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January 2010 Enchanted Mountain Chorus, Olean NY Editor- Pat Close President- Marshall Allen Director- Louis Petroni

New Year -New Look!

Here is to a new year, a new look for us, and new outlook for barbershop! This upcoming year holds

countless opportunities and unique associations. A few of the new exciting things will be possibly

joining efforts with the Keynote Chorus for a community show, hosting a Division show that will

have a different structure, renewed efforts to Youth In Harmony, and coordinating efforts to bring

“American Harmony the Movie” to our communities. Valentine’s Day will be another public service

program that keeps us current. Another activity is “Singing For Life”, the blood drive program that

would be a great draw of publicity while saving lives. These are a few things we can do for our

public awareness of Acappella and the Barbershop style of music. Over the next few months we

will be discussing the details of these and many other opportunities to share our hobby with the

public and to bring new members into our ranks. So stayed tuned here for more information and

better yet- come to the board meetings to be part of the discussions. It is our chapter and we have

to take care of it by getting everyone involved.

Make your plans now! This is as close as it will be to us for a long time!

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By Louis Petroni

At the Leadership Academy held in Webster this past November, I met with Jerry Pask and he has some very bold new ideas about how to take the annual division show to the next level. We discussed many different ideas, including

coaching, multiple practice meetings, repertoire. I presented an initial plan to the Olean Board as we were considering hosting the division show for 2010. The board, much to their credit, had some very good insights and suggestions, which brought the plan more to a reality level. Below is the plan they ultimately approved and was submitted to Jim Barickman, who gave it his stamp of approval. The site is planned for the Cuba Elementary School, which of course I have an inside track. The paper work will be submitted on the New Year, and I don’t anticipate any problems in obtaining the site for the purpose of the show on date TBD. Read below to find out some more of the particulars. I hope you all can participate, and it is my hope that we can incorporate at least a couple of these new songs into our own show repertoire for 2010, and thereby accomplish another goal of learning some of our show songs by May! Some positive things about this idea:

We all get to learn 3 or 4 new songs.

We get a show with more variety and interest.

We get a better quality show. Some negatives about this idea:

It means more travel to meet together.

All the participants will have to take the time to learn up to 4 new songs.

It is a change in the way it has been done before, some may resist the concept.

Chapters will need to purchase their own music. My thinking is not to hold the rehearsals close together especially before or after convention, as that puts an extra travel burden on everyone. The two dates selected are to give men the time in between to work on their part after the first rehearsal. If we can get the titles out by early or mid-January, then chapter can order the music and start working on it in Feb. and March leading up to the March 20 rehearsal.

Plan details: 1. Rehearsal on Saturday date TBD from 1:30 - 4:30 (At

Jamestown) 2. Rehearsal/Performance Sat. date TBD at Cuba.

Rehearsal 3:00 – 5:00, Dinner 5:30 – 6:30, (on site) Performance 7:30.

3. Learn at least 3, possibly four new songs. 4. The songs would come from core chapters that plan to

participate. For example: Erie Chapter has participated in the past with most of its members, so we expect Erie Chapter will participate again, in which case they would select from their current repertoire, as one of the new songs that we sing. This way we have automatic section leaders from their chapter to help the chorus quickly get a feel for the piece.

5. Each chapter that participates is responsible for purchasing their own music that would be the 3 or 4 new songs.

6. The host chapter (Olean) will buy 20 extra copies of each of the new songs for the inevitable that is people showing up without music. That’s about $33 at the average price of $1.65 per copy for twenty copies of one song, and $132 for a total of 4 new songs. Olean Chapter hope to be reimbursed for at least part, if not the full amount of the extra music after the show is over, as funds allow.

7. The goal is to get away from singing the Polecat songs, and have fun with learning and singing 3 or 4 new songs, that will energize the performance.

8. Another goal is to see how successful the plan of an extra rehearsal is, with the possibility of expanding more preparation time (and fun) in future years.

9. Below is a proposed program based on 2009 program, and how it might work.

10. Massed Chorus: {Red items indicates past songs we are not doing}

Star Spangled Banner - opener {America the Beautiful} New Song #1 Battle Hymn of the Republic I Believe New Song #2 Quartet (10 – 15 min.) Chapter Chorus (2 songs) Chapter Chorus (2 songs) Quartet (10 – 15 min.) New Song #3 Intermission Chapter Chorus (2 songs) Chapter Chorus (2 songs) Feature Quartet

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(Plan details: cont)

{Polecat Medley may include :} {Wild Irish Rose} {Shine on me} {Down our way} {Sweet roses of morn} {Honey} {Irish Blessing} {This is My Country} New Song #4 Coney Island Baby When there’s Love at Home God Bless America

American Harmony the Movie.

