WVHS choirs celebrate nature and life in Spring Concert

The Warwick Valley High School Music Department presented its 2025 Spring Choral Concert this week, and the program's unifying theme was a celebration of nature's beauty and life's cycles. The evening featured 12 different ensembles singing 27 songs, some even arranged by Warwick Valley music students! In the evening's program, WVHS choral director Noreen Hanson shared the following message with audience members about the theme for this year's spring concert.

See a gallery of pictures from the concert below this story.   

Dear Parents, Students, and Friends,

Welcome to this year's spring concert, where we come together to celebrate nature's beauty and life's cycles. Our theme, "Turn, Turn, Turn," draws inspiration from the lyrical wisdom of Ecclesiastes 3, reflecting on the circular nature of time as expressed through the changing seasons.

This concert is more than just a showcase of musical talent; it is an anthology of life’s joys and sorrows, beautifully captured through modern and contemporary art. Each performance invites us to consider the ongoing cycle of changing circumstances that shape our human experience.

The title of our concert is taken from Pete Seeger’s iconic song, "Turn! Turn! Turn!" -- written in the late 1950s and inspired by Ecclesiastes. Immortalized by The Byrds in 1965, Seeger’s lyrics resonate deeply, particularly in the context of the politically turbulent 1960s in America, suggesting that the time may be ripe for change and social justice.

As we reflect on the themes of this concert, let us consider the significance of the seasons in our lives. Just as the earth transforms with each season, we too experience growth and change. The concept of the medieval rota fortunae, or wheel of fortune, serves as a reminder of life’s recurring blessings and losses, highlighting that each season brings its unique challenges and rewards.

Thank you for your continued support of our music program. We hope you enjoy this celebration of the seasons and the timeless cycles they represent!

Warm regards,
Noreen Hanson

SPRING CONCERT PROGRAM

7th-8th Honors Choir

• National Anthem (arr. The Chicks)

Mr. Singers

• O Captain! My Captain! (Johnathan Rippon)
  Wyatt Cirbus, soloist

Treble Choir

• Seasons (Ola Gjeilo)
  Thomas Maiorana, piano; Anthony Gomez, flute
• Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep (Laura Farnell)
  Angelina Nguyen, piano; Andrew Redling, violin
• Nothin’ Gonna Stumble My Feet (Greg Gilpin)

Jazz Choir

• From the Start (arr. Michele Weir)
• City of Stars (arr. Jay Althouse)
  Thomas Maiorana, piano; Anthony Gomez, soloist; Olivia Samberg, soloist

Wildcat 8

• Crucifixus (Antonio Lotti)

LOCA

• Somewhere Over the Rainbow (arr. Anthony Gomez)

Mixed Choir

• Colors of The Wind (arr. Mac Huff)
  Alison Echevarria, piano
• Here Comes the Sun (Alan Billingsly)
  Angelina Nguyen, piano

All Ensembles

• Wanna Die Easy (arr. Ysaye M. Barnwell)

Jazz Whops

• Their Hearts Were Full of Spring (arr. Kirby Shaw)
• Superstition (arr. Paul Langford)

Bel Canto

• Ballad of the Witches Road (arr. Angelina Nguyen)
• La Paloma (Cristian Grases)
  Wyatt Cirbus, guitar; Jude Gawronski, percussion; Sophie Ragans and Jolene Hernandez, soloists
• I Am the Wind (Elaine Hagenberg)
  Thomas Maiorana, piano
• El Vito (Joni Jensen)
  Alison Echevarria, piano; Icarus Valentino, soloist

Meistersingers

• Long Road (Eriks Esenvalds)
  Abigail Yurchuk, soloist
• Won’t You Be My Neighbor (arr. Robert Page)
  • What Do You Do?
  • It’s you I like
    Alison Echevarria, piano
• Ezekiel Saw the Wheel (William L. Dawson)
• Shenandoah (James Erb)
• Disney Fly (Jamey Ray)

8th Grade Honors Choir w/ Meistersingers

• Running Up That Hill (arr. Roger Emerson)
• Ella McDermott, soloist
• I Wan’na Be Like You (arr. Philip Lawson)

Senior Song

• Thank You For The Music (arr. Jerry Estes)