Final Service

The Sunday service was a real treat for all. I was taken aback by just how well the mens voices complemented the girls voices. The Mozart was a particular highlight. Congratulations to Sharon for her superb solo.

Many thanks to all of the girls and their families for making Sunday run so smoothly!

Goodbye from Pam Pellegrini

"It was delightful to get to know you girls, and hearing their golden voices wafting through the halls made me smile each day as I dealt with the task at hand. Safe travels home to everyone, and I'll see many of you next year! Have a wonderful summer, and all the best as you embark on the new school year in the fall"
xoxo Mrs. Pellegrini

Skits performance

Throughout the week the girls were given time to work on a Broadway skit which was to be performed after the formal meal on Saturday night. The girls were given 15 minutes to run upstairs and get dressed into their parts. There were 3 groups performing. Each group represented one of the school houses. We viewed 3 spectacular performances: House 7th Heaven performed "We Go Together" from Grease, House The Genuflectors performed "SOS" from Mamma Mia, and House The Fighting Nun performed Honey Honey. After the performances when the staff did the nightly announcements, we broke into our Staff skit, much to the surprise and delight of the girls. Roars of laughter were heard all around as we pranced around the floor!

Saturday Night Formal Dinner

As our final meal together chef Heidi whipped up a wonderful dinner. The dining room was decorated beautifully as we ate in candlelight. Following dessert the dining room was converted into a theater in preparation for the skits...

Saturday Night Awards

On Saturday night we host the Girls course awards during the pre-dinner recepetion in the library. All of our girls have been superb this year and so each was awarded with a certificate specific to their achievements or characteristics.

NYC Street Fair

Today after rehearsal at the Saint Thomas Church we treated the girls to an hour's shopping at a local NYC Street Market Fair located on Braodway. I witnessed the girls bartering, a skill which came surprisingly naturally to many of them, and as a result they came back with some bargains.

Greetings from one of our new girls Catherine B

Hi, and greetings from St. Thomas in NYC! My name is catherine and this is my first year at St. Thomas. I am having such a great time but am also missing home a bit as this is my first time away. My parents came to watch both weekday Evensong services, and it was so great seeing their faces. Although I am excited to return home and seeing my family, I will definitely miss being with my other family here in NYC. I can;t wait to return to th Girl Chorister Course in 2010! xoxo Catherine

Excursion on "The beast"!

Friday morning is set aside for the course excursion. This year we went on "The Beast" speedboat boarding at Pier 83 in Chelsea, which took us on a cruise downtown to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty.As soon as the boat was in motion music started blasting out form the speakers. We were encouraged to sing along and dance to songs like The Village People's YMCA! The captain did his best to turn hard so that all passengers would get soaked, and if we weren't soaked enough then his co-worker resorted to spraying us with a hose, a water pistol and even water balloons!

The Beast

Today we went on the Beast which is an awesome sight seeing roller coaster boat ride. All of us got super wet while we were on the boat, but the adult leaders were drenched! We then came home to some amazing Hedi food which was amazing as always. I think that all of us had alot of fun today, and i can hardly wait for the shopping expedition tomorrow!
Olive

Our evensong went well last night even though we had our doubts. It was cool to be the first choir to sing the commissioned piece. This morning we got to go on a boat ride on the Hudson. It was called "The Beast!" It went really fast and all the adults along with some of us got soaked. Even though we got wet we were able to get really close to the Statue of Liberty and get some good snapshots. Today's lunch was amazing! We had Indian food of course made by the amazing Heidi. We're having 3 rehearsals today along with normal classes so it's definitely a full day. But I'm extremely excited for tomorrow where we get to go shopping, have a formal dinner, and perform our skits.

-Sharon Mays

Heidi's Food and Cooking

Each girl enjoys parts of the course, some more than others. I'm sure each girl would agree that Heidi's cooking is one of the best parts of the course! We have amazing foods and each one is an experience for us girls to try new things.
By Sarah A.

