The eight choirs remaining in this year's All Together Sing choir competition took to the stage on Sunday to perform contemporary songs.

Unfortunately, however, there were only a few outstanding performances and the schools will mostly be remembered for their lacklustre performances.

The choir from Bog Walk High School is one such choir. Their performance of R. Kelly's IBelieve I Can Fly left much to be desired after it became painfully obvious that both lead singers did not know the words of the song.

Unprepared

The rest of the choir, however ,gave a decent representation of themselves, but it was simply not enough to hide the fact that they were not prepared.

Guest judge, saxophonist Dean Fraser, highlighted that they were unprepared, but said it was a "reasonable effort". Resident judges Lileth Sewell and Michael Sean Harris shared that view, with both highlighting the choir's problem with diction.

Rusea's pleasant rendition

Rusea's High School opened the show with a good rendition of another R. Kelly tune, The World's Greatest. The choir had a pleasant sound, but both Fraser and Harris thought the soloists did not blend well. Sewell praised the males in the group and said the choir had a "good sound".

Next up was Albert Town High with its take on One Republic's Too Late to Apologise. A bit of Keyshia Cole's I Remember was also mixed in. The soloist who delivered that section of the song was convincing, but she was sometimes overwhelmed by the choir.

The choir on the whole, however, had a good sound, but the arrangement could have been more creative.

Harris thought the choir had some strong voices, but said they needed to enunciate more as he sometimes "wondered if you were speaking English". Fraser and Sewell agreed that the choir should have become softer when the soloist came in.

Creative Manchester

Manchester High gave one of the best performances with an interesting and creative take on the theme. They did a mix called Then and Now, combining songs from yesterday, with today's genres of music.

After a lively rock-and-roll segment with songs like Tooty Fruity, they moved into an original rap performed to the beat of Lil Wayne's A Milli and then Rihanna and T.I.'s My Life.

The performance was very entertaining and Fraser told the choir, "Mi love it. Trus' mi. I thought the rapper was a little weak, but overall, I loved the changes and I loved the thought." Sewell and Harris also had good things to say about this choir, but Harris pointed out the importance of being able to sing properly while moving around.

Clarendon College also delivered a good performance. They did a lively and convincing rendition of Ain't No Mountain High Enough.

The two lead singers, a male and female, were outstanding and had beautiful voices, which added greatly to the performance.

Clarendon nice

The choir, too, had a nice sound, but Sewell warned against them "outsinging" the soloists. Harris said: "Y'all sound nice. You blended really well." He also praised the soloists. Fraser thought the male soloist was too shy and did not own his "fantastic" voice enough. He said the balance was good, as was the performance overall.

Two-time champions Oberlin High gave a nice performance of Mario's Do Right, with good singing by the soloists and the choir, while Merl Grove High delivered a new twist on Mariah Carey's Anytime You Need a Friend. But though it was creative, this new twist and beat did not go down well with Harris, who thought the choir's version did not improve on the original.

Careful of vocal cords

Sewell warned the soloists to be careful with their vocal cords, adding that they did not have to shout to sing loudly. Fraser thought the choir lacked "energy and punch" and said the performance "didn't come across to me".

Africa, by Toto, a usually lively and entertaining song, did not come across that way in the hands of Mona High School. The arrangement lacked creativity and the song was delivered with no lustre.

Fraser said: "I think you missed the rain completely. It had some little spots of drizzle; there were little drops there in the chorus."

One choir will be eliminated this week, leaving seven to compete for the top spot. With the average performances, however, it's hard to tell which choir that will be.