Hempfield students perform virtual chorus, art shows

Students at Harrold Middle School in Hempfield weren’t going to let the coronavirus pandemic cancel their chorus concert.

The show much go on, as they say.

But rather than packing into an auditorium and risking exposure to parents, staff and students, chorus teacher Dan Lauritzen had students record themselves singing their individual parts and then compiled them into one video.

“Once we Pennsylvania teachers found out from Gov. (Tom) Wolf that school was out for the year, I knew I wanted to create a virtual choir for my kids,” Lauritzen said. “I have been experimenting for a year with some video-editing software I bought, so I thought that it was a perfect time to go for a very big project.”

Wolf announced in April that schools would close for the rest of the academic year.

Sixth grade students sang “Freedom Song” by Johannes Brahms. Seventh and eighth grade students sang “High Hopes,” originally by Panic! At The Disco.

At the beginning of both videos, the faces of students come onto the screen individually. The songs start with a clap.

Lauritzen got inspiration for the online concert from composer Eric Whitacre who has done virtual choirs since 2009 and the Toronto Orchestra who virtually performed “Appalachian Spring” in March, he said. To end the year without a concert, Lauritzen said, was not an option.

“My spring concert for the last 23 years is always a great way to wrap up the year in that it demonstrates how far the kids have come musically and how much they have learned all year,” Lauritzen said. “To end the year without it would be like building a house, but never moving in.”

Both videos have received over 1,000 views on YouTube.

Other Hempfield students also used virtual means to display their artwork.

One project depicts how high school students, and others in the world, are impacted by the coronavirus. Several pieces show people wearing masks while another shows a rope tied around the planet, with the virus pulling on the ends.

“I depicted a message about covid-19 by drawing a rope around the earth to show how the virus is hurting us and our economy. … I chose this message because so many people around the world are experiencing this separation and hurt,” the student wrote. “This virus has changed the way we will live forever.”

High school students were also able to complete the annual art exhibition by presenting it virtually. Every year, students set up their projects at the Westmoreland Museum of Art in Greensburg. Around 300 pieces of art were presented this year by several artists.