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Frank Ohl students to perform before hockey game
The Vindicator (Youngstown)
Photo
Fifth-grader Alexis Bodnar sings along with classmates during choir practice at Frank Ohl Intermediate School in Austintown. The students will perform the national anthem Friday before the Youngstown Phantoms hockey game at the Covelli Centre in downtown Youngstown.
The Vindicator (Youngstown)
Photo
There are 120 students in the Frank Ohl Intermediate School choir. The group is led by Dan Forsberg. In addition to singing the national anthem Friday at the Covelli Centre in downtown Youngstown, the youngsters will also perform before a Pittsburgh Pirates game in May.
By Kristine Gill
AUSTINTOWN
Christina Aguilera could learn a thing or two from fifth graders at Frank Ohl Intermediate School.
The singer botched a rendition of the National Anthem before this year’s Super Bowl, skipping a line and embarrassing choir students who will perform the same song before Friday’s Youngstown Phantoms game.
“That was just a disgrace,” said fifth-grader Justin Neff.
Choir director Dan Forsberg said all of his students took a lesson away from the mishap.
“Students were coming up to me and saying, ‘Do you believe that, Mr. Forsberg? We won’t forget our words.’ I said, ‘no, you won’t,’” he said.
Friday’s game against Team USA will begin at 7:30 p.m. Tickets range in price from $9.50 to $13.50 depending on the seating section.
Most students from the 120-member choir will attend, singing from the bleachers before the game. It’s the school’s first performance at a hockey game. In May, they’ll make the annual trip to Pittsburgh to perform at a Pirates game.
“They’ll have the three-part harmonies for Pittsburgh,” Forsberg said, adding that most students haven’t performed before such a large audience before taking the field in Pittsburgh.
“You get out there and you really feel insignificant,” Forsberg said.
On Wednesday, all 120 students gathered for one of three weekly practices. Cheerful chatter, shrieks and laughter filled the room between songs until Forsberg struck a key on the piano calling students to order. Then talk subsided and students sang in unison.
Stretches at the beginning of class and some warm-up scales ensured that students didn’t miss a note when they practiced the national anthem.
“Your eyes have to be right here,” Forsberg said, gesturing toward himself at the front of the room. “You have to be ready to follow directions Friday.”
Students say they aren’t nervous about performing in front such a big group.
After a performance “a lot of kids say ‘My knees were shaking,’ and I say ‘You know what, mine were too.’ It’s kind of a good nervous,” Forsberg said.
To join choir, each student sang for Forsberg in front of other students who were auditioning. They said that prepared them for future performances.
“I’ve been through a lot of nervous moments,” said fifth-grader Blake Benyo.