The Cielo Treble Choir, previously known as the Women’s Chorale, is one of two main choirs at California Lutheran University and is mainly composed of first-year and sophomore students who are sopranos and altos.
Professor of Music and Director of the Cielo Treble Choir, Wyant Morton, said he changed the name from the Women’s Chorale a year ago because he realized it is not about the gender of the singers, and there has been a recent trend in chorale music to not gender ensembles anymore.
“There are singers who don’t necessarily identify as a woman who fit that category, so we just made it a little more open. It’s about what voice part you sing and not about what your gender is,” Morton said.
According to Morton, cielo is a Spanish word for sky or heaven, and he said he felt the new title was also more in line with the fact that the choir sings high and sometimes religious music, and to honor the university as a Hispanic-Serving Institution.
Sophomore Kenda Khatter has been in school choirs for a decade, and said she loves the community feel of the Cielo Treble Choir.
“I love it because it’s a group of people from all different backgrounds, but they share a common interest that’s a pretty big connection between people; music in general,” Khatter said. “So to be in a space where you can create music and you experience all these emotions that come with it and perform together, it’s like a community.”
Morton said the main challenge is trying to keep the singers motivated throughout the semester, but he said the most rewarding part of directing the choir is when they get to perform and see all of their hard work come together in the end.
One of the perks of this choir, Morton said, is that it is not only an academic class, but also provides a university-wide creative arts outlet for students who may not be music majors.
“Some people are able to join the choir just because it’s something that they want to take up and have never done it before, and I think that’s really cool because it can be kind of intimidating coming into a more academic choral setting,” Khatter said.
First-year student Emily Whitney said joining groups such as the choir as a first-year, where students are just beginning to make connections, is a really good experience and has helped her find community on campus.
Whitney said she has been performing in her school’s choirs since third grade, so she knew it was something she wanted to continue at Cal Lutheran.
“It’s fun just being a part of a group that is just for all the people who really like to sing. It’s something that I’ve had a passion for, for a really long time, so I’m happy that it was accessible here at Cal Lu,” Whitney said.
Sophomore Artina Tarokh said she was eager to join the choir because of her interest in music outside of her more academic-focused studies. She said she was also pleased to find out the Cielo Treble Choir accepted beginners. As a beginner pianist and guitarist herself, Tarokh said she could not find any music programs at Cal Lutheran that fit her level until she heard about the Cielo Treble Choir.
Tarokh said experiencing being a part of a symphony for the first time is a nice change of pace from all her academic classes, and said the choir program is very inclusive, which is something she said she likes.
“I know it’ll always be a love of mine, so I’m sure wherever I go in life, I’ll find a way to keep music in it,” Whitney said.
Currently, Morton said he is preparing the choir for their Christmas concert, which will be the first weekend in December.
