By Taylor Conley

   On Jan. 21, Tempe Prep’s Cantamus choir attended the Solo and Ensemble Regionals as an ensemble at Mountain Pointe High School. Receiving an “Excellent” rating of 87 out of 100 from the festival’s adjudicators, the group was satisfied with its performance. The choir performed John Rutter’s “For the beauty of the earth,” which they have been working on since the beginning of the year. “We had to iron out all the flaws,” said junior Grace Kolinchak. After the performance, Cantamus enjoyed a group lunch at IHOP. When asked about his favorite part of directing Cantamus, Dr. Stephen Mitton, the choir director, said, “The best part of directing the choir is the students! I love interacting with them, having fun, and hearing them make steady improvements in their singing ability as a group.” 

   This year, Cantamus has faced difficulties in recruiting more singers. After many members graduated last year, the group of 14 is short of the required number of people to compete at a festival at Disneyland in Anaheim, California. Groups of students from the choir have visited high school classes in an attempt to boost membership and junior Reagan Clary said, “If we have enough people, say 22, we can get our trip to Disneyland.” Members of Cantamus welcome people interested in joining; they meet every Tuesday and Thursday at 7:00 a.m. in the Evdokimo Auditorium.

   Despite challenges in recruitment, Dr. Mitton is looking forward to the spring program: “I have selected some really exciting repertoire that I hope brings some great energy onto our campus!”