Northlands Excited To Perform In Carol-Off
[Written by Stephen Wright]
The Northlands Primary School choir, under the leadership of music teacher Terry Henry, will aim to bring the festive spirit to life at the second annual Skyport Great Bermuda Carol-Off.
The three-day event, which started today [December 2] at LF Wade International Airport, will feature approximately 20 local schools performing by the airport’s Christmas tree, entertaining travellers, Skyport staff, and visitors.
Northlands claimed a $5,000 prize after winning the Best Primary School Choir category last year.
Reflecting on last year’s triumph, Mr Henry shared his enthusiasm for the competition and pride in his choir’s accomplishments.
“It was indeed a pleasure to participate in last year’s Skyport Carol-Off competition,” Mr Henry told Bernews.
“There was a lot of excitement around it as all the music teachers were very vocal about wanting to be the one to walk away with the grand prize.
“My Northlands Primary choir members were eager for the opportunity.
“The Skyport performance felt a little different than our usual performances, probably because we were aware that there were judges critiquing everything we did.
“I instructed them to treat it like a regular performance because they were already a well-disciplined group of students who visibly enjoyed singing, and I wanted everything to come across as natural and authentic.
“I recall the audience playing a huge role in keeping the choir relaxed because it was clear in their response that they were enjoying our performance.”
Having dedicated more than two decades to building the Northlands Primary choir’s harmonious culture, Mr Henry noted the unique challenges of maintaining excellence despite regular turnover.
“The biggest challenge has consistently been losing well-trained singers to the inevitable transition into middle school,” he said.
“However, because of the strong culture there now, the choir has been able to maintain their sound over the years despite the changes in choir members.”
Mr Henry said that Northlands Primary used the $5,000 grand prize to purchase new musical instruments for the school’s music programme.
“When I was informed that Northlands won, I was elated and couldn’t wait to tell the choir,” Mr Henry said.
“When we announced it in assembly, the whole school screamed in excitement. We used our $5,000 grand prize to purchase new musical instruments that desperately needed replacing.
“We still have more items to purchase for our music department, however, so we are excited to be participating again this year and hope to pull off another victory in the Primary category.”
Mr Henry, whose choir competes on Wednesday at 11.30 am, expressed gratitude to the organisers for supporting the school choirs and fostering Christmas cheer.
“I would like to thank Skyport for investing in our Bermuda schools by offering incentives for more schools to put together top-class performances for the cause of spreading Christmas cheer,” he added. “I’m looking forward to a dynamic week!”
The schools will compete for the titles of Best Primary School Choir and Best Secondary School Choir, each earning $5,000 for their music programmes.
The runners-up in each category will receive $2,000 each. There will also be a People’s Choice Award, featuring online and in-person voting, with the winner receiving $1,200.
Performances will be judged by a panel of three experts, led by chief judge Dale Butler, who will evaluate choirs based on their harmonic skill, creativity, professionalism, and Christmas spirit.
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