Current Release: April 28th, 2009 | Vol. XXX Iss. 10

Photos by Meghan see

Student sings at Tides Game

By Jordan bondurant

jebondurant@vwc.edu

Every performer has that fantasy in which he gets to sing in front of a sold-out crowd in a jam-packed stadium. For me this fantasy, while toned down in many aspects, became a reality.

Being a performer, I have had many experiences that helped me in so many ways, because no performance is ever the same. Each performance brings an entirely new experience, and that is what makes it all worth while. I had one of the best experiences so far as a performer when I got to sing the National Anthem before the Norfolk Tides game on April 23.

The whole thing started back in September, when I first got the chance to sing before a soccer game. Then, as I had the chance to do it more often, I became a lot more comfortable and confident in myself.

Singing the National Anthem at anything can be a very nerve-wracking experience for many reasons. One is because it is such a difficult song to sing, another because of the fact that it is our National Anthem, and finally because of the crowd before which the performer is singing. People always ask me if I ever get nervous, and honestly, I do, but the main way performers get rid of nerves is just through performing. There is no real remedy. It s all about being comfortable and confident in one s self.

All digression aside, the opportunity of singing the National Anthem at a Tides game came back in January, and all it really took was just a little boredom one night in my dorm room. I was on their web site one night in January just checking out the site when I came across a link that said,  National Anthem Auditions. So immediately I clicked on it and read what I had to do to be able to perform.

Now, there were two ways in which someone could audition. One way was they could set up a time to audition in person at Harbor Park, and the other way was they could submit a recording singing the National Anthem.

So one weekend in February, I went home and decided to tell my mom and brother about the whole deal. After a long conversation about it all, my older brother Brian and I set up a makeshift recording studio in our bathroom. Brian is a recording buff, and without him I probably would not have even gotten the chance to sing. While the equipment he has is not the stuff the professionals use to make albums, it is probably the best as far as amateur and semi-pro goes.

Once we had our  booth set up, it was time to make some musical magic. I put on the headphones and went to work. One take was all that was needed. We formatted it and put it in an e-mail to await a decision.

A couple of weeks later, I got the long awaited e-mail inviting me to Harbor Park to come audition in person. April 13 could not come any faster.

When people say  No pressure, most of the time they are meaning it in a sarcastic kind of way. When I walked with the representative from the Tides through the door and looked out into the empty stadium, I knew there was no pressure. Piece of cake.

After the audition, the date was set. April 23 it was going down.

After letting pretty much the entire world know what I was doing, the day finally came. I arrived at the ballpark to see my mom and little brother standing there waiting for me. After getting to our seats, I made my way with Marlin Chronicle photographer Meaghan See to the waiting area.

As time drew closer, a little nervousness actually set in. I could feel the blood rushing through my veins. I took one last look the words for good measure, which drew a chuckle from Meghan and the Tides worker.

The man in the blue polo handed me the microphone, and I took my place behind home plate, facing the crowd.

 Our National Anthem is being sung for us tonight by Mr. Jordan Bondurant, the public address announcer said.

I heard the gathering of VWC students, who got to come to the game thanks to WAC, cheer after he said that.

I took a deep breath, smiled, and, the rest, as they say, was history.