Madrigals have been a tradition at RHS for over 50 years. Everyone knows Madrigals’ dinner but it actually started as a tea to begin with. However, Mr. Spear, the choir director, shared that now there are about 1,000 people who attend Madrigal’s weekend in total. The dinners and teas are a big hit for RHS and the Rochester community loves watching it. “One of my favorite parts of Madrigal’s dinner is making beautiful music and sharing it with our community,” stated Mr. Spear. Most of the seats are sold out every night! Madrigal’s dinner is a compilation of a story, many songs, and food. Each year there is a different theme and a production is put on every year where the singers wear renaissance clothing and sing older versions of songs from this era. This is a tradition not just at RHS, but all over the world. As well as the tradition, Madrigals dinner is a very anticipated, important event for all Madrigals and alumni.
The Madrigals’ name is from the genre of music called a “Madrigal”. Mr. Spear said: “A Madrigal is a group of singers that sing acapella and is mostly known for their connection with the renaissance.” The weekend consists of food, a play, music, and costumes all inspired by that time period. Since the class mostly revolves around this production, the name “Madrigals” was perfect! This name is a little ironic however, because the acapella group would be a small group of people, maybe 4 or 5 singers. RHS Madrigals’ now has around 40 students, who all joined because of their pure love and passion for singing. This is interesting because the RHS Madrigals was made in the first place because people wanted to sing. Mr. Spear wasn’t sure exactly but he knows the first class was sometime during the 80’s. Since then to now, Madrigals has been a safe, fun, exciting experience for all of those involved. This is even an exciting experience for those who come to see the performances. Historian of Madrigals, Emma Buckles, agrees with Madrigals being an exiting experience. “My favorite part of Madrigals is the people that I am super close with that I never thought I would have a good connection with,” voiced Emma. She shared that she has loved every part of Madrigals over all.
Madrigals has so many helpers and a million things that go into the beautiful production. All of the parents build sets, help with costumes, make food, and run the dinners and teas. Parents spend all day hanging up chandeliers, while other parents count the stock of food and supplies the Madrigals have. However, Mr. Spear puts the most into this performance out of anyone, it is truly magnificent. Without him, the Madrigals would not be what it is today and so many kids would be lost. All of the Madrigals thank and praise Mr. Spear and all the other parents and volunteers.
Madrigals has always been a vital part of a lot of RHS’s students’ high school experience. Madrigals president, Josiah Anderson, has been a member of Madrigals for four years. “My favorite year was last year because I had a lot of senior friends that left last year,” said Josiah. Every year there are new Madrigals who join and old Madrigals who leave, but it still becomes like a family no matter what. Madrigals’ vice president, Claire Carley, has also been in Madrigals since her freshman year. Claire had a different perspective than Josiah but still has always loved Madrigals. “My favorite year was my sophomore year when all of my friends joined Madrigals that had been in the concert choir the year before,” shared Claire. Everyone in Madrigals has their people they mainly hangout with, but especially during Madrigals dinner everyone becomes super close and important to each other. A lot of current and past Madrigals have claimed that it is a second home to them. Many alumni still come to the dinners or teas now. Even though they have graduated, they still love to see what it has become. Mr. Spear even shared his favorite part of Madrigals since he is such a vital part of it. Without Mr. Spear, so many kids would miss out on this beautiful experience. There would also be a lot less musicality involved in high schoolers without Madrigals. “I think my favorite part is seeing it all come together after so much hard work and watching the kids support each other through everything.” Mr. Spear claimed this was his favorite part of Madrigal dinner. Since there is a lot going on for these students, they share it is hard to remember sometimes how incredible it is, until it all comes together. However, once it does, it is so magnificent to see.
Throughout Madrigal’s weekend, one of the most ongoing traditions that has been happening forever are senior speeches. Every year, each one of the seniors sits in front of the group and shares whatever they want about their experience with Madrigals. Most of these speeches consist of shout-outs, lots of crying, and pure love for the class. A lot of the Madrigals this year are seniors, so they have created close bonds with a lot of underclassmen and just everyone in general. “My advice to future Madrigals would be to talk to people,” Emma Buckles commented, “don’t stay in a little bubble because you never know where friendships could come out of.” Emma shared that she was very nervous her first year, but now she does not know who she would be without Madrigals. Claire also shares this thought, meeting her closest friends through Madrigals. “Enjoy the time you have with everyone because it really does go by fast,” proposes Claire. Since she has been in this class their entire high school experience, this advice is very valuable. Most people stray away from who they were in high school, but the bonds in Madrigals stay forever. “Sing out and do your best,” expresses Josiah to younger Madrigals, “Don’t hide behind upperclassmen.” This is advice that underclassmen should cherish. Madrigals is all about leadership, so every participant has to have some confidence in themselves that they’re there for a reason. Madrigals overall is an incredible learning experience and an amazing group that will hopefully continue for generations to come. The 2024 Madrigals production is the first weekend of December and these students would love to see you there!
