These days when Joy Greene sings, she envisions herself beneath the vaulted ceiling of the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris.
The 17-year-old soprano, who practices her parts in blue plaid sneakers, can hardly be accused of a pipe dream.
She and 12 of her classmates, members of the Annapolis Area Christian School Madrigal Singers, have been selected to join an international musical tour of Europe commemorating the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II.
The singing tour, billed as the World Liberation Music Celebration, is to take place June 8-19. It will involve students from around the country and from Allied nations. Although the Notre Dame performance is not definite yet, performances are scheduled for London, Brussels, Belgium, and Paris, Normandy and the Loire Valley in France.
"You can make such great music in a cathedral like Notre Dame," said Joy, who who gets school credit as a member of the Madrigal Singers. "Really, it would be great just to perform in all the little cathedrals that have really great acoustics."
Only one thing stands in their way: $40,000 in travel money.
The Annapolis singers, the only group representing Maryland on the tour, is promoting the European event with fliers and raising money at a slew of Christmas concerts in the Annapolis area. They've picked up $3,000 in contributions.
After a holiday break, the singers will step up their fund raising and will concentrate on crafting a new program for the European tour.
Although the group started out singing madrigals, its repertoire contains classical chorales and contemporary Christian music.
"We've done some jazzy versions of 'O Come O Come Emmanuel,' " said Cindy Bauchspies, who organized the choral group four years ago. "We have a wide variety of music in our repertoire."
The World Liberation Music Celebration is to honor veterans of World War II and victims of Nazi atrocities.
Music Celebrations International, an Arizona-based festival organizer, is setting up the event, with help from Allied nations and the Department of Defense World War II Commemorative Committee.
In addition to their many performances, the Annapolis teens will have time for sightseeing and cultural exchanges with students from Great Britain, France and the Netherlands.
"I like singing for big groups and getting their attention," said Steve Gatdula, 16, a junior from Severna Park. "It just will be so great buying things over there, meeting people and just getting to know a whole new group."
On the local front, Ms. Bauchspies is handling all the details, from organizing the fund raising to dealing with the chorus' day-to-day operations.
On a recent morning during the group's practice at the school, Ms. Bauchspies was putting the finishing touches on the group's Christmas carols. This day, the problem was the line "Now bring us some figgy pudding."
The boys in the choir were embarrassed about singing any line with the word "figgy" in it. Ms. Bauchspies quelled the laughter long enough to smooth out the chords in the song and conduct a group prayer. Shortly after the prayer was over, it was back to the business of singing and school work.
But even as they found themselves swamped by midterms and holiday concerts, the singers were quick to turn their thoughts toward the spring and their hoped-for European trip.
Classmate Christy Ackerman said the music lessons gave her a sense of purpose at the school. "Music is definitely my niche in life," said the 17-year-old senior from Glen Burnie.
The group has got its work cut out for it if it hopes to get to Europe next year, she said. "We're all really excited, but as Cindy told us, we're going to have to sing for our supper."
To make a contribution, call the Annapolis Area Christian School's development director at (410) 266-8251. Or send a check to Madrigal Singers, Annapolis Area Christian School, 716 Bestgate Road, Annapolis 21401.