Our Great Director

Sarah Baldock is the Choir Director for the Girls' Course this year. She is fantastic! Her methods are unorthodox, but extremely fun. I actually looked forward to rehearsals this year. We warm up with "John Scott has red hair" "Ravioli and Spaghetti", "Butterfly, Jungle, Moth" and many others. Beside the great vocal work, we have learned useful advice from Ms. Baldock. She taught us to NEVER sing while wearing flip-flops or hats, to sing with feeling, and to sing like a Route Master Bus. I am very glad to have the opportunity to work with Mrs. Baldock and I hope she returns to Saint Thomas next year.
by Katie G.

Liz's reflections on the STGCC

Writing about all the fun things that we do is too hard. It has been so fun with a good balance of singing and craziness!From amazing food to amazing singing this camp has given us a good variety of things to do. I have taken many pictures with my camera so my friends and family will be able to get a taste of the fun!

Yummy food!

My name is Krystal and this is my second year at Saint Thomas School. We go running Tuesday and Thursday. We sing two Evensong services. Everyday Heidi makes us delicious food, my favorite part!
by krystal

Tons of Fun!

Hi, I'm Megan and I have enjoyed everything. The food is great. Everyone is really nice, and I'm having lots of fun. I've loved the art class making the team poster. And, the Broadway show was really funny. We saw "Shrek". I'm having lots of fun!
by Megan

This is my first year at the Saint Thomas Girl's Course. We have had many fun experiences thus far in the course including pizza and a movie, seeing "Shrek the Musical" on Broadway, and fun activities in Central Park. I am very excited for the boatride and shopping that is soon to come.
by Caroline B.

Hadley's reflections

This is my first year attending St. Thomas Girl Chorister Course. At first I really didn;t know what to expect, but I am having such a fun time. I've made so many good friends and learned so much in a short space of time. I'm actually realy sad that the course is almost over but hope to come back next year.

by Hadley Bryan

Probably my favorite part of this year would have to be "Shrek" so far. I was surprised to actually enjoy it alot. I really enjoyed walking the streets of New York and seeing the sights. Tomorrow we are going on "the Beast", which is a very fast speed boat. I'm looking forward to seeing the sights and hopefully the Statue of Liberty. I also loved the movie night with popcorn, soda and pizza. We saw "Confessions of a Shopaholic". I am happy I came.
by Caroline Neupauer

Mairead's course highlights

This is year three for me here at STGCC. I love it here so much! If I had to select my favorite partsthey would be compline and chef Heidi's cooking. Compline is an evening prayer that we sing right before bedtime. It's really calming and everyone seems to get a lot out of it.

by Mairead Koehler

My favorite things!

Although it is my first year at the course, I already feel as if I've been living in this great space with all these girls for years. Even though we've only been here for five days, I've had lots of fun and learned a ton. A few of my favorite events definitely include the Broadway show on Wednesday, and the movie night after Tuesday Evensong. "Shrek" was amazing - the set as genius and it was hilarious. On Tuesday night I chose to watch "The Others" out of four movies and ate my first piece of pizza. This has definitely been a good experience.
By Tara G.

Are you listening at home?

I'm really excited to be heading to our second Evensong. The first one was so much fun! I loved the music, which made up for my extremely painful shoes. I hope everyone at home will be listening to our podcasts, especially my awesome dog Spot!
by Andie

The Choir School's amazing kitchen team!

Heidi has once again lived up to her reputation for making amzing food for us. She never ceases to create dishes that make my mouth water three times a day!Especially at lunch when we have her delicious deserts. Today we had chocolate cake topped with mousse icing. Us girls always look forward to meal times with Heidi's food!

by Caroline Sorey

Sing, Sing, Sing

We've been spending our days singing, eating, singing, running, singing, going on outings, and singing. Yesterday we headed downtown a few blocks to see "Shrek the Musical". None of us really knew what to expect, but it was absolutely fantastic. I especially liked the parts where they spoofed "Rent", "Wicked", "The Lion King" and "The Princess Bride". It was similar to the movie and really funny!
by Emma

Time flies when you are having fun!

Hi! I'm Ana and this is my 4th year. I swear I have died and gone to heaven. The food is so delicious. I've had so much fun. Sunday through Wednesday went slowly but now it's going too fast.
by Ana

Hide in Seek in the Choir School

This is my third year attending the STGCC. So far one of the highlights for me has been playing hide and seek. The building is HUGE and is filled with so many obscure hiding places. This forced us to be creative and imaginative!

