Practicing in a parking garage turned out to be one of the best things to ever happen to the Montclair State University Singers.<\/p>\n
After being discovered by a producer while singing the Hallelujah chorus from Handel\u2019s Messiah<\/em> in the Red Hawk Deck and then featured on both The Today Show<\/em><\/a> and CBS Evening News<\/em> in September, the choir caught the attention of NBC\u2019s The Kelly Clarkson Show<\/em><\/a>. On October 29, millions of viewers saw Clarkson interview John J. Cali School of Music Director Anthony Mazzocchi, flanked by Choral Director Heather Buchanan and Accompanist Steven Ryan, followed by a performance by the Singers of the spiritual “Ain\u2019t No Grave” from the Amphitheater.<\/p>\n \u201cBeing featured on the Kelly Clarkson Show is very surreal and is also a great blessing,\u201d says freshman bass singer Christian Collazo. \u201cIt\u2019s amazing when someone you grew up listening to recognizes your work and congratulates you on your accomplishments.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis was the apogee of the semester for these kids,\u201d says Mazzocchi, who raved about Clarkson. \u201cShe is such a nice person. She’s really genuine.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMusic is the thing that keeps us connected. It\u2019s a universal language that helps us process all sorts of emotion,\u201d Clarkson told the audience before introducing the University Singers. \u201cIt heals us. So when the school of music at Montclair State University in New Jersey knew they had to continue remote learning, they got creative. They took things outside and found the best spot on campus for acoustics, a parking garage. That must\u2019ve sounded so rad! I\u2019m so jealous of that!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAs soon as we had to retreat into the digital realm this spring, we started following the science of COVID,\u201d Mazzocchi told Clarkson. \u201cSingers have a high aerosolization … but we also learned that the outdoors are our friend. And here at the University we have an amphitheater right outside and we have this open-aired parking garage. So here we are in our new school of music!\u201d<\/p>\n Although the segment was conducted remotely (which would have been the case with or without COVID-19; Clarkson films in Los Angeles), it had all the \u201cfeels\u201d of a live taping with the choir standing by in the Red Hawk Deck as they waited their turn \u2013 actress Natalie Portman was interviewed ahead of Mazzocchi for a separate segment.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was definitely interesting. We could see where we were in the queue,\u201d says Mazzocchi.<\/p>\n Collazo, who credits the University Singers for giving his freshman year some sense of normalcy, hopes the segment will help others: \u201cI hope that we can inspire other music programs that there is such a thing as safe learning and we can pave the way for future musicians all over the world.\u201d<\/p>\n Regarding the interest potentially generated by the episode, Mazzocchi says, \u201cI hope our servers can handle it. Two million people watch the show.\u201d<\/p>\n Why has the story of singers in a parking deck sparked so much media attention?<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s so relatable,\u201d says Heather Buchanan, the University\u2019s choral director. \u201cWe all know parking garages. And we all possess this instrument \u2013 our voice.\u201d<\/p>\n Says Mazzocchi, \u201cIt\u2019s been an exhausting semester, but these kids are over the moon.\u201d<\/p>\n The episode will be available shortly after broadcast here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n Watch the Montclair State University Singers\u2019 entire performance of \u201cAin\u2019t No Grave\u201d:<\/strong><\/p>\n