Angels we have heard on high
Sweetly singing o'er the plains,
And the mountains in reply
Echoing their joyous strains.
– “Angels We Have Heard on High”

With voices like angels, the Red Bank Catholic choir won first prize in the annual Christmas Choir Contest sponsored by a top New Jersey radio station. The contest, which was held during December, is open to all high schools in New Jersey.

RBC outpointed the top 15 high school choirs that had been selected from the 100 that participated in the contest. In winning the online voting by 5,000 votes, which was more than twice the amount of votes received by the runner up, St. Benedict School of Holmdel, RBC was awarded a new Hallet, Davis & Co. upright piano and $1,000.

Shawn Mack, the moderator of the choir since he joined the RBC faculty as music director in 2009, said he was “utterly shocked” by the voting. Mr. Mack continued: “I didn’t know what was going to happen but I knew that the choir had sung well. Regardless of how many votes we received, I am so proud of the members of the choir. They not only dedicated so much time to the contest, but also work hard all year.”

The 2010 Choir Contest was RBC’s first competitive contest. After hearing an advertisement on the radio, Karen Falco, vice principal of RBC, told Mack about the contest. The choir unanimously decided to participate in the contest. Fostering RBC’s mission as a Catholic institution, the choir considered performing “Ave Maria” or “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.” Ultimately, the choir decided to perform “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” because the hymn speaks of the joyful anticipation of the coming of the Christ-child.

The choir recorded the hymn in St. James Church, Red Bank, without computer editing. The recording was burned onto a CD and sent to the radio station. Filled with anticipation like that which is so present during Advent, the members of the choir nervously awaited the results of the contest. To a person, they were nervous, but optimistic that they would do well. Elation, bordering on hysteria, followed among the choir members when the results were announced. The RBC choir had won the state championship.

The state-champion choir, which is divided into the soprano, alto, tenor and bass sections, is open to all RBC students. Auditions are not required to join the choir, only a love of music and a desire to sing. In addition to competing in the Christmas Choir Contest, the choir performs at RBC school masses and sings at other religious services in and around Red Bank.

The choir hopes to do more competitions in the future. Its next competitive performance will be in Hershey, Pa., at the Hershey Park Choir and Jazz Festival. Perhaps the choir will add a Pennsylvania championship to its state title.

DiCicco is a student of Red Bank Catholic High School. Her article originally appeared in the school’s newspaper.