“What’s the difference between a piano and a fish?” Senior Katarina Zorko pauses. “You can’t ‘tune-a-fish!’”

At this, the audience laughs at how terrible Zorko’s pun is. Imagine the entire concert following this theme. The rest of the Spring Pops Concert on May 17 was a casual, charming performance that elicited snorts and giggles the entire way through.

Right from the top, the concert started off with a false start. Music played, students sang, and the curtains rolled open. Seconds later, the sound died down and the curtains frantically swung in the air as they shut themselves back up. Laughter could be heard as presenters senior Jeremy Irvin and Katarina Zorko introduced themselves and the concert as a two hour long singing event.

The choir’s singing wasn’t half bad either. The concert opened up with the song “Joy to the World,” with every single member of the musical department singing and swaying to the beat. High and low notes alike were hit strongly and loudly, making the song pleasant to listen to. The next song, “Lucky” (Jason Mraz), was also sung by the entire choir. Although initially the low notes were slightly awkward to listen to, the song quickly picked up speed and soon the auditorium was filled with harmonizing voices. Considering the sheer number of people singing, the phrasing was especially clear.

In total, there were eighteen songs sung, ranging from the old hit “Lollipop” (Chordettes) to songs from the modern movie “Enchanted.” While genre and era varied from song to song, a few things remained consistent – simply choreographed movements, props, and exaggerated movements kept eyes glued to stage.

One highlight of the show was the song “I’m Yours” (Jason Mraz), sung by a group of six freshmen boys. Unlike most of the other choir members who wore simple colored shirts, the boys wore dress shirts and bow ties. After a humorous introduction in which they imitated an answering machine, the six of them started singing and beatboxing after the beep.

Another favorite was the song “Price Tag” (Jessie J), sung by seniors Ryan Chen and Sophia Dinh. Dinh, wielding a tiny ukulele, played her instrument alongside Chen’s voice. She also inserted squeaky commentary in the middle of the song, interrupting yet complimenting Chen’s parts. At the end of the song, the two of them lingered on the stage. Chen pulled out flowers and asked Dinh to prom, to which she agreed to go with him. Cheers and hoots came from the audience.

“In the Still of the Night,” sung by Variations, elicited roars of laughter and cheering as well. The song sounded good, but so did most of the concert. What separated this performance from the others was the attitude the singers gave off during their moment in the limelight. Senior Paul Han, among others, went all out and flailed purposefully onstage. Others struck poses and broke into dance. It was clear that both the singers and the audience were having a blast.

Although the performance wasn’t always a beautiful hymn, it was definitely enjoyable. The Spring Pops Concert kept the atmosphere casual and engaged the audience as much as possible through the use of getting the audience to clap and so-bad-they’re-good jokes.