The Art of Reinvention

By Rich-Tone Chorus Music Staff

WE’RE BAAACCCKKKKKK! Actually, the Rich-Tones never left the building — we just took one of life’s scenic detours.

Let’s be honest here. It is no easy feat to win an International contest. And the Rich-Tones have been blessed to have won it four times. However, winning doesn’t happen by chance, and in our case it came about through good ole hard work, careful planning, blood, sweat and tears (some in larger quantities than others). It’s not easy to top yourself, much less keep up with the rest of the competition, who aren’t exactly sitting back on their heels. And this year’s competition was at an all-time high. So, of course we’ve been asked by many people, “How did you do it … AGAIN?!” Here it is in a nutshell.

Self-Analysis — After previous International competitions, our director, Dale Syverson, and the chorus leadership took a hard look inward and focused on what was working, and what wasn’t. We chose to sit out a year to regroup. Everything from music selection to roles and responsibilities was examined. As a result, numerous changes were made in all aspects of performance preparation. Every decision focused on what was best for the chorus. No individual agendas were allowed.

Re-Building From the Basics … Vocally — This is Barbershop. It’s ENTIRELY about sound and vocal production. While the Rich-Tones have fairly strict audition requirements, we made sure our new members received continual training and instruction in proper vocal production and the barbershop craft. To accomplish this, increased focus was placed on making sure our music staff mastered upper level skills, so they could continue training during sectionals and outside of rehearsals. It was their job to reinforce what Dale was teaching weekly.

Thinking Outside of the Box — You’ll never know if something will work until you try it. We tried several different types of qualifying programs for vocal and visual, attendance requirements, etc. Some ideas worked, some didn’t, but we had to be willing to give new things a try.

Quality Product — If you want a quality product, be prepared to pay for it. This includes music arrangements, coaching, costumes and the visual plan. You can’t make silk out of a sow’s ear — no matter how many sequins you glue on it! We sought creative, custom arrangements by arrangers who know how to showcase our strengths. We designed our own costumes and then had them professionally made. Our main choreographer is a dance instructor who grew up around barbershop, and therefore understands how to design a dynamic visual plan that compliments and enhances the vocal plan.

Quality Coaching — It is so important to surround yourself with positive, knowledgeable coaches who will tell you the truth. The Rich-Tones have a number of coaches, and each has become invaluable for their unique observations and talents. While some address specific categories, they all speak a similar language. We’ve built relationships with these coaches over the years, and since they know our capabilities they are relentless in demanding that we achieve our full potential. We wouldn’t have it any other way! The flipside to this coin is that if you spend the money to be coached, make sure you follow up and make serious headway in mastering the skills they asked for, and demonstrate those skills the next time they come to coach.
Infusion of Youth — We have a good span of ages in our chorus, and welcome the young members who bring new enthusiasm, a fresh outlook and lots of energy. And it’s contagious! They are also, literally, the future of our chorus, as they are in yours. It behooves us all to mentor them well.

The value of “reps” and building stamina — If there was one message of need from the chorus as we drew nearer to competition, it was the need for complete “reps” of our competition sets. Once you have established the skills and the plan necessary for vocal and visual performance, rep them together over and over. Our visual chairman took great pains to develop a visual plan to complement and enhance the vocals, while maintaining the Rich-Tone style of performing.

There STILL is no “I” in Team — This truly is a team sport. The Rich-Tones made good use of all types of mentors in this contest preparation. The mentors took the time to assist everyone who needed help to become the best performer they could possibly be. There were so many members involved on every level, helping each other both visually and vocally, that even the mentors were being mentored!
If you want different results, change is necessary — Change is good and keeps everyone on their toes. Train new people — they bring new ideas. What was good enough to win last year’s contest is your starting point for preparing for this year’s contest. As soon as we passed a goal in qualifying, the next time around we were asked for more. It’s not enough to just know the notes, words and breaths; now add dynamics, texture changes, etc. We were constantly raising the standard, and 2007 is a brand new level!

Individual Responsibility — Like so many clichés, it’s easy to say, but not so easy to do. And it makes the biggest difference. This year the Rich-Tones made huge strides in expecting more of themselves on all levels. It was, quite frankly, no longer a hobby for most of our members. They had too much time and energy invested to be considered anything short of professional!

Be Part of the Solution — These past couple of years it wasn’t just the leadership trying to inspire and motivate. There was a definite “ground swell” from within the chorus to get everyone excited, motivated and having more fun! If a member saw a need for something, they felt free to do something about it. We had a party DJ who played fun music before rehearsals. We had cheerleaders of all ages who would introduce our director and our coaches like it was Saturday night at the WWE. Our baritone section leaders began sending e-mails after each rehearsal, reminding us what we learned and needed to fix for the next rehearsal — very clever and amusing emails the entire chorus began reading. Everyone remembered more because it became –yes that’s right– FUN!

Believe all things are possible if you believe they are!

And there it is — the yellow brick road to our fourth shiny gold “this is the most expensive piece of jewelry you’ll ever own” medal.

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