SingStrong has so many ties to the local music education scene in northern Virginia. All of the weekend performances and workshops are held in South Lakes High School in Reston, VA. They have been very generous to allow the festival to take over the many rooms in their art wing for practice rooms, coaching spaces, and some larger rooms where workshops and large group rehearsals can take place.
South Lakes High School
The main stage is the auditorium where the SingStrong team transforms the stage into an amazing place to perform a cappella music. It is a lot for both the eyes and ears to take in from the multicolor stage lights, and the professional sound setup. The High School Competition on Saturday afternoon gives the many high school students a chance to use this professional setup. They perform for their family and friends on the big stage as the featured performance at this time.
They receive feedback from judges, and the audience gets to weigh in with their votes for their favorite group. For this competition, I listen from backstage. These groups that get coaching over the weekend, really put their newly gained knowledge to the test sometimes with some great results! Directly after their performances, I have them for a few minutes to get a group photo backstage. They are so relieved after finishing their set, and they are excited about how well they performed.
All these photos are a really nice memento from a weekend that they have dedicated to improving their singing and stage presence. For a lot of the groups, some members cannot make the trip due to other commitments. I think they have missed out on a unique experience in their music education. Nothing brings a group together like going through a competition together. I hope they take the photos, and enjoy looking back at this time when group singing was such a big part of their lives.
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