The Power and Glory of Song

"Being in this choir really prepared me for what I'm doing now," said David Blount, 18, of Upper Marlboro, a freshman at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. "It was more than just the choir, though. It was Mr. Murphy.

"He saw through me when I didn't see my own potential. He makes us know we can accomplish big things."

Martin Foddrell, 17, a tenor from Suitland who will make the trip to New York, said Murphy "encourages you to do your best and makes us understand that singing is a way of sharing a gift from God."

"We work hard and we keep at it until we get it right. Learning that has helped me to know that I should always do the best that I can, no matter what the task."

And contrary to conventional wisdom, singing in the choir isn't considered, well, nerdy, at Largo.

"The whole school respects the choir," said Foddrell, a senior. "They know that God has blessed our voices so much. And they can't say anything bad about the choir because we are always on point."

Murphy, a renowned gospel performer in his own right, said he is trying to nurture young ladies and gentlemen as much as he is trying to develop singers. He takes his singers into as many different venues as possible to give them the experience of performing before a variety of audiences and to expose them to places and people with whom they might not otherwise cross paths.

In their trademark robes of robin's-egg blue, the choir has performed over the years on television, before then-first lady Hillary Clinton and at such public venues as Union Station. The singers traveled to London and Disneyland and shared the stage with such gospel powerhouses as Tremaine Hawkins, Richard Smallwood and Myrna Summers.

The full choir numbers almost 100, but only students who are in good standing are allowed to tour. That means being disciplined about showing up for rehearsals, doing theory homework and following Murphy's directions regarding posture, articulation and other particulars.

The students' repertoire extends from pop to classical, but singing the gospel is what they believe they do best.

The program for the New York trip includes 16 songs: "Battle Hymn"; "Jesus Loves Me," a percussion-driven Caribbean-style gospel tune written by Murphy; "His Mercy Endures Forever," a modern gospel piece that is the choir's trademark; "Hands Up!" a hip-hop gospel ditty, and classical pieces, including a tribute to those who died in the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.

Through the choir, Murphy said, his students learn to love and appreciate music, develop their talent for singing and work cooperatively toward a goal.

Like mastering "Battle Hymn of the Republic."