UGM Student Choir scooped two awards at the Taipei International Choral Competition (TICC) held on July 22-25. They won the 1st Place Gold Award for the Virtual Choir category and Silver Award for Contemporary Music. The team performed Gayatri by Bagus S. Utomo for the Virtual Choir category and Stetit Angelus by Rihards Dubra and Hentakan Jiwa by Ken Steven for the Contemporary Music category.
“We all are delighted and proud of the achievements. Our enthusiasm to partake in the competition and win remained high despite the pandemic situation,” said Chair of UGM Student Choir Jesika Purba on Monday (26/7).
Jesika revealed that the team faced a few challenges during in-person rehearsals due to the pandemic. She had to ensure all team members, comprising 40 singers and one conductor, were fit and healthy and took a COVID-19 test before attending the practice. The team also practiced online during the contest preparation.
“The difficulty was in the rehearsal. Singing in a choir (meaning involving many people) while wearing a mask is quite hard. We wouldn’t practice offline without taking the COVID-19 test first,” she said.
Author: Aji
Photo:
- The announcement of TICC 2021
- In-person practice (all members got tested before attending)