Sing Loud, Sing Proud

(From left) Choir director Mrs. Crownover, Alexis Orlin '17 and Raphael Bello '17. 

Students at Saint Thomas’ Episcopal School embrace daily chapel as a time of worshipful reflection. It's a time between second and third period that you can unwind and mentally prepare for the rest of the day. The chapel proctor rotates between the priest, the headmaster and choir members. The choir is integral to chapel and often leads much of the service. They sit in the choir stalls in the front of chapel and lift their voices in song.

The choir practices three times a week as a whole and another three times a week in smaller groups throughout the day. Right now they are spending their time preparing for the TAPPS State Competition in March. 

Four individuals auditioned for the All-state Choir this year. The All-State Choir is an elite group of both boy and girl singers who have an incredible voices. The four who auditioned this year were Samantha Rothkop, Filemon Tan, Raphael Bello and Alexis Orlin. All of these students submitted two recordings that were predetermined by the panel of judges. Four hundred students from Texas applied, and the top 150 students were chosen for the regional choir. The contestants were reevaluated in a variety of musical styles, and the top 40 were then chosen for the All-State Choir.

Among these 40 students, two of our own Saint Thomas’ Episcopal students were chosen. Raphael Bello and Alexis Orlin were selected to join this talented group of singers from all over Texas. Saint Agnes hosted a three-day clinic in which the students were pushed hard and competed to the best of their abilities.

STE sophomore Raphael Bello explained, “A hundred things are going through your mind when you sing a piece. You are constantly thinking of how to create and portray the song as a form of artwork. I make sure that I know what the song is about and what I can do to make the piece flow more smoothly.”