The Elementium concert was a performance of firsts that took place in the Dvorak Concert Hall at the Doudna Fine Arts Center Sunday afternoon.

Jason Harris, Grammy award-winning conductor, said this concert was his first one at Eastern, and he said he was very proud of everyone who performed.

“It’s just remarkable to bring together veterans and then people who are freshmen new to the school and getting used to a whole new routine and then on top of that people who have never sung before in their life all into one large ensemble,” Harris said. “To come up with a performance like that is really really beautiful.”

Harris said he never takes credit for a performance as a conductor.

“(A performance) is only as successful as what the students want to put into a performance,” Harris said. “They put their everything into it.”

Gaige Davis, a tenor singer in the concert choir and mixed chorus, said he thought the concert was executed well.

“I think it went amazing,” Davis said. “It was very fluid.”

The concert was Davis’ first college performance, and he said he is ready to do more.

“I’m so ready for music and learning more stuff,” Davis said. “I just really love singing.”

Ciera Terry, a soprano singer in the mixed chorus, also said she thought the concert went really well.

“We’ve been practicing since the beginning of the school year,” Ciera Terry said. “Every choir had their own piece to work with like the elements.”

Ciera Terry’s mother, Erma Terry, said she also really enjoyed the performance.

“It started off fantastic with the first number,” Erma Terry said. “With the rhythm and everything, it was coordinated really nice.”

Tyler Clark, a bass singer for the Camerata Singers, said the performance was phenomenal.

“We have a lot of very hard-working musicians in all the choral ensembles and a lot of new people as well,” Clark said. “It’s just great to see all these new people joining and fitting in really well and performing just as well.”

According to Clark, the intermingled format of the performance was yet another first for many of the performers.

“This is a totally different concert format for us,” Clark said. “Normally one ensemble would go after another, but I think it’s interesting how they’re all kind of interspersed throughout the concert.”

Harris said he chose to use a different format to change up the typical format of a performance.

“Last year I tried something different at the institution I was before where we just alternated as the concert went along,” Harris said. “I found that the flow was much better and the energy between the choirs was much more intense, and it didn’t feel so choppy. I did it this way because I wanted that sense of constant flow between each ensemble.”

Shellie Gregorich, the chair of the music department, said she thought the performance was beautiful.

“I loved the selection and the repertoire and the pacing, how it moved from piece to piece,” Gregorich said. “I think the sound quality is beautiful. They’re really blending well.”

Gregorich said she had seen the program and knew what Harris was planning for the performance prior to attending.

“I was just really interested to hear the music and be here to support the students,” Gregorich said.

Mercury Bowen can be reached at 581-2812 or mjbowen@eiu.edu.