May is the season for blooming flowers, thanksgiving, labor, and singing.

Amid the spring breezes and the brilliance of early summer, the “Meet in May” Large Chorus Concert was held at KWA’s auditorium on the afternoon of May 17. KWA students staged a wonderful choral performance under the guidance of KWA Music Group teachers.

The auditorium, which can accommodate 500 people, was packed. To the music teachers’ melodious accompaniment, students in Grade 3-5 started the concert with two classic choral pieces—“Greetings of the Four Seasons” and “My Name Is Music.” Clean and pure, the songs sounded like music from heaven.

“Life is short
Glow the best I can
To fill the dark world with hope”
Students in Grade 1-2, who looked like angels on Earth in their white dresses, sang “Firefly” with passion. But after the music faded away, these little angels immediately turned into lively elves. With dances and songs, they vividly interpreted the Congolese folk song “SiSi” and the German masterpiece “Sing and Swing.”

“You Raise Me Up” is in the repertoire for every concert at KWA. This time, KWA primary school students brought a pure children’s chorus version of the song. With their clear, translucent voices, they expressed deep feelings.

The soulful “Feeling Cold” by KWA secondary school students gives people an antique feeling.

“Love” is the most beautiful theme on Earth. Two family-affection songs—“When You Are Old” and “The Pear Blossoms Bloom Again”—pushed the concert to a climax.
“When you are old
And can hardly walk
You nod by the fire
Recalling the days when you were young”
The students’ emotional rendering of the song, with mixed feelings of love and gratitude, touched the parents almost to tears.

The concert came to an end amid prolonged applause. At the end of the event, teacher Wu Di, the concert director, received messages of thanks and praise from the parents. “They said the concert was great. It was rich in content and diverse in form. There were programs that combine Broadway-style performance and recitations. There were Chinese and foreign classical and popular songs. The children got a chance to fully demonstrate themselves. These messages from the parents represent their recognition of our work and KWA’s music education,” said Wu Di.

The 90-minute performance was the result of two months’ hard work from the teachers and students. Teacher Wu said, “The students had a busy class schedule and could only afford time at noon for rehearsal. We teachers had worked really hard, and we knew it was all worthwhile when we saw that the students had come to love music more and more. Like what was expressed in the last chorus of “As Long As I Have Music”, I hope everyone will be able to grow and find happiness in music.”

At KWA, the art of music is taught in various forms—solo, chorus, ensemble, concerto, symphony, and so on. “A lot of students are afraid of solos, either because they lack the strength or have low self-confidence. But they are willing to sing on stage as part of a choir. This is the charm of chorus. Chorus can bring more students to participate in stage performance, improve their team spirit and self-confidence, and cultivate their humanistic qualities and musical aesthetic abilities,” explained teacher Wu.

In addition to regular music lessons, KWA also offers dozens of co-curricular and club courses, including the chorus course, to provide professional training to interested students. KWA has truly practiced its holistic education philosophy. Each year, the school holds a variety of performance activities in various forms to give students more opportunities to display their talents.