Sophomore Ruby Dibble, junior Mackenzie Jones and senior Taylor Woodruff stood in line at the 2011 District choir competition Oct. 2, waiting to perform.  Along with some of the 300 other singers, these three girls were included in the 2011 District choir.  

Right before competitions like these, Dibble feels nervous, but confident.

‘These nerves keep me on edge so I don’t space out and lose my place,’ Dibble said.  ‘I love the adrenaline kick and expressing the meaning of a song.’

In order to keep this stress at a healthful level, Dibble spends about a month preparing for contests.  During this preparation, Dibble encountered several hardships.

‘I had a hard time believing in myself and I was really afraid of forgetting my words,’ Dibble said.

Dibble turns to her voice teachers, including STA music teacher Michelle McIntire, for help. 

“[McIntire] was my previous voice teacher and knows my voice really well,” Dibble said.

 Woodruff, on the other hand, initially entered into the competition with a much more relaxed state of mind.  However, after observing the competition, she became more focused. 

“I came into Districts with a laid-back attitude but I became much more serious once I learned there were about 130 other girls auditioning for my part and the choir only needed 30,” Woodruff said. 

Singing in front of larger, anonymous crowds also helps Woodruff to focus. 

‘Small groups of people feel awkward, especially if they are sitting close to me,’ Woodruff said.

Although these tactics help, Woodruff still feels nervous right before a competition.

‘Before I sing, depending on who it is for, I can feel my heart start to beat faster and sometimes my legs even shake,’ Woodruff said. 

Jones must also ignore distractions, as she has many events to focus her energy toward, including a sight reading (performing a song without preparation) performance.  This was Jones’ least favorite part about competing at Districts.

‘I think sight reading was a little more nerve wracking because you can’t truly and totally prepare for that,’ Jones said.

However, after being included in the District choir, Jones felt surprised.  She tried her best during the competition, not expecting to receive the honor.  Now, she looks forward to her participation in the State choir.

‘I’m really excited to be able to sing with a bunch of people from around the state,’ Jones said.