Our Goal for the Film

The goal is to get the film into theaters across North

America so that everyone will have the opportunity to

see it on the big screen. A major player who has

experience in distributing independent films is very

interested in American Harmony. This company has a

great deal of experience marketing niche films by

leveraging the built in fan base for a project at the grass

roots level. The method by which this person will

commit resources to promote the film depends upon

the Society's level of support.

Don’t miss this chance to help showcase barbershop to

a wide audience through the most thorough and

flattering view of barbershop harmony ever created.

“The film is a mixture of obsession, singing, zany

comedy and nail-biting competition,” says James on

the website. “This is the story of several dreamers who

journey from their „ordinary‟ lives to the world stage

in the hopes of winning the gold.”

American Harmony was filmed by James and his

camera crews during the Society’s last three

international conventions and is interspersed with

footage and other graphic elements provided by the

Barbershop Harmony Society. These elements

combine to tell a very compelling story.

http://www.americanharmonythemovie.com/

A new wave of young men have embraced Accappella style singing in Western New York. Currently, SLAM Youth Chorus is based out of Warsaw, NY and is under the direction of Richard Llewelyn. SLAM Youth Chorus is a part of the Seneca Land District and Barbershop Harmony Society. Approximately 20 young men got together and, with the help of Richard, formed a nice sound that led them to their first Youth In Harmony contest which can be viewed below. There is a new movement in the Southern Tier of Western New York, being headed by Jamie Bell, Director of "Jamestown Harmony Express" and Bob Coant, current Seneca Land District Board Member, Coach, Mentor, and fellow singer, to create our own area "Youth In Harmony" Chorus. Details will be going out to all area High School and College Vocal Directors letting them know of this great opportunity for the young men in their choruses. Young men between the ages of 14 and 25 are permitted to be involved in the Youth In Harmony Chorus. Special Youth In Harmony Camps, for both girls and boys, and Workshops are held all year long at various locations throughout the Barbershop Harmony Society. Go to http://www.barbershop.org/youth-zone.html for further information in the "Youth Zone" area of the BHS website for future Workshops and Pow Wow's near you.

A date has been set for the first Youth In Harmony workshop. We are delighted to announce the first workshop will be held February 27, 2010 in Jamestown, NY (see address below). This will be a "day long" event with Jim DeBussman, an International caliber Coach, directing our Youth In Harmony participants. "ESQ" will be our guest Quartet and "SLAM" will also be performing at the night show. Here is where this wonderful workshop will be taking place:

Infinity Performing Art facility 115 East Third Street Jamestown, NY 14701 Contact @ SJC - Nathan Bell (716) 397-9103 or nathanhbell@yahoo.com

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Well, I think we made through the holiday season

with minimal casualties. We had numerous

Christmas singouts with a good portion of the guys

making each one. Now we must be careful not to

get too laid back because the big Christmas push is

over. At this time we must set our sights on

Valentine’s Day, our summer package, the division

show package and of course our fall show package

(with some of those events sharing repertoire).

Don’t let the amount of songs scare you off because

we will have plenty of time to work on each package

and we will have the enthusiasm of working on new

formats to keep us excited.

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner and I think we should have a discussion about the details for another successful program. We

should cover what in the past has gone right and what has gone wrong. How will our product be presented this year and for how much? Is there any way we can add to it? Can we increase the number of jobs with more or different advertising? Will we be able to have more quartets to cover more jobs? Members should get involved in quartets even if they don’t wish to go out for Valentines, they can do for the experience.

Another event that I am really excited about is the Division Show. As I have stated before, I am a Barbershop junkie and I need my “fixes”. Any chance to sing is great for me whether it is among the guys in the chapter or on a public stage really doesn’t matter to me as long as I can sing and get better at it. The Allegheny Division Show (enhanced-more than polecats) sounds like an awesome time and one more opportunity to have friends and family be able to attend. It is difficult to have friends and family be able to see the few public appearances we do because of scheduling but this

would be a great chance for them to hear the power of a very large chorus that they usually would not get at our fall shows. I had heard the comment “Why should I drive 80 (or whatever) miles just to sing pole cats?” This is a valid point and it shows that this format has had its time and served its purpose. Polecats have their place but they can become a bit tedious and they were not meant to be performance pieces. We seem to have come to a point where we can move onward and upward to expand our performance skills. Not to mention adding new songs to our repertoire with the benefit of the experience of the many different directors and coaches.

In this time of shrinking...well, everything to be honest, there is actually some good news about something expanding. The Youth In Harmony in SLD is looking to create another youth chorus in the Jamestown area. It is my understanding that there may be approximately 70 young men and women interested in the youth chorus. Please see the Youth In Harmony article in this issue for more details. They sure can use our support.

I am really optimistic that 2010 will be better for all of us as a chapter, as a Society and as Americans. We are in control of our destiny and there are things that we can get a hold on and do something about. I am also eagerly looking forward to hearing more about Pete Corentz’s (Incoming SLD President) S.I.N.G program that he touched on briefly at the Fall Convention. New ideas, new approaches and new boxes to think outside of are in store. Can I say it that way? Sure why not! If the old doesn’t work, let’s try new!

