NILES — On Nov. 20 and 21, the 70 members of the South Bend Symphony Orchestra tuned their strings, woodwinds, brass and percussion in front of large audiences at the Morris Performing Arts Center in South Bend.

Behind their three rows of seats stood 75 members of Brandywine High School’s varsity choir and Treblaires, a bit nervous but well-practiced to sing three classic pieces with the professional music group.

The performances were the latest in a series of concerts Brandywine’s choral program has taken on this school year under the direction of Denise Boger. The Brandywine-symphony partnership was a first for the choir program.

Boger said the two days of collaborative music creation began with Christina Gibson, South Bend Symphony’s education director.

Gibson needed a choir to sing “Anvil Chorus” by Giuseppe Verdi, “O Fortuna” by Carl Orff and “In the Field Stood a Birch Tree” by Boris Feoktistov. So, she reached out to Brandywine, where she formerly worked as a band director. Boger accepted her offer.

Work began shortly after Brandywine choirs’ fall concerts, which ended Oct. 22.

“We have a Christmas concert in another week,” Boger said. “That took a lot of time out of Christmas practicing.”

Gibson said choirs usually sang in one-part harmony with the orchestra. Boger had her choral group sing in three.

While “Anvil Chorus” and “In the Field Stood a Birch Tree” were fairly easy to learn, Boger and students said “O Fortuna” posed a challenge. Like the others, it was sung in three parts, meaning three groups of the collective choir each sang different lines of music, but the song was also in Latin.

When students arrived to rehearse with the orchestra before performing in front of the crowd, they said they faced challenges that a typical choir class at Brandywine could not help with.

“It was really nerve-wracking,” said 10th grader Allysah Morrow, an alto. “The conductor, she conducts so different than Ms. Boger does. It’s hard to follow.”

Morrow said the acoustics of the large performance venue were different, too, making the sound the choir heard different than on the usual stages they performed on.

The students were also not used to singing alongside so many live instruments. Boger said her students learned to project their voices well thanks to the two-night performance.

“The symphony did not cut us any slack. Let’s put it that way,” she said.

These challenges were in addition to the pressure some singers felt performing with a professional musical group in front of a large audience.

Boger said the choral group performed well, although they were hard on themselves after listening to their first night’s performance. That gave them motivation, she said, which later turned into confidence and appreciation.

“It was scary at first, like when we got in front of the people and started singing, but it was fun,” said ninth-grader Taija Thomas, an alto.

The performances ended up producing memorable moments for 11th-grade alto Ava Doctor and 11th-grade tenor Allex Renner.

“I think walking up onto the stage and seeing the view from the stage onto the crowd was amazing,” Renner said.

“As a choir, we all came together a bit more,” Doctor said. “It was definitely a really good bonding experience. We know our sound a little bit more.”

Tenors Gabe Purucker, ninth grade, and Jacob Devine, 10th grade, said they enjoyed hearing reactions from children in the audience, some of which they heard while on stage performing.

Doctor added that the experience prepped her and her peers for a busy and challenging season.

For Small Business Saturday Nov. 30, choir members sang in downtown Niles while people shopped and took part in Christmas festivities.

On Sunday, Dec. 8, the high school choirs and band will host their Christmas concert, featuring songs such as “Fruitcake” by The Superions and “Mary Sat A-Rockin’” by Greg Gilpin.

Then, with barely a breath mark to recover, Boger will lead choir program members through more choral events, such as the Michigan School Vocal Music Association’s solo and ensemble festival.