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Encore Chorale Camp at St. Mary’s College of Maryland was a huge success.  Encore had 39 “happy campers,” ages 55 to 88 years of age and they all had a fabulous five days.  The singers checked in on Tuesday at noon and were raring to rehearse at 3pm sharp.  Encore Executive Director, Jeanne Kelly, was in charge of preparing the singers for when Barry Hemphill, conductor of the Arlington Metropolitan Chorus was to arrive for the 10am Thursday rehearsal.  The singers worked very hard that first day.   They rehearsed for two hours and then all gathered for a “meet and greet” cocktail and then a great Southern Maryland buffet of chicken, ribs, clams and mussels,  and all the fixings including decadent peach and blueberry cobbler with ice cream, all provided by St. Mary’s College’s excellent catering service, Bon Appetit.  Campers were then treated to a fabulous concert by the West Shore Piano Trio, including Jay DeWire, piano; Heather Haughn, violin; and Diana Flesner, cello.  Their repertoire included the beautiful Debussy Piano Trio in G Major and the Rebecca Clarke Piano Trio.  It was an excellent ending to an exciting first day of camp.  The campers all slept well!

The second day started with a big breakfast in the college dining hall, followed by a movement/dance class led by dance instructor Tiffany Haughn.  The singers loved this daily class.  The meditation, stretching and learning different dance forms was fun for everyone.  Choral rehearsal followed and the singers were really concentrating on learning all the intricacies of the music.  They had all worked up quite an appetite by lunch.  The afternoon included a sectional rehearsal followed by another full choral rehearsal.  The group was getting closer to mastering the repertoire and all were having a great time doing it.  Wednesday evening, everyone gathered in the dining hall for more delicious food.  After dinner they were treated to a superb recital by Heather Haughn, violin, and Jay DeWire, piano.  The repertoire included the Brahms Violin Sonata and Porgy and Bess for violin arranged by Heifetz.  What a recital!    Time for another good night of sleep.  It was another busy day!

Summer has arrived and our second Annual Encore Chorale Camp at Chautauqua Institution, August 31 to September 4, will be here before you know it. With the registrations coming in at a very steady pace,  you'd better not hesitate to send yours in!  Last year’s camp was a huge success (View photos here) and this year promises to be even better.  Chautauqua is a perfect setting for Encore and we are excited to be returning.  Whether you have sung your entire life, or have not sung for a few years – whatever your level of experience is -  you will love Encore Chorale Camp. Returning again will be Dr. Barry Talley, retired Director of Musical Activities at the United States Naval Academy, who will be joining Jeanne Kelly, founder and director of Encore. Together, they will rehearse the chorale and get the singers ready for their final camp concert. Camp is five fabulous days of learning, fun and meeting new friends.

Repertoire for the camp includes the Gloria chorus from Vivaldi’s “Gloria”, “Sing Me To Heaven” by Washington DC composer Dan Gawethrop, beautiful Appalachian folk melodies “Black is the Color”,  “The Water is Wide” and “ Hey Ho, Nobody’s Home”.   Barry Talley is arranging his very funny TV Set for SATB and the singers will perform a medley from “Westside Story”. We are waiting to see how many men we get.  We would love to do some sea chantys and have the ladies do some Gershwin. So don’t delay registering!

Campers will stay at the beautiful and historic Athenaeum Hotel which sits grandly on a tree-shaded hill overlooking picturesque Chautauqua Lake. All meals will be enjoyed in the lovely hotel dining room. And last year the food was excellent. All the campers raved!   There are no entrance fees or parking fees involved. Your camp registration fee includes everything you will need for your five day stay. Parking is just a very short walk from the hotel.

Each day begins with a breakfast, and then a dance/movement class taught by Peg Barrett-Walos, who will be returning from last year. The campers loved her. Then we rehearse for two hours in beautiful Lenna Hall. Off to lunch, and then some free time to explore Chautauqua, enjoy water sports or exercise equipment.  You can walk along the enchanting lake, or take a stroll to look at the beautiful Victorian houses and gardens. Or simply choose a rocking chair on the grand porch of the hotel and watch the world go by.  A vocal technique class will also be offered. Then campers will  do another chorale rehearsal before dinner at 6pm in the dining room.  Evenings Encore offers excellent professional recitals. Tuesday and Wednesday evening the West Shore Piano Trio will return to Chautauqua again. They delighted their audiences last year.  And Thursday evening Encore will present “Unexpected Guests”, a very entertaining theater group from Jamestown, NY.  Friday afternoon at 2pm, the Encore Chorale will present its Camp Grand Finale Concert in Lenna Hall.  All concerts are free and open to the public. Important details follow:

Brighton Gardens Assisted Living Community at Tuckerman Lane in Bethesda. This Brighton Gardens truly believes that arts programs directed by a talented professional can make a huge difference in the lives of aging adults. This new program is called Encore Singers and Encore has about 20 very excited singers involved in the program. It is led by Linda McGuire, a wonderful mezzo soprano and musician who has worked with the aging population for many years. The Brighton Gardens Encore Singers meet every Monday at 1:30pm and they are working on a patriotic medley and beautiful songs of Rodgers and Hammerstein. Every week more singers gather for the fun. Even the resdient caged birds love it! They chirped so loudly that Linda had to cover their cage! Everyone is having a great experience and Encore is pleased to be a part of this. Encore's goal is to present them in a concert at the end of the summer. They will be ready!

