Such sight seems unthinkable but local officials and residents here are confident of accomplishing no less than that when they attempt to break the Guinness Book of World Records for the world's largest simultaneous sing in a single venue.
Koronadal Mayor Fernando Miguel said the city government will launch the city's 40,000-voice choir when the week-long Christmas Hinugyaw Festival here debuts on December 16.
Miguel said the local government has started to enlist at least 40,000 local residents coming from all walks of life to become part of the choir and the planned simultaneous singing of various Christmas songs.
The carolers will then lead the opening of the Christmas festivities and a gift-giving drive for the city's poor residents, he said.
He said they would utilize a two-kilometer stretch of the Alunan Avenue, the city's main thoroughfare, as the main venue of the Guinness try.
"At exactly six o'clock in the evening, all 40,000 of us will simultaneously sing various popular Chistmas songs and hopefully all the way to a new Guinness record," Miguel said.
The mayor said he would invite Guinness representatives and independent adjudicators to validate the event.
The Guinness World Record for a simultaneous sing was by a crowd of 15,352 set in Scotland on September 9, 1999. The event was a benefit for the Hansel Foundation, a Scottish charity for adults with special needs.
On September 8, 2001, a crowd watching Texas Tech-New Mexico football game in Lubbock, Texas reportedly tried to double the old Guinness record by singing the popular song "Peggy Sue."
The United Kingdom's Young Voices hold the current Guinness World Record for the largest simultaneous sing-along done in multiple venues. Some 293,978 children sang "Lean on Me" at 2:45 p.m. on December 9, 2005 in 1,616 locations en route to the new world record.
Miguel said he is very optimistic that the city will achieve its world record hopes due to the initial outpouring of support from various sectors in the area.
He said local school administrators, leaders of various community organizations and the city's 27 barangay councils have committed to help campaign for wider participation among local residents.
In December last year, the city government organized "a thousand voice choir" composed of students, teachers and local government employees as one of the highlights of the city's Christmas Festival.