Following is an account of Bothell High junior Aly Henniger’s singing experience in the Honors Performance Series last month.

My alarm clock sounded at 4 a.m., but I was already awake.

I had been waiting since late November to finally board a plane and, after a five-hour plane ride, finally be in the city that never sleeps — New York.

After landing at the airport, I followed the signs to baggage claim and easily found the other American Youth Series students. By 5:30 p.m. Eastern time, I was checked into the hotel and had met with my roommates who were all also alto singers along with me.

So the very next morning, all four of us went off to rehearsals where we were sorted into section by height. Right after we sat down, a man walked out on stage and told us to stand up. This man, Dr. Eph Ehly, turned out to be our conductor. He introduced himself and then said something that stuck with me until the very end of rehearsals. He told us, “I will never get mad at you for singing the wrong notes or the wrong rhythms because in my 50 years of teaching, I have never known someone to do that on purpose.”

I felt relief and shock at the same time. How could a conductor of a choir that should be held to such high standards never get frustrated with us? Well, he kept to what he said, but the part that amazed me most was that we as a choir never gave him a reason to get mad at us. Everyone knew their music, and if they didn’t, they were paying extra attention to everyone around them so they could learn it. And if  Dr. Ehly started talking, we would all fall silent — these were vocalists who wanted  to learn.

Our choir was one unit from the very start. We were all musicians and we were all there for the very same purpose: to make amazing music. From the very first chord we  hit, I knew that we were going to sound fantastic when it came to show time. Our conductor was so amazing to work with because he not only took the music off of the page and had us really flow with each tune, but he used to be a drama teacher, so he made sure that we all got into the music; that we really felt each phrase and acted that way, too.

He didn’t want us to be just another bored, stiff choir that might sound amazing, but is boring to watch. So for each song, we got a background story on the meaning; and depending on the song, we had movements and choreography. At first it felt dorky, but by the time we preformed it, I really got into it.

This brings me to the performance. Carnegie Hall is huge. Five levels of seating and we had sold out our concert. Choir was first to perform of the three groups. We all got up from the audience and lined up on stage in our order. I sang like I had never sung before in a choir. Not only was the  sound amazing, but I was moving and getting into everything we were singing about. Looking around, I wasn’t the only one, either.

When we wrapped up our performance with an encore of “God Bless America,” we walked off stage and everyone I could see was smiling. It was a performance we had all just put our hearts and souls into and an experience of a lifetime.

Not only was I in the city of my dreams and getting to explore and see an amazing Broadway show like “The Lion King,” but I had sung in Carnegie Hall, the same stage that Elton John, The Beatles, Stevie Wonder and countless other artists had performed on. It was an experience I will cherish for the rest of my life.