The seven Encore Chorales closed the spring season with a series of fabulous concerts.   The exciting Smithsonian Encore Chorale April 26 concert at the Kogod was previously featured (read article here).  Next came the May 5 concert featuring chorales from Smithsonian, Potomac Academy at GMU, Lorton and Langston.    It was a night of distinct contrasts…….horrible weather, miserable traffic and a fantastic concert!    The evening repertoire included Opera non Terrore by Phyllis Wolfe-Wight, Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves from Nabucco by Verdi, Lambscapes by Eric Lane Darnes, Ching-A-Ring-Chaw by Copland, Shenandoah and Frank Loesser’s Guys and Dolls.   The singers delighted their audience with an evening of great singing and energy.  Carol Gilmore of the Lorton Chorale joined the chorus with a very funny solo I Never Did Like Opera and her Lambscapes was clever and very well done.  She was joined by her husband, Harry Gilmore to sing the beautiful Summertime from Porgy and Bess.  It was stunning. Arleigh Rice, Hart Sebring and Bill Harris did an outstanding job in their Guys and Dolls solos. The audience was truly given a prize for braving the weather.

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The next concert was at the Goodwin House of Alexandria. There is always standing room only when the Encore Chorales presents their concerts, including singers from the Goodwin Houses and Langston Brown. The singers certainly did please their audience.  Joyce Summers sang beautifully in Opera non Terrore and Lambscapes.   At GHA,  Bill Hamilton, Phil Smith and KT Johnson certainly did have fun with their solos opening the Guys and Dolls medley.   Janet Bond had a Brooklyn blast with Adelaide and  Fred Gatchell put a lot of pizzaz in his Rockin the Boat solos.   The audience loved the choice of music.   And it was apparent that the singers did also.   Ben Wilmot, a GHBC resident, mesmerized the audience with lovely tunes of love on the piano, including How Deep is the Ocean,  The Nearness of You, Love Walked Right In, Just One of Those Things and All the Things You Are.

At Goodwin House Baileys Crossroads,  the same concert was presented but with a change in soloists.   Joyce Summers again expressively sang I Never Did Like Opera and Nancy Hamrik was lovely in Lambscapes.   The Goodwin House Baileys men pulled out the stops in their Guys and Dolls solos.    Having a blast were Ben Wilmot, Al Olson and Bob Campbell.   In fact they had such a great time, they did it again!  And of course, all the little lambs “baaaahing” were funny as could be.

On May 15,  singers from Encore Chorales of Langston, Goodwin Houses, Smithsonian, Potomac Academy Academy of GMU and Lorton joined forces to sing an electrifying concert in front of about 250 very appreciative listeners at the Arlington Unitarian Church.   The same repertoire listed above was presented and the singers were joined by soprano soloist Jean Kellogg.   Jean had performed with the chorales at the Kennedy Center for the 2008 holiday concert and her return was most welcomed by all.   She helped  open the evening with the soprano solo I Never Did Like Opera in Opera non Terrore and her winning stage presence and final high C  started the evening in high gear.   She continued with Quando men Vo from Puccini’s La Boheme and  Juliet’s Waltz from  Romeo and Juliet.  Her beautiful soprano voice and her elegance on stage allowed her to present a fantastic performance.  The thunderous applause was proof.

The Encore Chorale was attentive, energized and ready to please their audience.  Their diction was clear, their sound full of warmth and energy and they clearly were loving every minute on stage.   The concert ended with the rousing Guys and Dolls starting with soloists Fred Gatchell, Malcolm Agnew and Bob Campbell.   They were so much fun to listen to.

Janet Bond again sneezed and used her Brooklyn accent to accentuate Adelaide and Ed Villade sang the Rockin the Boat solos with great tone.   The whole choir was rockin at the conclusion of Guys and Dolls.   The audience cheered and it was simply a fabulous evening.

Then on Sunday, May 17,   the Myerberg Encore Chorale presented their very own concert in conjunction with the Myerberg Senior Center Art Show.    It was a spectacular afternoon.  The art work was superb and the Encore Chorale really delivered to their standing room only audience.   Soprano Betty Wren had a ball with I Never Did Like Opera and Ron Fradkin and Ed Hankin were really great in their Guys and Dolls solos.   Their closing of Guys and Dolls brought the house down.   A truly wonderful afternoon!

And with that, the spring 2009 season for Encore Chorale came to a close.    Now it is on to the summer camps and the Queen Mary 2 cruise and of course planning for the new Encore Chorales opening in the fall at Anne Arundel Community College and Schweinhaut Senior Center in Silver Spring.    Encore keeps blasting ahead!