The annual choir competition Solo and Ensemble took place on Feb. 23 at the Daniel Ninth Grade Campus. Aledo had 33 soloists and two ensembles show up to try to advance to State. Out of those people, 22 soloists and both ensembles will be going to Austin on May 31 to compete at state.

“Whether you advance or not, it’s really good to go so you can get the experience,” choir president Danielle Harrington said.

Those advancing are Ellie Conlan, Zoe Cooley, Ashlea McIntire, Ryan Mills, Leigha Mitchell, Caroline Erb, Sandi Hackney, Charlotte Lane, David Lasater, Madison Wenszell, Breanna Ward, Cali Sylvis, Heidi Haw, Tala Jennings, London Kasper, Jocelyn McBrayer, Maddie McFarland, Ingrid Reyes, Laine Elston, Camille Krieger, Madison O’Brien and Danielle Harrington. Sandi Hackey, Camille Krieger, Madison O’Brien and Danielle Harrington made up the first ensemble advancing and the other included Tala Jennings, Jocelyn McBrayer and London Kasper.

“Going to state as a freshman is going to be a really cool experience,” Ellie Conlan said. “Hopefully I will learn a lot that will help me with future competitions.”

The songs that can be performed are rated based on difficulty on a one to five scale, with one being the best and five being the worst. In order to advance, the singer must be performing a class one song and must get a one on that solo or ensemble, if both are achieved then that singer goes to state and repeats the process.

“[Those who worked Saturday] should be very proud of themselves,” director Karen Paul said. “I received many compliments from other directors and judges on how professional [those working] were and how helpful [they] were.”

Since the contest was held at DNGC, Aledo choir students were required to work the event. To ‘de-stress’ after a day full of running across the school to keep things running smoothly, Mrs. Paul decided to throw a ‘watch party’ for the students. At 6 p.m. the night of the competition, students showed up to watch the Lone Star Show Choir Invitational and eat the half ton of snacks and pizza brought for the event. Since the Show Choir Invitational was not continuous, during the breaks, the choir held karaoke competitions.

“It was a really fun way to blow off steam and just have fun after a day of working,” freshman Raegan Huffman said.