Starting this school year, Mrs. Elliott has been named the new Choir, Chamber, and Musical Director here at Sandburg. She has taught at two other schools before this, serving in the roles of directing choir and/or musical.
Mrs. Elliot states, “I love being a choir teacher, and I am always looking for opportunities to work on myself and my musicianship and my music skills. And transitioning to Sandburg just gives me more of an opportunity to do those things.”
The choir program has welcomed her with open arms and has helped to make this transition as smooth as possible. A junior in Bel Canto, Cantabile, and Chorale, Maggie Moran explains, “I first met Mrs. Elliott on freshman first day. I was volunteering for the theater and art club booths. She came up to my group, introduced herself, and asked a bunch of questions about the program and what we liked best about it. She’s extremely friendly and supportive of her students. She’s always very approachable and you can always have a great conversation with her! I can confidently say she’s one of my favorite teachers, and I’m looking forward to what the program will become with her.”
A Junior in Bel Canto Olivia Piwowarczyk states, “I literally walked into that room full of ducks and I was in awe, and I knew for a fact you were gonna connect so easily because she has very similar personalities and interests as me, and I just know I was going to connect with her very quickly.”
Mrs. Elliott has been starting each class with a bell ringer, where students are learning how to read music and different time signatures. Mrs. Elliott says, “You’re learning how to sing, what your voice is doing, why your voice is doing it, but you’re also learning music theory and [how] to count and how to be independent musicians and not just like passively listen and consume music. You’re actually actively participating in what is creating music.”
Students are learning new things and how to apply them to singing every day. Faith Pierson, who is a sophomore in Bel Canto and Concert Choir, states, “I am excited to be learning more about music theory because I think it can be super beneficial when reading music if any of us want to keep learning music in the future.”
With a new director comes new ways of running concerts and shows. Piwowarczyk states, “I’m very interested in how she wants to plan out now, especially our May show, because our May show is very big normally.”
Pierson adds, “I am looking forward to our winter concerts and the songs Mrs. Elliot chooses for us to sing.”
Tradition has been a part of the choir department for a long time and students value the sense of comfort it brings. Moran says, “My favorite choir tradition has always been cookie Fridays. I’ve already introduced Mrs. Elliott to it and taken up the role of cookie captain in Chorale, Bel Canto and Cantabile!”
Pierson states, “ I hope she keeps the tradition of the senior send-off at our May show because I’ve always looked forward to that when I get to my senior year. I also think it’s really important to recognize the seniors that have put in all of their time and dedication throughout the years into this program.”
Piwowarczyk adds, “I love cookie Fridays. It literally makes me so much happier. And I also hope we have some jobs sometimes, like a president or something like that.”
After the choir’s first performance with her on October 21st, students had to get ready to say goodbye – temporarily. Mrs. Elliott will be going on maternity leave in November and will return in either February or March. The choirs will get used to their substitute teacher during this time. He will direct the Holiday concert in December, as well as possibly the concert in February.
Pierson says, “I could also tell that [Mrs. Elliott] really loved her job and loved working with the students.” Mrs. Elliott puts a lot of time and effort into her plans and makes sure that students know what they are doing. Her compassion was already shining during her short time with the groups, and students are going to miss her.
Mrs. Elliot does plan to continue to stay at Sandburg long-term and to grow both the choir and musical departments as much as she can. Mrs. Elliot states, “[At] my other two places that I have worked at, I have been in for five years and four years, so I would like to be at a place a little longer than that. Just, you know, career-wise.”
Throughout the changes that are happening in the music department this year, the Choirs are confident and prepared. Having a choir director who is not only teaching them to sing but to also know what they are singing will help them sharpen their skills and be ready for their next musical goals and challenges.
