Choir is one of the many new official programs that have developed within Argyle’s school district. Members recently competed at the Sandy Lakes Competition.

“Sandy Lake was very stressful because it’s a big competition for all of the choirs, bands, orchestras, and everybody that went to compete,” sophomore Sariah Johnson said.  

Stress of competing, getting evaluated by five judges, keeping the nerves down, and enjoying the moment are all components of the competition’s atmosphere. Other school districts competed that had more students, bigger facilities, and established choir programs. For Argyle’s choir team, this was their first year to compete.

“It was intimidating because our choir compared to everybody else’s was probably the smallest choir there,” Johnson said, “but we performed great, and did just as well as the schools three times our size.” 

At the recent competition, the group sang “Go Forth With a Song” and “Let Us Sign for the Unsung Heroes,” two songs they previously sang at the Veterans’ Day assembly. 

“We received two trophies, one being for a superior score, and the other for the Outstanding Choir award,” Johnson said.

Choir director Lynn Zeller, who came out of retirement for one year to help out with Argyle’s choir program, has very high expectations for the choir program’s future. 

“All of this success required the choir students to work very hard, to learn, and to practice great vocal technique,” Zeller said.

After competing at Sandy Lakes, the choir has established a high profile.  As next year rolls along, the choir will be losing two seniors.

“I think the Sandy Lake competition gave the choir program a lot of confidence because we did perform very well,” senior Emily Elson said. “That’s what we’ve been practicing for a long time, and we performed really well. Everything Mrs. Zeller had taught us we did, and it was beautiful.”