Nine school choirs from across Upper Columbia Conference recently attended the every-other-year choral clinic held at Upper Columbia Academy and hosted by UCA’s choral director Curtis Anderson and his choral students. They began rehearsing right after lunch on Thursday and culminated the clinic with a concert Saturday evening.
Before coming to the clinic, each of the school choirs rehearsed the same pieces. Anderson had lined up a wide variety of music, including a brand new John Rutter piece called “Distant Land.” While the music they performed included some secular pieces, the focus was on religious music that smaller choirs could perform for their local churches.
On Friday morning, the group divided up by section for workshops. Each addressed vocal and breathing techniques, vocal placement, posture and more.
Because of the length of the clinic, attendees were also able to enjoy special worships, games, and an introduction to life on a boarding academy campus.
UCA hosts a music clinic every year, alternating band and choral.
Just a few days after the choral clinic, fourteen schools from across Upper Columbia Conference sent students to UCA’s second gymnastics clinic. Based on last year’s positive response, Coach John Soulé expected about 175 visitors and was amazed when 309 showed up! Workshop leaders, the cafeteria, and other campus personnel simply shifted into a higher gear and the day went very smoothly.
The day began with a general warm-up session, emphasizing the importance that warming up plays in preventing injuries. The large group then divided up into five smaller groups and rotated through workshop sessions. This way, every participant was able to attend all five of the workshops. The workshops were: beginning gymnastics, balancing, acro, advanced tumbling, and juggling. Members of UCA’s gymnastic team assisted in each of the workshops by coaching, spotting, and cheering the younger students on.
A high point of the day was an exciting show put on by UCA’s 42-member gymnastic team. This was the same show the team has provided this year at half time for both Spokane Community College and Whitworth College in Spokane. •
Upper Columbia Academy gymnastics team member Tori Shelton assists two elementary school students during the one-day gymnastics clinic.
