The three-day summer intensive choral workshop at Southwestern Michigan College (SMC) culminated in a six-song performance, “Hope, Light, and Love.”

The concert, conducted by Stacey Gibbs, was held in the theatre of the Dale A. Lyons Building on SMC’s Dowagiac campus on July 19. The evening featured selections including “Hush,” “Down in the River,” and “Dance!” The arrangements were made by Gibbs in consultation with David Carew, who recently returned from Paris.

“You discuss different degrees of difficulty,” Gibbs said, “and use that outline and your expertise to find songs that are going to be engaging that they can feel successful about, yet still difficult enough to not feel bored.”

“The key to pulling this together so quickly is them having the scores for a while, learning it. The first day they did a lot of sectionals. When I came in yesterday, I could go right to work shaping and making music. Music has to have passion. It’s dead without it,” Gibbs said.

The goal of Gibbs’ work with the students is to give them the opportunity to perform alongside professional musicians and help them develop their confidence and stage presence.

“This gives younger singers an opportunity to sing with musicians a little bit more advanced in their development than they are, which does nothing but add to personal growth. They have worked so hard. Right now, I’m just digging into the detail of the music,” he said.

The SMC Choral Workshop is an annual event that provides students with the opportunity to participate in collaborative performances and explore their potential as musicians. The program is designed to inspire students and help them reach their full potential.