Winning isn’t everything in show choir. In fact, it is far from it. The camaraderie, opportunity for continuous improvement and adrenaline rush are all vital parts of the activity. Additionally, only a fraction of the circuit – those competing in the top division – regularly have a chance to win overall grand championships.
In that same vein, winning the most competitions in a year is not the end all, be all either. Clinton Attaché, widely regarded as the consistently best show choir in the United States, only competes three times a year. This effectively eliminates any chance at them being the group with the most wins.
However, to give credit where it is due, here are the most frequent winners of the 2023 season! This is the first in a series of pieces highlighting winners by state during the 2023 show choir season.
National – Carmel Ambassadors, Johnston Innovation and Linn-Mar 10th Street Edition (5 each)
Nobody achieved the rare six-win season this year, but that’s not a discredit to any of the three groups listed here. All three went undefeated across their respective slates in 2023. Carmel started off their season with a statement triumph at Pike, claiming the de facto Indianapolis metro crown by beating Franklin Central, Center Grove and North Central. Linn-Mar looked beatable at the start of the year, with Waukee Northwest and Valley both taking captions from them early in the season, but 10th Street eventually rounded into classic form and held the top spot at the end of both prelims and finals at Show Choir Nationals. Innovation never lost a vocal or choreography caption all year and added two band captions as well. Their wins included a Des Moines-area triumph at Southeast Polk, as well as in Lincoln, Nebraska and at the FAME Show Choir National Finals in Branson.
Alabama – Homewood The Network (4 – Tallassee, Albertville, Opelika, Auburn)
As is the case many years, Homewood was the class of Alabama show choir and it wasn’t particularly close. Of the big three captions in the South, The Network lost a grand total of one – choreography to Auburn at Tallassee. Network was also very close to joining the tie for the top of the national leaderboard, coming in 2.7 points behind Linn-Mar in Show Choir Nationals prelims and coming just as close in finals en route to a 1RU finish. It was a great way to end Scott Thorne’s tenure, and Byron Mosquera will look to continue the magic in 2024.
California – Los Alamitos Sound FX (4 – Burbank, Hart, HOA New York, Oceanside)
From the outside, it looks like another season where Sound FX rolled over the rest of the advanced mixed field in Southern California. In reality, it was anything but that. Following a strong music/show win at Burbank, it lost both captions to John Burroughs at Hart but won on a technicality regarding time penalties. Despite being a ‘national’ competition, Heart of America New York was probably Sound FX’s largest margin of victory, taking every group caption that they were eligible for. A final test remained at Oceanside, which featured all three of the most potent California large mixed choirs. While Burroughs once again placed first in raw scores, timing issues dropped them to the bottom of the division and Los Al was there to capitalize, winning the Showmanship caption in the process.
Colorado – Vista PEAK Ascension (2 – Scottsbluff, Colorado State)
Vista PEAK ran a rare double for a Colorado choir, winning one of the first major events of the show choir calendar in Scottsbluff and one of the last major events in Colorado State. Ascension did not participate in the Colorado West festival, making 2022-23 an undefeated season for the group. While it is unlikely to rub shoulders against any mainstream choirs this upcoming season, Vista PEAK comes in as the odds-on favorite for both Scottsbluff and Colorado State.
Connecticut – Daniel Hand VIBE (4 – Lowell, Shepherd Hill, Tantasqua, Andover)
With a declining school enrollment that has suddenly thrust the group into middleweight territory, Daniel Hand took the 2021 season off with the rest of New England and looked mortal in 2022, only winning one competition. A Wild West-themed show came out shooting in 2023, capturing sweeps straight through four competitions spanning from January 14 to March 11. It also won a head-to-head with Waltham three separate times, putting DH solidly on top of New England. VIBE was the only eastern show choir to make finals at Heart of America New York and was second to John Burroughs at Waltham to cap out their season in April.
Illinois – Wheaton North Flight (3 – Crete-Monee, Manteno and Wheaton Warrenville South)
Following a 2022 season that saw Flight finish 1RU four times but never break into the win column, 2023 saw the group explode for one of its most successful seasons ever. Flight began its season relatively late for Illinois standards, but it claimed a decisive victory over Troy Buchanan at Crete-Monee on the first Saturday of February. Along with three wins, Wheaton North also finished with two runner-up finishes, with the list of groups it lost to this year as follows: Wheaton Warrenville South and Clinton.
Georgia – Rome Grand Finale (1- Donelson Christian)
Rome registered its first win last year in its fifth competitive season, beating Cleveland for the win at Donelson Christian. However, the program was faced with uncertainty heading into 2023 as the only director its ever known, LeAnna Iddings, left the program. Cody Goss picked up the reins and kept Grand Finale on the right track in 2023, placing in three of the four contests that it went to. While Briarwood claimed the win at Donelson this year, Rome came on strong within state lines, winning the small mixed division en route to an overall win at Lakeside. It also served as a de facto state championship, with Rome beating longtime Georgia powerhouses Tift County and Appling County for the victory.
Stay tuned soon for the next installment!
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