Chorus Directors Deborah Rudd and Marilyn Harwood during the Jan. 12 performance at the opening of the Wizards basketball game (vs. the Atlanta Hawks). The 70-member chorus filled the 20,000-seat arena with the sweet sounds of the National Anthem.
On Saturday, Jan. 12, 72 students of the Spring Hill Elementary Chorus sang the National Anthem for the Wizards’ basketball game at the Verizon Center, a 20,000-seat arena which is home to the Washington Wizards and other sports teams. Chorus members started the evening before Verizon opened the doors for the public on the basketball court with the sound crew for a sound check. When they were taken upstairs, the stands were almost empty, but before the 7 p.m. game time the seats were filling with Wizards fans. Just before 7, the singers were led out on the court in position; they focused and sang beautifully. The audience members enjoyed seeing close-up pictures of the musicians on the indoor high-definition LED scoreboard. Directors Deborah Rudd and Marilyn Harwood took their chorus to new heights with this performance and the musicians “did Spring Hill proud.”