Central Park by Alice Palmer

This is my first visit to NYC and I'm overwhelmed by the skyscrapers and by how many people there are all of the time where ever you go in the city. I love the school's location by Central Park- I especially enjoy going there in the early morning. On Tuesday we took a long walk through the park and on Wednesday we had fun on the swings. It is amazing how it seems so small, but if you walk through it, it just keeps going on and on. It amazes me that when you are out in the park you just look up and see the New York skyline.

by Alice Palmer

Reflections on The Girls Course by Olivia Soares

This camp was a great experience. It was meeting new people from all over the USA and being able to sing with them. The boat ride was very fun and the food is AMAZING! So far my favorite dish ha been chef Heidi's brownies and ice cream :) Everyone is SO nice here. And of course I can't forget to mention how much I have enjoyed playing kick ball in the park.

by Olivia Soares

Girls Course Pencils!

Dorm Life!

Our girls occupy 3 floors of dorms situated on the 5th, 6th and 7th floors of the Choir school. Bearing in mind that the use of elevators is strictly prohibited to the girls, those based on the 7th floor sometimes feel as though they have picked the "short-straw" when rushing from rehearsal in the basement all the way up to their floor!!!
Girls tend to cluster in each others rooms, in the narrow corridors, or in the recreational area on the 5th floor. There is always lots going on in the free time slots!

Day 6 by Olive and Beth

This morning at rehearsal was some of our best singing yet! We have hard pieces of music for this evensong and we did well practicing according to Mr. Kwan. It will be tons of fun to sing "Here a Light" and "Margret Forsaken" in the church. "Margret Forsaken" is a very interesting and eerie piece that was inspired by the Scottish country side. It will be amazing to sing a piece with a Scottish feel in the middle of New York city. Good luck to Jane for cantering and to Kaethe for playing the prelude on the organ. Break a leg! (Not really, especially because they would have to climb 150 stairs in a cast) :)

Excitement for Evensong!

The music for Thursday's evensong is challenging but beautiful. No girl can stop thinking or counting beats during the music but if we all concentrate it will go beautifully! I am listening to Tuesday's webcast and the blend is great! I am excited to give it my all tonight! -Jane

This is my third year here and I do not believe that we have ever sounded this good. The pieces are or seem to be harder than last year, but are fun to learn and are beautifully composed. Even after three years all I can really talk about is the food and how much activity we have around here. I do not think that we have sat down to relax for more than a half an hour and the food is amazing. There is no way that anyone can resist the food here and everyday is different. The Broadway show, Shrek, yesterday was good and was pretty much like the movie, but I think that it was better than the movie. The songs were spectacular and I would recommend it if anyone wants a good laugh and some family time.
Susy Cromwell

Ever since my train ride into Penn Station on Saturday, all I could talk about was Heidi's food. (This, unfortunately, was much to the chagrin of my poor parents, who hear about how great her cooking is the whole year round. Sorry, Mom and Dad!) Feeding 32 girls (in various stages of appetite, ranging from "slightly hungry" to "ravenous") can't be easy, but Chef Heidi makes it look simple. So far at the course we've eaten everything from traditional New York pizza and bagels to the more exotic falafel, fajitas, and flan -- all while drinking our requisite two glasses of water per meal, of course! I suppose it only makes sense that feeding us such good food would result in such a great choral sound -- which reminds me that I can't wait to sing Evensong again tonight!

--Angharad

Today we got up and ran in Central Park. We quickly went into rehearsal where we have been pulling together the details of tonight's evensong. We have gotten rave reviews from Sarah MacDonald, the director from last year, as well as the staff here. I hope that tonight will turn out as well. The music is not as straight forward as Tuesday's because there are more challenging chords and intervals. We are also debuting the piece written for us by Joel Martinson, "Here, A Light". We have had a hard time getting the counting together, but if we focus then I'm sure we can pull it off. I am still thinking about the fantastic cake that we had today at lunch. Heidi (the chef) made us chocolate cake with chocolate mousse-ish icing that was to die for. I can't wait to see what dinner is tonight as well as what the surprise treat is after the evensong.

