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High Country Chorus Sings for its Largest Audience
High Country Chorus of Wheat Ridge, Colo., under the direction of Jacque Reinig, had the honor of being invited to sing the National Anthem at the Denver Broncos' first preseason home game. On Aug. 25, dressed in the Broncos' signature colors of blue and orange, 45 Sweet Adelines stood proudly on Invesco Field at Mile High stadium and captivated a crowd of more than 75,000 fans with a majestic performance of The Star Spangled Banner. Not only could the chorus be seen from the stands, they were also featured on the JumboTron scoreboard screen. As the chorus’ final chord rang out, the crowd, already on its feet, broke into a deafening and thunderous roar of applause. What a lovely and grand night it was — a truly awesome night for singing.

High Country’s Creative Ladies at Play (CLAP) team and show committee produced an exciting theme performance about the musical rhythms of life for their show on Nov. 10. In April, High Country Chorus took first place in the Region 8 Division AA chorus competition in Colorado Springs. Its score of 597 qualified the chorus to compete this summer in San Antonio at the very last Sweet Adelines International Education Symposium. As the holidays and the New Year pass by, and as visions of this year’s competitions dance in their heads, the chorus is fine-tuning its contest package while quartets also prepare for next year’s competitions. 

Of course, none of these endeavors are possible without the characteristics possessed by each member of High Country Chorus: commitment, dedication, loyalty, and responsibility. Their motto is: Amateurs practice until they get it right – High Country practices until we can’t get it wrong!

Dana Tracy, communications manager
High Country Chorus
Region 8
Photo courtesy of David Shouldice

Oklahoma Jubilee Chorus Wows Branson
Oklahoma Jubilee was honored to sing on the Gatlin Brothers/Lennon Sisters Christmas Show in Branson at the Welk Theatre on Nov. 16, to a packed theater! The chorus was sent finale music to learn and after doing a 30-minute performance in the lobby prior to the show, joined them in the finale to a standing ovation. People went out of their way to compliment us after the performance. Even the next day as we stopped in restaurants and stores around Branson we received several comments on our performance on the Gatlin show the night before. One woman shouted, "You were awesome!” We were also invited to sing at the start of the SIX (formerly the Knutson Brothers) performance the following afternoon. What a hoot!

Barbara Moore
Oklahoma Jubilee Chorus
Region 25

Coastline Harmony Chorus (UK)
30th Anniversary, 1977 - 2007
In 1977, Coastline Harmony Chorus received its charter on the International stage in London where they were thrilled to be invited to sing that year. The event was televised in 1977 and headquarters conveniently scheduled the convention in a location close to the chorus. At that time we were called The Brighton Ladies, but this was changed in 1984 to Coastline Harmony Chorus. However, none of this would have happened if it had not been for a small group of woman who formed their own chorus in 1973 called the Sussex Harmonetts, who grew into the Sweet Adelines International Coastline Harmony Chorus (UK) of today. 

In 2007 and 30 years after receiving our charter, we can now boast how lucky we are to have Rebecca Thorpe as our director. Rebecca, who joined us in 2004, was previously a member of Purbrook Harmony Chorus and a quartet gold medallist who represented the UK at the 1998 International Convention in Nashville. She is also the youngest director in our region, and under her direction in 2006 Coastline Harmony chorus (UK) broke back into the medal tables and was delighted to receive second place small chorus medals. We had 28 singing members on stage and of those, six were singing with us for the first time. Our membership has now grown to 38.

It doesn’t seem that long ago we marked our 25th anniversary, but we celebrated our 30th in style in October by holding a dinner/dance. Attending this event were three of our founders who still sing with Coastline - Jackie Collier, Pauline Wakeling and Valerie Paddock, shown in that order cutting the cake. 

We look forward with pride knowing that through all the highs and lows of the past 30 years, Coastline Harmony will continue to shine for many years to come.

Sue Goodwin
Coastline Harmony Chorus
Region 31

Capitaland Chorus Members Are CBS Contest Finalists
By Casey Seiler
Capitaland chorus members’ version of Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody earned kudos from CBS' The Early Show. Six members recorded themselves performing Queen's chamber rock opera Bohemian Rhapsody and ended up as finalists in “The Boyz II Men A Cappella Quest,” a competition sponsored by The Early Show. Five finalists were selected by the show's producers and Boyz II Men's record label which included the six members of Capitaland chorus, calling themselves, “BoRhap.” You can see a video online at http://www.cbsnews.com featuring a brief excerpt of all five finalists. Click on The Early Show and scroll down to click on “The Five A Cappella Finalists.” The singers in the video are Lori Snow, Nancy Plaat, Beth LaBarge, Judy Huff, Fran Pinto and Cheryl Chalk. Although BoRhap did not win the contest, being chosen in the top five is an honor for them.

