singing in class and individually for over three months. They started preparing themselves when Mrs. Dubios sent songs out at the end of November. Mrs. Dubois said, “I send songs out to my students by the end of November to the beginning of December so they can get to working individually on their songs.”
When the choir prepares for ISSMA, they prepare in class, but they also need to work individually, so they can sing their best. Mrs. Dubois says, “A lot of it is individual practice which was very important, and they took the judges’ paper from ISSMA to prepare themselves for state.” When scoring for ISSMA, they are looking for low scoring, so they can get a gold to move on to state. This year, the choir had many kids make it to state this year and had overall good scoring. Mrs. Dubois said, “We keep getting more every year, this is the best soloists we’ve had in the past three years.”
This year, there were multiple performers who earned gold with distinction (which is the highest award from ISSMA). The award winners of gold with distinction are Maddy Willis, Cameron Fuller, Reagan Mundy, and Liberty Preston. The award winners of gold are Curtis Goodwin, Jennifer Romero, Kennedy Thorpe, Audree Zorich, Grace Spicer, and Faith Abbott. Winning silver were Brecken Smith, Alexis Alford, and Maria Soto Juniper.
This year, junior, Jennifer Romero, went to state and she says, “I felt confident going into state. I felt that I prepared enough to the point where there was not as much worry as there would have usually been. The school we went to was huge, so getting from place to place was confusing. We had assigned practice rooms where we could warm up before the actual performance, and then the actual room where we were judged. When I performed, it was important to have a good introduction. We had to introduce ourselves and the piece that we were singing. It was nerve-wracking waiting for the results, but it was fun getting to have that experience. Not everyone makes it past district, so it’s very important to do your best and perform to the best of your ability.” Jennifer received a gold from singing as a soloist and was happy to move on to state this year.
Between this year and ISSMA, Mrs. Dubois could not be more proud of her choir and all they do. Our Lewis Cass Choir has worked and continues to work so hard and has earned what they worked for. Mrs. Dubois said, “I’m really proud of my students for showing dedication for themselves and their ability to work independently. I’m proud they were able to put in the work on their own to have a good result, even if I wasn’t directly in front of them.” Congratulations to all of the Lewis Cass Choir members on their tremendous accomplishments!
