The students of Dr. Edward L. W h i g h a m Elementary School in Cutler Bay got in the spirit of the season with holiday performances at the school as well as outside locations.
There are 52 students in grades 3-5 in the Whigham Chorus, which is under the direction of music teacher Katie Burdick. The students must audition for membership and they put in hours weekly rehearsing after school.
“The students have worked diligently this year to prepare appropriate music for the different venues and they have proven to be vocally and instrumentally competent in each performance,” Burdick said. “Their musicianship propels their performances.”
Among their appearances, they visited Jackson Memorial Perdue Medical Center on Wednesday, Dec, 17, singing for the residents. Immediately after that they traveled to Southland Mall where they entertained shoppers with their annual holiday concert titled “Holiday Wonderland. That night they performed for the PTA, student body and parents in the school’s cafetorium.
The selections included traditional American and Spanish holiday selections and songs about Hanukkah and Kwanza. They played rhythm instruments and recorders.
“Choreography was incorporated into several selections,” Burdick said. “They expressed the lyrics by using sign language with the final selection, Silent Night, which they sang in English and in Spanish.”
Also on campus, the students of Anthony Garcia’s third grade homeroom played Jolly Old St. Nicholas and We Wish You A Merry Christmas on instruments called Boomwhackers. Teacher Dionne DeSilva’s fourth grade homeroom students played Orff instruments on Season of Bells. Four of the students from Luis Saenz Jr.’s third grade homeroom choreographed a hip hop dance to Destiny’s Child’s 8 Days of Christmas and performed under black lights to delight the audience.
