The Paw Print

By: Maya Agrawal

Every January, Illinois music conductors attend the Illinois Music Education Conference (IMEC) in Peoria, Illinois. The conference features professional development, clinics, and performances from college choirs. However, every year, five Illinois high school choirs are selected to perform by the Illinois Music Education Association. This year, Walter Payton College Preparatory’s very own Concert Choir was selected.

CPS high schools are rarely selected, with Lincoln Park High School most recently performing in 2015. This year, it was Payton’s turn to represent CPS Arts as a whole. Payton’s Concert Choir performed on January 25, 2024 for 30 minutes. With six songs memorized and perfected over the first semester, the Concert Choir did not disappoint.

The rehearsal process was highly rigorous, as the Concert Choir took the entire first semester to understand every detail of their selected pieces. Throughout the semester, visitors who specialize in music came to speak to and practice with the choir such as Dr. Eric Esparza, Dr. Christopher Owen, Dr. Liza Calisesi, among others. Mrs. Martinez, the Concert Choir teacher and conductor used a great deal of energy to write notes, contact visitors, and work with her students to ensure a perfect concert. She said, “I have so many feelings about the preparation process – but the most prominent is that it was exhilarating. It’s a THRILL to work with such passionate students, incorporate their ideas, start from silence, and end with such a joyful noise.  I felt constant inspiration, was so impressed with their pace of learning, with their commitment to musicality, with their freedom of expression… I am often quite emotional when I think back on the process. The process was the best part.”

Devin O’Raork ‘24 said “I think we spent so long preparing the pieces so I felt very solid with them. To be honest, we worked on them so much that it became autopilot. But, actually being in Peoria reignited the passionate and warm feelings behind singing with the group.”

After the long preparation period, students were excited and nervous to perform at IMEC. Aleksia LeTien ‘25 said that “going into the performance, I was very nervous because we were representing the school and CPS as a whole. However, I thought this was an amazing opportunity to sing for a new audience, and share our music with an audience who is just as passionate about music as we are. I even felt like my bond with the people in choir got so much stronger after the trip.”

An anonymous student from the choir “hoped people saw the passion and love for choir that we brought with us to Peoria. Even if it was three hours away from our school, together as one we were still home.”

By the end of the process, Mrs. Martinez found that “the sense of accomplishment Concert Choir felt as we built, curated, rehearsed, and eventually performed a fun, personal, and meaningful set of repertoire has been imprinted into our DNA! …After 20 years of teaching, I have been changed through this preparation process as the students continually rose to every challenge put forth.  They refueled my teaching and have helped shape my vision for the next several years of Choir at Payton.”

In the end, Walter Payton’s Concert Choir had the honor of representing CPS in Illinois as a whole. They put their best foot forward and truly embraced the mission of bringing people together through music. Some final words from the mastermind herself, Mrs. Martinez, is that “Even if one thinks they’re not a singer, there is a place for you in the choral program, with many ways to feel successful, become part of a strong high-school community, make lifelong friends, and most importantly, be in a safe space to exhale the stresses of the day in healing, artistic ways.  Everyone is an artist, everyone can sing in a group, and everyone can find a home in a choral classroom.”