By Pranathi Chitta
Staff Writer
@prannydacheetah

Although it is something choir members participate in every year, the Coppell High School Solo and Ensemble Contest only gets more competitive.

This year, 75 students at the University Interscholastic League Solo Contest and 60 at the CHS Solo Contest on Feb. 7 earned first division ratings, while six out of seven ensembles earned first division ratings as well.

“My solo this year was in German, which is a language I’ve sung often in choir but never on a solo,” junior Sajani Raja said. “It was also a lot more upbeat than my previous songs and required getting into character more, which was a challenge at first.”

Qualifying students now have a chance to go to the state competition on May 30.

“It is a great honor to qualify for that contest. The singers that performed at the CHS contest will be able to perform another solo again next year at either the CHS contest or the UIL contest,” CHS choir director Josh Brown said.

Students will have two months to prepare and perfect their solos for the State Solo Contest in Austin.

“To prepare, I’ll learn what my solo means in English so that I can accurately portray the meaning of the text in my singing,” Raja said.

This year, there were more singers that got first division ratings than in recent years.

“I’ve participated in this competition three times, and it seems to get easier every year,” Raja said.

Raja plans to begin preparing for the state contest in April where she feels that the competition gets easier as she improves.

“This solo contest helps singers develop vocal technique that will help them sing music of any style with greater ease,” Brown said. “Hopefully, many of these singers will participate in the upcoming Broadway Recital at the end of the year.”