Elginburg PS choir to sing at 70th Annual Battle of the Atlantic Ceremony

Apr 30, 2015

The 33 young singers that comprise the Elginburg Public School Choir are no strangers to guest performances and over the years they have been invited to sing at numerous community happenings. The group has performed many times at the Fairmount Home and last year they were the special guests at Miss Emily Fennell's CD Release party and concert, which took place at the Ambassador Hotel in Kingston.

Recently the choir was invited to perform at the 70th Annual Battle of the Atlantic Ceremony, which will take place on Sunday, May 3 beginning at 11 a.m. at Navy Memorial Park in Kingston. The Battle of the Atlantic Service has been commemorated annually every year since the end of World War 2 in 1945 and choir director Jennifer Guild said the invitation came as “an incredible honour”. Guild, who teaches grade three at the school and founded the choir, said the group will be performing a number of commemorative songs, including Remembrance Day by Bryan Adams, Highway of Heroes by the Trews, I Will Remember You by Sarah McLachlan, One Tin Soldier and Blowing in The Wind. The choir, which sings primarily in unison with touches of added harmonies, will be joined on stage by a number of musicians, including Annette McCaffrey who teaches music at Elginburg, along with Greg Ross, Steve Stenman and Scott Martin.

The choir is made up of students from grades 3 through 8. It has been in existence for six years and continues to grow year after year. The students practice regularly at lunch and recess and in gearing up for this special performance they have also been practicing after school.

I visited the school on April 23 after the choir had just returned from a music festival at Prince Charles Public School in Napanee, where they had been invited to perform, and I had a chance to watch them in rehearsal. One could not help but be moved by their dedication and the joy that they take in performing together. I spoke with a few members of the group, who spoke of their love of singing and the opportunity it brings them to visit numerous places and people in and around the community.

Guild is a dedicated and enthusiastic leader who strongly believes that the choir gives the students a chance to express themselves in a different and special way. “I chose very inspirational songs, which give the singers a chance to sing their hearts out and the opportunity to just let everything else go. When they are singing they are really in the moment and they really seem to enjoy the music that they are making together as a group.”

The singers were wearing their brand new choir shirts and Guild said that she is trying to instill in them the understanding that the upcoming concert is “a big opportunity and also an important part of Canadian history.” Their participation in the Kingston ceremony will no doubt make it a memorable one.