halloween: Celtic Woman Arrives At PS22!

Pic by Scott Vollweiler

Yesterday the kids got a visit from Celtic Woman and company, and I doubt anyone involved had any idea just how inspiring a day it would be for all involved. The most memorable moments in life are those where you get more than you bargain for, and making music together was just this euphoric energizing experience that we'll all never forget. Everyone left the "rehearsal" (quotes because it was more unabashed mutual appreciation than work!) smiling and in great spirits! If we weren't before (and we were), it's safe to say we're all completely looking forward to the climax of this amazing collaboration at Radio City Music Hall on Saturday night! Though the song below will not be included in the set at Radio City, here's a taste of what's to come:

Not only did we rehearse the numbers we are doing for Radio City, we also invited Celtic Woman in on one of this year's group's biggest internet smashes, "Empire State of Mind PT. XXII!" The ladies mixed right in with the group and certainly earned themselves the title of honorary New Yorkers after this performance:

In between singing, Celtic Woman took every advantage of this opportunity to get to know the kids. They were wonderful, no airs at all, and just fell right into the mix and mayhem! It was such a great thing to see everyone come together so naturally. Ashley R. even got to play Mairead's fiddle!

It was an honor to sing with Celtic Woman and it was wonderful to hear from them that they felt the same way about singing with PS22.

You can read a great article about the Celtic Woman/PS22 Chorus collaboration over at CityGuideNY.com. In the article, vocalist Lisa Kelly says, "The raw passion these young children sing with and the enthusiasm and obvious connection their choral director had with his students was inspiring to us..." Read the entire article here. In addition, Celtic Woman had some more kind words about their experience at PS22 on their Twitter page!