By Alexandra Cortes
He steps up to the podium, buoyant and graceful. His energy draws everyone’s attention as he raises his arms like antennae picking up frequency in the air. His chorus gazes at him expectantly, relying on his movement. Wrists flick and the chorus, like an ebbing tsunami wave, inhales a breath. All of a sudden, haunting music emerges from the instrument that conductor Dr. David Fryling has molded out of 65 Hofstra University music students.
The University hosts two select choruses, whereas neighboring Adelphi University, Long Island University and Nassau Community College each have one. Chorale is the first, and Chamber Singers is the second. There are fewer Chamber Singers and the auditions are tougher, with a more rigorous evaluation of the basic Chorale requirements: a prepared solo song, melodic echoing, and sight-reading.
Both choruses are comprised completely of students, all undergraduates except one. Compared with Nassau Community College’s chamber chorus and Long Island University’s choir, the University does not include community members, but selects only matriculating students.
“Both groups achieve the highest level of musical performance while being restricted to current students of the University,” says Fryling.
The idea is to prime students for the real thing by allowing conducting students, part of the chorus by requirement, to work with these demanding choruses. Katy Hylton, who graduates this spring with a degree in conducting, led the Chamber Singers in several pieces at their concert at the Cathedral of the Incarnation on April 25.
“Graduates at Eastman University get their own choir to work with, specifically for them,” says Hylton. “They don’t get the work that we do at Hofstra.”
The Hofstra Chorale and Chamber Singers attribute their success in the students-only method to their camaraderie and devotion to Dr. Fryling.
“[Dr. Fryling]’s the best,” says Philip Leesha, a member of the Chamber Singers as well as Chorale. “He’s what makes us come together and really want to put in the effort.”
“In general, our choirs really love cohesiveness,” says Hylton. “Because we hang out together and with Dr. Fryling, going on apple picking trips, and hosting parties, everybody gets along. Because of that, we can really sing together.”
The work that goes into the chorus includes weekly rehearsals and learning to adjust one’s voice to proper breathing, projection, dictation and even learning different languages. The secret to the sound, though, is the mentality of taking various voices and turning them into one.
“We know each other’s breathing,” says Fryling. “We listen to and can control the minutiae of overtones within our vowel sounds, we know how to add to the sound without overtaking it. We, as a group, become something outside ourselves, or even a collection of ourselves.”
Count out egomaniacs, the chorus’ talent comes from their ability to contribute to the whole, physically and mentally. The University’s chorus students say they support themselves, and take pride in their hard-won endeavors. The Chorale and Chamber Singers have performed at various prestigious places, including Carnegie Hall, St. John the Divine in Manhattan, the Cathedral of the Incarnation in Garden City, and the Christ Church in Oyster Bay.
“As a member of the Student Government at Hofstra,” said Jared Berry, a Chamber Singers member, “I want the choruses to be brought to the attention they deserve.”