Angela Athanas - An Autobiography

Music is Life

My music journey began before I was old enough to remember being alive. Ever since I was two years old I sang and memorized songs from my favorite TV shows and movies. There are old home videos of me singing random songs going back to when I was three. I'll admit I sang pretty good for not even being able to remember yet. My music journey has singing as well as an instrument.

Let's start with singing. When I started kindergarten I joined my church's children choir, Angel Choir, that I was in until second grade. From third grade till my freshman year of high school I was in the Young People's Choir, and once I got into high school I unfortunately got too busy to be in church choir.

My junior year and some of my senior year I sang in my church's praise band. My high school had choir classes, but I only got one elective choice freshman year and I picked drama instead.

My Sophomore year, I auditioned for the school's top choir, Varsity, and I made it. Once you're in, you're in it the rest of high school so I was in Varsity Choir for three years. For two of those years (Junior and Senior year) I was in the acapella group within Varsity called Rendition.

I auditioned my Junior year and made it and again once you're in, you're in till you graduate. In the fall, they do what's called madrigal music which is basically Renaissance Christmas music and they are the main entertainment for the madrigal (renaissance) dinner in December. In the spring they sing vocal jazz and perform in the jazz concert at the end of the year.

I haven't been in a choir since high school so I really miss it, but every December is the school's winter concert and every year all the choirs sing The Hallelujah Chorus and alumni are invited to go up and sing with them. I did it the first year after I graduated and it was so refreshing so I went again last year and this year, and plan on going as many years as I'm able.

Besides being in choir, I also took voice lessons at a music conservatory the summer before my senior year. My teacher was an 80 year old woman named Patty. She may be very old, but boooooy can she still sing! She majored in musical theatre in college and was on Broadway! One show she was in it with Dick Van Dyke: Bye Bye Birdie. Her resume is super impressive and it was an honor to be taught by her.

I learned show tunes, religious songs, and even a few songs in Italian. At the end of my lessons, I had an official examination with two or three judges taking notes and critiquing me. Talk about pressure. Regardless, I learned a lot from Patty and I think of her often.

Next is the one instrument I know how to play: flute. My elementary school allowed students to start learning an instrument in 4th grade so that's what I did. I originally wanted to play clarinet but my mom made me do flute since our church had a flute choir. By the time I learned how to play well enough, the flute choir didn't exist anymore. Go figure.

Even so, all three years of middle school I played my flute in band and in high school I was in the marching band all four years. I never took a band class, because drama and choir took precedence over band and my schedule didn't allow for me to take all three.

Because marching band is technically a sport, I was able to letter in it and get a letterman jacket! My letters are on it, the year I graduated, a bulldog head with a music note in its mouth (a bulldog is the school mascot), and the three words choir, theatre, and band are on the back. It also got me out of taking P.E. for most of high school! Yay for perks!

In the winter the band classes play at home basketball games and marching band members are allowed to play too. I didn't do it all the time, but every once in a while. Every year there is an alumni night where former band members can come back and play and I did it last year and this year. The next time I play will probably be the next alumni night, if we're being serious here.

Basically, music is what encompasses most of my life. I can't go a single day without singing. For multiple hours a day I sing in my room. I sing whatever songs fit my mood or listen to songs to change my mood. Singing and being a fan of singers and bands is an enormous part of my existence and I shudder to think of a world without those things. I suppose I would still have theatre...but I'll get to that in the next chapter.