To celebrate a great year of performing, Millbrook’s chorus students had their annual Choir Banquet on Tuesday, May 13. This took place before their 2025 Spring Concert, the final performance of the year. The banquet included a dinner of Jersey Mike’s provided by the booster parents as well as awards for each level of the choir department. The banquet was attended by the choir students along with their families.
Millbrook has five choir classes total; Novum (an all-girls beginning level choir), Ingen (a beginner/intermediate level choir for basses and tenors), Chamber (a large all-girls intermediate level choir), Celeste (a small advanced level choir for sopranos and altos), and Madrigals (a large advanced choir of sopranos, altos, tenors, baritones, and basses).
Mr. Adams started with awards right away, with three awards per choir. The Voice Award goes to someone with outstanding vocal abilities, the Leadership Award goes to someone who frequently takes charge, which may be in the form of a “quiet” leader as Mr. Adams mentioned several recipients being, and lastly the Conductor’s Award goes to model students who consistently invest in rehearsals and bring something special to their respective choirs.
Novum comprises just 11 members, and Mr. Adams spoke about how he’s proud of their adaptation within a small group where you can better hear each individual voice. In his introduction before their awards he stated, “It’s not about being the perfect choir, it’s about showing growth from day one and they’ve absolutely done that.” Freshman Camila Jimenez received the Voice Award, freshman Virginia Christopherson the Leadership Award, and sophomore Addison Harper took home the Conductor’s Award.
Next was Ingen, a diverse group composed of tenors and basses with a variety of different experience levels. One notable thing Mr. Adams mentioned was their performance at the mixed Music Performance Adjudication concert in February, where they sung a piece called “The Kraken”, and Mr. Adams even had a middle school student later compliment the piece and say they were amazed by Ingen. Freshman Noah Wilson received the Voice Award, sophomore Braeden LaRocca the Leadership Award, and senior Nate Baker-Sample the Conductor’s Award. Nate, who joined Ingen just this year, shared, “The best part of the Millbrook choir environment is the sense of community to me. You’re always going to be super close to your section, and the other sections feel kind of like next door neighbors. It’s also worth mentioning that choir people in general are so nice and amazing to work with.”
This year there are 30 members in Chamber. It’s a mix of both upper and lowerclassmen that Mr. Adams described as a “fantastic choir”. Last month, Chamber and Celeste attended Music In The Park at Carowinds where they received first place overall. Mr. Adams spoke to their evolution over the trip, as well as the importance of the female conductor Dr. Nana Wolfe-Hill from Wingate University who worked with Chamber this year. Sophomore Danielle Demunk received the Voice Award, junior Hannah Wheeler received the Leadership Award, and Freshman Ella Jane Werner received the Conductor’s Award.
This is just Celeste’s second year as a choir, and Mr. Adams mentioned them “exceeding expectations in every way” with examples of them coming into class with their sections already learned. He mentioned a difficult song that the ensemble performed at MPA and their ability to adapt and overcome challenges. Junior Ava Moore took the Voice Award, junior Sheila Awashti took the Leadership Award, and sophomore Alena Kernjak took the Conductor’s Award. Sheila said, “I’m so grateful for this award because I can represent our choir’s character and passion. We have worked hard to develop our community and connect with each other, and it’s shown in our improvement over the course of the year. I can’t wait to continue singing with them.”
Lastly, Millbrook’s Madrigals received their awards. Mr. Adams made sure to shout out the incredible leadership of each four section leaders, the amount of work they put into making sure things run smoothly, and how they “shape the culture of Mads”. The Voice Award went to junior Kael Alley, the Leadership Award to sophomore Jayden Paulson, and the Conductor’s Award to senior Tad Stolz. Jayden shared, “I am very proud to receive this award. I also feel it’s important to highlight the leaders who have taught me everything I know, Rowyna Kindl especially. She has been such a kind leader to me and she’s taught me so much about music and how to be a better person. She’s truly an inspiration to me.”
Finally, Mr. Adams announced senior Rowyna Kindl as this year’s Marley Scholarship recipient. Candidates had to complete an application, essay and interview, and Adams said the panel was extremely impressed with Rowyna’s humility.
Mr. Adams ended the 2025 Millbrook Choir Banquet by sharing the quote, “If you treat an individual as if he were what he ought to be and could be, he will become what he ought to become and could be”. Mr. Adams is beloved by students inside and outside of the choir department, and this attitude towards students is surely a reason why.