-Sharon Mays

Happy to have returned!

My name is Hope and this is my 4th year at the girls course. I was timid to return again but I am now so happy that I did! This year is so much fun. The play was really good and I really enjoy rehearsals with our director this year. This years rehearsals are so much more fun than I have ever remembered and i really look forward to them. Tuesday night's evensong went really well and I was really proud of everyone. After today's rehearsals I am really looking forward to tonight's service because everything sounds really good because of the hard work that all the girls have put in to today's two rehearsals. I think it is great how so many people have returned from previous years and i also really enjoy meeting so many new people. This week has been so much fun and I am excited for the rest of the week.

Hope

After attending the Girls Choir Course for 3 years, I must confess that I was dragging my feet a bit towards my fourth year the Course. But my attitude completely changed in the instant that all 32 girls sat in the Rec Room for orientation. I had forgotten how much I loved it here at St. Thomas. Not only does my frequent appearance at the camp allow me to be an assistant leader, it prepared me for what was to happen during the week. My years 3 years of experience had prepared me for a rigorous course of singing, singing, singing. It had prepared me to work with a director that would take us to the next level with an intense teaching style. And the style of Sarah Baldock was completely off the mark of what I was expecting. It was better. Though the course is still rigorous and intense, Ms. Baldock's teaching style is relaxed. For me, this relaxed air about how she directs brings out a willinginess to sing my best. Her way of bringing the music out of us is effortless, and I am sure I can say for everyone that we all appreciate it to every degree.

by Kelsey Vivian

Day FOUR - Broadway Show

On Wednesday we saw the matinee performance of Shrek at the conveniently located Broadway Theater just 5 blocks away from school on 53rd and Broadway. We were sat high up in the auditorium and had a magnificent view. All agreed that the show was very cleverly put together: The props were second to none and the settings were very impressive. My personal favorites were the magic mirror with its "extra features" taking us back in time to view Princess Fiona as a child, the way in which the dragon was assembled, and the costume of Lord Farquaad!

A Note About Evensong Webcasts!

For those of you who are going to the Choir School website, and clicking on the link to the webcasts, we want to assure you that the webcast will be up and running live for each event! You will see the last service that was sung, listed at the top of the page, and it will be there for one week. About 15 minutes before the service (that would be at 5:15 on Wednesday and 10:45 on Sunday), the new webcast will be put up. So, don't despair. If you don't see anything about Thursday Evensong when you log in today, it will be there soon.

Fun to be back!

This is my second year at St. Thomas, and I am very excited to be back. our new director, Sarah Baldock, is amazing. I always enjoy rehearsals because we are able to get things done in a considerably relaxed environment.
by Caroline Sorey

Familiar faces

I was very excited to come back to the course this year! When I got to the Choir School, I was very happy to see many returning girls from last year. When we started the first rehearsal, I was almost blown away, because of the great sound we were making! Already, after the first day, the girls were blending together, and sounding almost as one voice. I am very excited to sing Evensong tonight.
by Kaethe Wright Kaufman

Excitement and Exhaustion!

So far I've had a very fun but exhausting time. Between over 150 stairs (9 floors) from my room to the rehearsal space and our 7:30 am run in Central Park this morning, I'm extremely sore! However, it is nice to have our classes and rehearsals which give us a break from moving around. We have rehearsals for at least 3 hours a day. We've mostly been practicing music for tonight's Evensong since we got here. So far my favorite is Vaughan Williams "The Call". It's been really hard to get our psalms together. but I'm really excited for tonights' Evensong because I really like the repetoire. And, tonight we have movie night!
by Sharon Mays

Day FOUR - Artwork finished to perfection

The girls have enjoyed making the banners for their respective houses. They were given the reign of the art room and made full use of the resources.

Day FOUR - Preparations for the first Tuesday Evensong

Everyone agreed that yesterday's service sounded wonderful! Choir Director Sarah Baldock and Vocal Teacher Abigial Haynes did a magnificent job of leading the service. We hope that you enjoy some photos of the preparation!