| To cultivate, promote and engage in the arts |
Unfortunately, due to the current pandemic, all RFAS projects have been paused for spring 2021. Thank you for your past support of our Choral Celebration, Literary Contest, and Artists Exhibition. We look forward to presenting these projects again in Spring 2022. New information and details will be posted on our web site early fall 2021.
Virtual Voices Please enjoy the music these elementary schools made as they prepared for the 2020 Choral Celebration. Baucom Elementary sings: "Circle of Our Song" and "On Silver Tipped Wings". Mrs. Michelle Seaboch is their Music Teacher. Their Choral Celebration Clinician is Jane Bruer. Abbotts Creek Elementary students have fun warming up before visit from Clinician, Bob Unger in preparation for their rehearsal with their Director, Susan Reynolds. Click on their photo below to listen.
Fuquay-Varina Elementary Click on their logo below to hear the children perform their Choral Celebration pieces for Clinician Jane Bruer: ”The Artist Teaches Us All” by Mark Patterson, and “Cantamos” (We Sing) by James Desjardins. The children are directed by Laura Martin.
Click on the image below to listen to the Douglas Elementary Magnet School students rehearse "The Beautiful Rain". Susan Zelasky, Director with Accompanist, Marty Long.
| Choral Celebration The Choral Celebration originally scheduled for March 17 and 18 will not be held this year. Raleigh Fine Arts Society greatly appreciates the hard work of all involved in this annual celebration, especially that of the students and their teachers. We look forward to hearing all their beautiful voices next year. An especially poignant song at this time is "I Ask for One Day". Listen to the Parkside students rehearse it in preparation for their performance at Meymandi Concert Hall. This page contains additional recordings of some of this year's participating schools rehearsing their performance songs. Listen and enjoy! In 1999 The Raleigh Fine Arts Society began a new tradition: an annual Choral Celebration, a project offering choral groups in grades 4 through 5 in Wake County Schools a chance to share their music as well as enjoy the successes of other elementary school choruses. Their choral directors receive comments from a qualified adjudicator. The first performances were held at Martin Middle School and moved in 2001 to Meymandi Concert Hall. Since its inception, the Choral Celebration has received much greater visibility within Wake County and achieved record attendance of over 3,000 people. In 2020 sixteen elementary choral groups will participate with each school performing two songs. Students from Raleigh, Cary, Apex, Fuquay, North Raleigh, Wake Forest, and Morrisville will participate reflecting the tremendous growth of the Choral Celebration within Wake County. The opportunity to perform in the state-of the-art Meymandi Concert Hall, home of the NC Symphony is a once in a life time experience for some students. 2020 Participating Elementary Schools North Raleigh Christian, Baucom, Wake Forest, Abbotts Creek, Parkside, Oakview, Conn, York, North Forest Pines, Fuquay-Varina, Douglas, Lacy, Oak Grove, Brier Creek, Turner Creek, Our Lady of Lourdes, and North Raleigh Christian
Oak Grove Elementary students perform “Stars”, one of the traditional massed songs from the Choral Celebration.
Parkside Elementary students rehearsing a performance piece with their teacher, Kim Demery, and Clinician Robert Unger. Ms. Demery highlights the benefits all children and schools experience through their participation in this annual celebration of elementary school choral groups.
Robert Unger, Clinician, discusses his role with participating schools as well as the uniqueness of the program and the opportunities it provides choral groups in Wake County. |
