Senior southeast choir group take coronavirus Year 12 challenge head-on a cappella style

A St Michael’s Grammar choir has decided the school’s closure and distancing won’t stop the music. So they made a fun musical tribute to their cohort to inspire them to keep soldiering on with their studies. See the video.

The St Michaels Grammar Murer's Men choir group performed Billy Joel’s The Longest Time in a fun video to cheer up their school mates. Photo: Kaemon Wilcox

Some of southeast Melbourne’s finest VCE virtuosos are singing their way through their biggest school challenge yet and are encouraging other students to do the same.

The St Michael’s Grammar boy’s choir — Murer’s Men — is aiming for high scores and high notes in 2020, as they go head-on with online learning with thousands of other VCE students amid the coronavirus lockdown.

And with no more rehearsals on the calendar, the group decided to take their craft to the computer screen — creating an a cappella performance of Billy Joel’s The Longest Time.

The video, which ends with a montage dedicated to the school’s senior year, was uploaded to social media just a few days ago and has since clocked close to 4,500 views.

Group member Kaemon Wilcox, 17, who edited and produced the project for more than 100 hours, said the boys were disappointed that all of their future performances were cancelled but were still successful in finding a way to be together.

“We did a group call to brainstorm ideas of what we could do … we knew with (COVID-19) challenges we wanted to do something collaborative,” he said.

“It’s hard because usually we’d be together and bouncing off each other with ideas.

“But everyone filmed their part and sent it back to me … in some way we were still together.”

St Michael’s Grammar Year 12 student Kaemon Wilcox spent 100 hours editing and producing his choir group’s a capella video.

Mr Wilcox is studying media, further maths, English, music performance and drama and hopes to travel and work overseas before coming home to study a course involving creative performing at university.

He urged other students across Australia to see a bright side amid lockdown restrictions and encouraged them to get on board with song-style collaboration hit.

MORE NEWS

CORONAVIRUS PORT PHILLIP: LIVE BLOG

FRANKSTON BROTHEL FINED FOR COVID-19 BREACH

MORDIALLOC MAN’S MARATHON AROUND HOUSE

“The message we want to get out is that although we’re stuck at home, there’s positives that can still come out of it,” he said.

“There’s a lot of Year 12s around Australia that are really disappointed because traditions won’t be exactly the same.

“But although our year will be different, it doesn’t mean we can’t come together.”