Yahn’s 15 minutes on YouTube

FALLS VILLAGE — Ellie Yahn, a senior at Housatonic Valley Regional High School (HVRHS), may now claim the title of International Recording Artist.She joins 2,051 other people, from around the world, who comprise Eric Whitacre’s Virtual Choir 2.0 and submitted YouTube video clips of themselves singing one of the parts to “Sleep.”The video has been viewed more than 2 million times.“Sleep” is the second virtual choir piece conducted — assembled — and created by Whitacre.The first was a piece called “Lux Arumque,” with 185 singers from 12 countries participating.Participants in “Sleep” downloaded the music, watched an instructional video and then recorded their parts — in Yahn’s case, Alto 1 — while listening to a piano track on headphones and watching a video of Whitacre conducting.Yahn said she worked with HVRHS music teacher Tom Krupa to get the part down.She is going to the University of Maine at Orono in the fall and is very interested in the mechanics of sound recording. She’s recorded school concerts, her friends and herself and has an experiential approach: “I like to hit buttons and see what happens.”She plays guitar in the school’s jazz band and had a pivotal role (Miss Adelaide) in the Housatonic Musical Theater spring production of “Guys and Dolls.” Ellie is from Sharon and is the daughter of Joan and Walter Yahn. To see the video, go online to www.youtube.com and search for “virtual choir eric whitacre sleep ellie yahn.”

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