Boasting an impressive 26 show choirs (an equal 13 in both high school and middle school) and an unorthodox Thursday date, the eighth annual NTSCI is sure to be one of the most impressive to date. What does the scene look like before the competition?
High School
Entrants: Arlington “Choraliers”, Centennial “Shades of Blue”, Coppell “Vivace”, Ferris “Yellowjacket Singers”, Fort Worth Southwest “Southwest Effect”, Fossil Ridge “Pantheon”, Keller “Blue Lights”, Keller “Lumina”, Keller Central “Voices of Central”, Keller Central “Voltage”, L.D. Bell “The Bell System”, Paschal “Vox”, Rouse “IntoneNation”
All six of last year’s placing choirs are back, headlined by the top two, Voices of Central and Blue Lights. These two were also the top two choirs at Cowtown a week and a half ago, where Blue Lights came out on top in a split-cation decision. The two will take another crack at each other here, and no matter who comes out on top, the scoresheets will likely still be close. If Blue Lights were to win two in a row, it would plant them, at least temporarily, on solid ground at the top of the Texas show choir scene.
The Bell System was the third-place group at NTSCI last year and is making its season debut here, entering as a wildcard against groups who already took the stage at Cowtown. Bell has assembled an all-star leadership team this year, with Stephani Hyatt returning as choreographer, and Garrett Breeze, Anita Cracauer and Josh Greene arranging. While all three are nationally respected in their own right, some of Greene’s California charts are among the most legendary in show choir history. Where The Bell System will go with its flight-themed show remains to be seen, but they are a strong contender to keep a podium spot this year.
Pantheon was the fourth-place group in 2023’s NTSCI and was also the fourth-place group at Cowtown. While they play battle with Timber Creek to be only the third-best show choir in Keller ISD, the post-pandemic entrant to the world of show choir has done a lot in a short time, vaulting themselves solidly into the placing conversation wherever they go. They seem primed as well to fight for another top-three or top-four spot on Thursday evening.
The Arlington Choraliers are the returning fifth-place finisher at North Texas and were sixth in finals at Cowtown. While the Cowtown result may not have been the result that some were expecting, it is probably much more a sign of the strength of the Texas show choir scene than the demise of the Arlington program. They should still contend for a top-six spot here as well.
Southwest Effect rounded out the North Texas placements in 2023, beginning a season in which they placed everywhere they went. That included another sixth at the South Omaha Classic, a fifth at Lone Star and a third place (complete with Best Choreography) at Capital City. Similar to Fossil Ridge, they are a program that continues to be on an upward trajectory in the world of Texas show choir, and while it is never safe to lock a group in for a placement, Southwest Effect should very much be in the conversation to move up from the sixth-place spot they took last season.
A few groups who did not place at Cowtown will look to make the jump into placements here, which is a little tougher considering there is just one high school division and not two. Centennial and Paschal did not advance out of the varsity division, while Ferris and Voltage were both competitors in the prep division.
Rouse is making its season debut, similar to Bell. IntoneNation hasn’t placed since Lone Star in 2020, but they will look to change that under the new head direction of Jenna Quiroz.
A couple overall debuts round out the high school field. Keller Lumina, a womens group, is the first time that the school has fielded a second show choir group. Coppell has had as many as two noncompetitive show choir groups for years, even bringing in Ashley Kimbrough from time to time, but this is the first time that Vivace has graced the competition stage.
Middle School
Entrants: Indian Springs “Gold”, Indian Springs “Infinity”, Keller “Legend”, Rosemount “Revolution”, STEAM “Soundwaves”, Sunnyvale “Platinum”, Timberview “Encore”, Timberview “Ovation”, Trinity Meadows “Agility”, Trinity Meadows “Ignite”, Trinity Springs “Fusion”, Trinity Springs “Titanium”, Vista Ridge “Musica Pantera”
All six of last year’s placing choirs – Ovation, Titanium, Platinum, Agility, Infinity, and Revolution – are back for another take at things in 2024. The hottest group coming into the competition is Trinity Springs, who won Best Vocals and the middle school advanced division at Cowtown earlier this season. Legend, in its debut season, took third place at Cowtown and will look to grab a placement here as well.
Platinum, Infinity and Ovation all placed at this competition one year ago and did not place at Cowtown. All three will be looking to nab a solid result to get them on the right foot before the big showdown, Lone Star, next week.
Gold and Fusion were the top two choirs in middle school prep at Cowtown, and while they face a crowded field of advanced middle school choirs ahead of them, either one has a chance to sneak into the back end of the middle school placements, which will be announced immediately following the last competing group.
Rounding out the field with some miscellaneous notes, Musica Pantera won a soloist award at Cowtown while Soundwaves won the People’s Choice award at that same competition. Both choirs will look to add placings to those captions.
With every good preview piece comes a review piece, so be on the lookout for a review piece in the days following the competition!
Comments