Despite pandemic, Annapolis Valley choir finishes season on high note

The Annapolis Valley Honour Choir hosted its final performance of the year Saturday via virtual concert on Facebook Live.

The 150-student choir, made up of three ensembles, ranges from Grade 3 to Grade 12. Each person recorded their part and the end result is the individual videos stitched together.

"I am shocked and surprised at how well it turned out," said Heather Fraser, the choir's artistic director.

In-person choir practice stopped because of COVID-19. When Fraser watched the final edit of the concert for the first time, she cried.

"It was pretty moving, I have to say, after so many months of not being able to do that," she said.

Fraser said the concert — This Finely Woven Earth — took time and hard work, but she said it's been a "really exciting" project.

"I would conduct the piece of music, and video myself conducting, and then I sent it to our accompanist and they recorded a track of the piano part of my conducting.

"And then we put that together and sent it all to the kids and the kids watched that video and listened to it in their earbuds and sang their own part along with that recording."

The virtual concert came out of a desire to finish the season with a positive event, Fraser said.

It's was also a fundraiser for the choir. Patrons could purchase a "non-ticket" to the virtual event by supporting the choir through its CanadaHelps page.

"Arts organizations are struggling now and our future looks kind of uncertain the near term, we're looking for ways to raise money. And because we had to cancel our spring concert, we lost revenue," she said.

Fraser said the choir didn't know some of the pieces that well. Some members had to learn their parts on their own.

"I was really proud of them for going through the process," she said. "It's a very strange feeling to try to be singing your part without the reference of the people around you and your vocal support."