UNC Women's Glee Club joins with local high school choirs for musical showcase, charity benefit

The voices of young women from across the state will echo through Hill Hall tonight.

UNC Women’s Glee Club is “Making Music, Making a Difference” with local high school choirs for the seventh annual Carolina Women’s Choral Showcase.

Both a musical showcase and philanthropy event, the concert will benefit the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina, as it has been doing for the past six years, donating a total of 3,911 meals.

“It’s really cool that we can use our talents to do something good for someone else,” said senior Glee Club President Sarah Benton.

“It’s one thing to share nice music, but it’s another thing to provide meals for our community.”

This year the women of the showcase hope to raise 1,000 meals for families in need.

To commence the show, all 200 women will join together to perform Eric Whitacre’s acclaimed “The Seal Lullaby,” a piece Benton said was both beautiful and challenging. The groups have all memorized the long and intricate piece so that they all won’t need sheet music folders, which will reduce crowding on stage.

Preparation for the concert began months ago, and the choirs from Cedar Ridge High School, Chapel Hill High School, Carrboro High School and Durham School of the Arts have been rehearsing both classical and contemporary music.

The separate groups will rehearse together for the first time today, just hours before the performance. Carolina Women’s Glee Club director Sue Klausmeyer said a main focus has been preparing to have 200 voices blend together in one space, but all of the participants are excited to perform in Hill Hall.

“It is a very high energy room,” Klausmeyer said. “There is a buzz in the air.”

The showcase resonates far beyond a typical choir concert, bridging the gap between high school and college students. The UNC Women’s Glee Club members will act as role models for the younger students.

“You can sing in college — it doesn’t have to be your major — and at the same time, do something good for your community, something bigger than yourself,” Benton said.

Jeremy Nabors, Chapel Hill High School’s choir director, said the showcase is more about raising money and celebrating music than anything else.

“It’s not a competition, it’s just a showcase — there’s no ranking or judgment,” he said.

Instead, the concert promotes a variety of choral ensembles and features songs written specifically for women. This inviting atmosphere fosters collaboration and provides a chance for directors and students to meet, share ideas and hear new pieces.

This speaks to the Klausmeyer’s greater goal for UNC Women’s Glee Club.

”My mission statement is to promote choral excellence and friendships among university women,” Klausmeyer said.

Touring the state, performing at churches and high schools, the Glee Club has shared fond memories and worked to serve their community, even cleaning the Smith Center after basketball games.

“College is a lot more than going to classes and having a high GPA, ” Klausmeyer said. “It’s a place where people make friends for life.”

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