Mia Mulinaro, Dylan Godsave, Jackson Gardner, and Jess Richardson | Contributors

Tonight the Choral Department kicks off the year with the Fall Fest Showcase.

“We practice all the time and we practice really hard. We’re pushed to our limits but as a team I think it brings us closer,” Caela Heisinger, who is a new member of Sound System, said. “I like that part of it: putting everything we have on the stage.”

The stage has been busy every day this week as students prepared for the showcase, including a six-hour rehearsal on Tuesday night.

“It’s always good to see how the groups come together,” junior Phoebe Joubert, who is a part of the Debtones, said. “We practice a lot to make it the best we can.”

The Debtones have been focusing on their sound by practicing in the Fishbowl at the entrance to the Hall of Excellence, which replicates the sound in the auditorium but allows singers to hear themselves better.

“I’m most excited about our song Lift Thine Eyes To The Mountains,” Joubert said. “It’s really pretty and it’s really cool to be able to sing like that.”

The Mendolssohn piece introduces complex harmonies in a classical form, a genre which is new to some members.

“This year we are really focused on trying out new genres and improving our show. We have come a long way from boot camp this summer, and I am excited to see how this year progresses,” choir director Jared Norman said.