The Madrigals, the school’s most advanced and selective choir, stepped onto the Southern California Vocal Association (SCVA) Festival stage on March 12, 2026. In preparation, the ensemble spent months refining its repertoire and strengthening both rhythmic and melodic sight-reading skills. This year’s festival brought together eight choirs from different schools, each performing two to three pieces before a panel of adjudicators. Judges evaluated groups based on tone, intonation, musicality, diction, accuracy, balance, blend, and presentation.
Following their performance, the Madrigals were escorted to a separate room for the sight-reading portion. There, a new panel of judges presented them with four-part pieces they had never seen before. Each choir completed two sight-reading assessments: one rhythmic and one melodic. The choir received two minutes to study the music silently before performing it for an additional score. These tests are designed to challenge singers to interpret unfamiliar music on the spot, demonstrating their musicianship and teamwork even under pressure.
Sight-reading, often one of the most challenging aspects of the festival, became a highlight of the Madrigals’ performance. Madrigal singer Ashton Jo ’30 reflected on the group’s focus.
“Often, when we practice sight reading, one or two people clap off beat or sing off pitch,” Jo said. “However, this time the entire choir maintained strong focus, which I believe played a major role in our superior sight‑reading score.”
He said that their prepared repertoire felt equally strong.
“As for the actual songs, I feel like the choir was ready, as we have practiced our pieces many times before,” Jo said. “[Paul Keilbach] helped conduct us on our cues well, and we made no silly mistakes.”
In addition, for many students, the festival was momentous not just for the scores, but for the sense of community the experience fostered.
“The SCVA Festival was definitely a memorable choir experience,” Kaylee Suh ’29 said. “I loved how supportive each choir was of one another. Seeing a big community of talented singers come together and empower each other was beautiful and showed how well music can connect people, even if they had never met.”
The ensemble excelled and earned a “superior” rating. This distinction is the highest honor awarded at the festival.
“I’m very proud of how my choir did,” Suh said. “We were registered in the high school level (9–12), even though our choir only contains eighth and ninth graders, which [puts] us at a major disadvantage in terms of experience. Despite this, our choir managed to get double superior (the A+ of SCVA!).”
Performing Arts Teacher and Vocal Music Department Head Paul Keilbach emphasized the value of learning from others.
“The most rewarding part was the opportunity to hear choirs from other schools,” Keilbach said. “Most of our singers in the choir haven’t gotten to hear many other choirs perform. I think it’s valuable for them to hear other high school-level choirs from some schools in the region. The schools that sang before the Madrigals did so well, and it inspired the Madrigals to really do their best work.”
With their SCVA performance marking a significant milestone, the Madrigals now look ahead to the upcoming Anaheim WorldStrides Festival in April, where they will compete against some of the region’s strongest choirs.
