Agawam High School - Sachem Yearbook (Agawam, MA)

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Show Choir The Show Choir, consisting of 47 mem- bers, sang and danced under the direction of Mr. Files. The group, made up of hard working Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors, met every day, plus one night a week. They performed vocally with choreography, in practice for various competitions and musi- cals. The group performed in various con- certs, such as Top 40, Bop-n-Pop, and the Broadway Review. They have also won first place at U.N.H. three years in a row, along with first place finishes in Waltham and in Wildwood. The group was helped greatly by President, Senior Tony Joseph, and stu- dent choreographer. Senior Beth Tynan. The AHS Show Choir in action Vocal Ensemble The Vocal Ensemble is a small group, around 18 members, directed by Mr. Files. This group met every day and worked together as a select choir to learn music and how to work with others. The Vocal Ensemble practiced hard with hopes of singing at Christ- mas time and at Bop-n-Pop. They also worked long and hard with the desire of participating and competing in the Jazz Choir festival. Just hangin' around

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Jazz Band The Jazz Band met every other day, under the direction of Mr. Scott Thomson. The members wre given the op- portunity to play music in a jazz atmosphere. The 1986 Jazz Band was lead by senior President joe Bourbonnais and Vice-President Chris Hamel. They received help from Mike Smith as manager and Jodi Pirnie as secretary. The players revealed their talents winning second place in the Western Mass, competition and first place in Virgin- ia's Dixie Classic Jazz division and best overall in Virginia. They were also given the privilege of playing at Chez Josef for the Chamber of Commerce Breakfast, Syracuse Jazz Festival and Montreal's Festival of Music. Mr. Thompson-What's with the third tuba? How about a little sax? Back L to R - Chris Hamel, Vice President; Mike Smith, manager; Joe Bourbonnais, President; Jodie Pirnie, Secretary Concert Band The 1986-1987 Concert Band, headed by Mr. Thomson, met every other day during school with extra rehearsals during concert season. President Melissa Martin and Vice- President Joe Bourbannais helped the band perform successfully at the Winter Concert, “Pops Concert, and various concert competi- tions. The major award the band received was a first place division title at the Virginia Beach competition. 28 The Conert Band Officers The 1986-1987 Concert band

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Chorus The members of the 1986-1987 Chorus The 1986-1987 Chorus sang and performed under the direc- tion of Mr. Files. This group met every day, practicing to per- form for the Christmas and spring concerts. They learned to perform at social concerts and to perform professionally. Jazz Dancers The Jazz Dancers are a dance group advised by Mr. Files. They met every day, with extra rehears- als before performances. Their main function is to perform choreography and dance routines, learn basic techniques, and to realize how to perform like professionals. The group has performed for Bop-n-Pop conerts and for shows at the elemen- tary schools and Junior High. The A.H.S. Jazz Dancers 30 The group hams it up