Mountain View High School’s 16-member a cappella choir won the chance to sing on stage with Foreigner on Sunday at ilani.
Mountain View Express, the name of the audition-only group, is one of six choirs at the east Vancouver high school, said Jenny Bell, choir director.
“They are an award-winning choir,” Bell said. “But this is the first time they’ll be famous.”
The choir entered a contest for high school choirs offered by Portland radio station K103. They will sing Foreigner’s classic power ballad, “I Want to Know What Love Is” with the band.
If You Go
What: Foreigner “Double Vision: Then & Now,” with accompaniment by Mountain View Express choir
When: 7 p.m. Sunday
Where: Cowlitz Ballroom at ilani, 1 Cowlitz Way, Ridgefield
Tickets: $79 and $99; ilaniresort.com
Bell said she heard about the contest on a Monday morning. She told the Express choir, which rehearses at 7:30 a.m., about the opportunity and the group decided to enter.
“For some reason, they know who Foreigner is. I do not know why,” she said.
You could call Foreigner a classic rock band but using the word “oldies” wouldn’t be inaccurate. The band formed in 1976. The TV show “Glee,” which ended its run in 2015, introduced several Foreigner songs to a younger generation.
“We downloaded the song that morning, learned it in 15 minutes and sent it in,” Bell said. “We didn’t expect to win.”
The choir will receive $500 donated by Foreigner.
An ilani spokeswoman said the concert is all but sold out, although single tickets may still be available.
The concert was intended to include original members of the band. But Lou Gramm, original lead singer, has a medical issue and won’t be able to perform Sunday.
The “Double Vision: Then & Now” tour will go on with other original members, who will join Mick Jones and the current lineup of Foreigner.