Lori Snow
Capitaland Chorus
Region 16

Features

A New Year's Resolution to Sing
Every New Year you hear people talking about their resolutions to lose weight, quit smoking, exercise more and eat healthier. Those resolutions will improve your health if you stick with them, but most of us give up just a few months into the year because we lack motivational support. More people are starting to consider resolutions that include motivational hobbies and activities, such as singing, to reduce stress and ultimately improve health.

In the past six months more than 1,000 new members have joined the Sweet Adelines ranks; many of them vowing to sing as their New Year’s resolution. Whether it’s the joy of singing, the music education, the time to do something for themselves, the unwavering motivation of others, or the life-long friendships formed that make it easier for newcomers to stick with it, there is no doubt that Sweet Adelines is an extraordinary outlet for women.

When you ask members about their first chorus rehearsal, one out of five of them use the phrase, “I was hooked.” New member Emily Oppenhuizen from Fenton Lakes Chorus in Flint, Mich., grew up singing. After marrying and having a child, pursuing her passion for music was put on hold. ”I needed Sweet Adelines," she said. "I went to my first rehearsal and became addicted.”

New members are finding out that joining Sweet Adelines is not just something they wanted to do but something they need to maintain a fulfilling, balanced, healthy lifestyle. There are millions of women throughout the world who have that passion to sing and who most of all need time that’s their own to enjoy. These women don’t know about Sweet Adelines and they are waiting to hear about it. A new year is a great time to pass on to others what inspires you about your chorus.

Prospective members would be knocking down your doors if they understood that Sweet Adelines is more than a group of singing women. It is a few hours a week of freedom, a slice of life that is theirs alone, a place to let loose, build true friendships, sing their hearts out, and for most it’s where they can go to find the motivation, inspiration, encouragement and happiness to fill them up for the week. It makes them better people. In the New Year make it your resolution to help someone else become a better person. Tell them about the positive impact it is having on so many women who have made a New Year’s resolution to sing.

Election Results Are In
The election of four members to the International Board of Directors for a three-year term beginning May 1, 2008, has concluded with the largest percentage of chapter participation in the last seven years. The final tally showed that 486 of 563 chapters, or 86.32 percent, cast their ballots.

Those elected were: Betty Clipman, Region 10; Marilyn Cox, Region 8; Cammi MacKinlay, Region 26, and Renee Porzel, Region 3. The International Board of Directors also appointed Patty Cobb Baker from Region 21 and Harriette Walters from Region 15 to serve for one year on the International Board of Directors beginning May 1, 2008.

In the spirit of the election regional management teams throughout the organization encouraged chapters to hold election meetings and submit their ballots in time to be included in the official tally. According to corporate secretary Anita Larsen, for the first time ever, chapters were able to submit their ballots electronically. Close to 100 ballots were submitted via e-mail following the process provided in the election mailing.

Young Singers Foundation
The Young Singers Foundation was recently recognized for its efforts in bringing wellness to children. The foundation was very warmly received by the American Music Therapy Association (AMTA) at the opening session of its annual conference in Louisville, Ky. It was a valuable experience for foundation management committee members Julie Kendrick and Toula Oberlies as they met with the AMTA's leadership to speak about ways of strengthening support for music therapy. Julie and Toula had the opportunity to visit with many music therapists, music therapy students, as well as professors and representatives of several colleges and universities that offer degrees in music therapy.

You can help talented young people obtain a quality music education!
Please visit http://www.youngsingersfoundation.org

Queens' College 2008

Planning for Success
Queens’ College is a weekend packed with classes, performances, quartet coaching, laughing, examining crowns and meeting new friends – all wrapped up with a song selected especially for participants of the schools. Attendees learn skills from International Champions in classes designed and taught by members of the Coronet Club. Faculty share tips on music selection and part-smart singing using the song selected for the schools. Click here for more information and to view the 2008 Queens' College schedule.