The men and women’s chorus ensembles made the long trek to New York City from Raleigh on March 16 for a trip with a detailed itinerary. From an invitation to sing at Carnegie Hall, to viewing a play on Broadway, all the way to visiting the 9/11 memorial, the choir had great expectations for all of the adventures in store.

Carnegie Hall opened in April 1891, and has since been a well-known venue.  Numerous performers have graced the stage, and on March 18, the Wakefield choir was among the many who have done so.  

“Carnegie Hall is one of the most well known places in the entire United States,” said senior, President of the choir, Morgan Forbis. “There are so many people that sing operas there, so many great performers, and it’s just crazy to think that I’m going to be on the same stage as all of those other famous people. It will be like our little moment in fame.”

The large opportunity arose when choir director John-Philip Mullinax received an invitation from the Choirs of America organization.

“We got invited by Choirs of America to go perform in Carnegie Hall,” said Mullinax. “What I like about this particular organization is that sometimes other groups have you sing a big work that you couldn’t do at school because you don’t have the manpower to perform it. I like that at this event you learn choir autotos: things that you could do at school.”

This will be Mullinax’s first time participating in a choir event with Choirs of America, and he is excited to see how it differs from his previous experiences.

“Another thing I like about this opportunity is that they have 3 mass choirs,” said Mullinax. “Each mass choir has 250 people in it. We’re in choir number one, Broughton is in choir number two, and then there’s a third choir. Each one of those choirs sing three pieces, and then everybody learns one brand new piece that was composed specifically for the event.”

There will be a total of 11 schools from 7 different states participating in the event. Wakefield will bring 28 of its chorus members.

“We get to sing one piece with Broughton,” said Mullinax. “The way this works is that if you are bringing 45 people to this event, then you can sing on stage by yourself for three minutes. We don’t have 45 going, and Broughton doesn’t have 45 going either, they only have 40.  Broughton’s director suggested to get together, so we did and rehearsed one piece to perform. We will be singing a piece called Prelude to Peace by Z. Randall Stroope on the stage for three minutes with Broughton.”

The performance at Carnegie Hall is just one of the various events that the choir will get to experience in the city.  A full lineup of activities follow behind the event at Carnegie Hall on March 18.

“We will get there and have rehearsal all day on Thursday and Friday, and we’re singing at Carnegie Hall on Friday,” said senior Michaela Rankin. “Saturday we’re going to the Metropolitan Opera and we are seeing The Elixir of Love, and then we’re seeing the Lion King on Broadway. On Sunday we’re singing America the Beautiful at Ground-Zero.”

With so much to do, each member of the choir has something that they are most looking forward to, each for different reasons.

“I just think that this trip is definitely going to be an experience that we’re all going to remember for the rest of our lives,” said junior Natalie Collier. “I hope that when we go, we get impacted by the music, but also that we’re able to impact other people, which is why I’m looking forward to the 9/11 memorial.”

This is the first trip outside of North Carolina that the choir is going on together. Members are excited to make new memories with each other while visiting the “Big Apple.”

“I’m mostly looking forward to just being with my chorus family,” said Forbis. “I don’t think of them as friends, I think of them as my family. I’m excited about being with them in a new environment, experiencing new experiences, and sharing that moment with them on stage.”

The choir will end their trip on March 20, when they plan to depart from New York.  All in all, they are anticipating the trip and many new memories that they will make together as a group.

“We are excited to get to go and do something like this because it is such a unique experience,” said Mullinax.  “It’s something that they will remember for the rest of their lives. They’ll be talking to their grandchildren about how they got to sing at Carnegie Hall because it’s such an iconic place to perform.”