{ed}

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Member’s Corner Some thoughts: By Monty Jennings

I think that collaboration with the Keynote Chorus is good. I know them as competent musicians and a few are music teachers. They were colleagues of my wife. I think that nothing but good will come of this. I am looking forward to the December 12 event.

Speaking of my wife, I would like to say that I learned a lot about performance after years of attending her concerts. One of the best performances was a second grade girl standing in the middle of the gym auditorium stage singing a long solo. The auditorium was full. I sat near the rear. There were no microphones. There weren’t any speakers, just my wife behind her chording. I could hear every note clearly. It was so quiet in that gym, you could hear have heard a pin drop. No mic or speakers, just the beauty of the human voice. The beauty of the human voice. The more I attend the barbershoppers the more amazed I am at the caliber of the singing. This leads me to ---a chorus of barbershoppers heard does not rival but best the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. It is curious why they are recording artists and we are not. The answer is that they have the thin wire that connects the mic to the speakers can’t carry the full sound with it’s deep overtones and colors of a multitude of MEN. It is my opinion that we bastardize our sound when we put it through a mic. The full color of the human voice is not heard.

Monty {ed note: ,There are references of past events due to recieveing this after the December issue came out }

{A review of “The Sing Off” "The Sing-Off" was a four-night event that premiered Monday, December 14 (8-10 p.m. ET) that featured a one-of-a-kind battle of voices that continues on December 15 and 16, culminating with a live finale on December 21 (8-10 p.m. ET each night). The show will feature the country's top eight a cappella groups performing popular songs in a way that viewers never heard them before. There are no lip-synching, back-up bands or safety net. They'll be singing for America's vote with the winner walking away with the ultimate prize -- an Epic Records/Sony Music recording contract. (Taken from nbc.com) Here is a program that hopefully will continue on NBC network after the initial round of shows. According to nbc.com, this was just a seasonal special but I would hope that its reception will warrant further shows. It was really nice to see a quartet from our sister harmony society Sweet Adeline’s and Harmony Incorporated on National Television. {ed} Maxx Factor and Barbershop on NBC's The Sing Off Multi-platinum recording artist Nick Lachey is set to host NBC's "The Sing-Off," a four night holiday event premiering Monday, Dec. 14 (8-10 p.m. ET). The one-of-a-kind battle of voices will continue on December 15 and 16, culminating with a live finale on December 21 (8-10 p.m. ET each night). What a wonderful thing to see so many barbershoppers cross the stage in front of millions of viewers on NBC's A Cappella singing competition, The Sing Off. A huge congratulations to Maxx Factor, a Sweet Adelines barbershop Quartet out of Baltimore, and to SoCal Vocals, a group out of Los Angeles that features two members of the Westminster Chorus, our 2007 International Chorus champions. Also participating in the competition are the Voices of Lee from Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee, (cont next page)

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{Sing off cont}

who are home to Four Voices, our 2002 International Quartet Champions. As of the posting of this story, Maxx Factor's Molly Dalton Plummer, Leslie Wodday, Kim Hudson and Valerie Hadfield-Rasnake have wowed the judges and advanced to the THIRD round of competition. Way to go, ladies! Thanks for being wonderful representatives for barbershop harmony! For more information NBC "The Sing-Off" Web site, http://www.nbc.com/sing-off/index.shtml MAXX Factor Quartet Web site, http://www.maxxfactorquartet.com/

As of print time the installation dinner date has been changed with no new date decided. Stayed tuned to your emails!

Taken from the PROBEmoter

The chord is my shepard; I shall not sing flat. It maketh me lie down in cheap hotels, Where I woodshed ‘til dawn. It leadeth me beside the coach, Who tells me to ‘match vowels.’ It restoreth my pitch. Yea, though I walk through the valley of thoroughbreds, I shall fear no judge; For my quartet is with me; Their sevenths and overtones, They comfort me; They prepareth a key change for me in the presence of seven flats; They anointeth my head with confidence; My stage presence runneth over. Surely harmony and laryngitis shall follow me all the conventions of my life; And I will sing in the house of Kenosha forever.

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Anaheim Convention DVDs

are Shipping!!!

From Barbershop HQ

The long anticipated release of the 2009 Anaheim Convention DVDs has finally arrived … TWO DAYS prior to our original projected shipping date! Your HQ staff plus several of our wonderful volunteers worked together to get these out the door to you as quickly as possible. And I mean quick! The DVDs arrived to Harmony Hall from the duplicator this morning at 9:15 a.m., and as I write this at about 11 a.m. they are all out the door and in mail streams! If you haven’t ordered yours yet, there is still time to do so and receive it in time for Christmas. But you must act fast. Visit the Harmony Marketplace online to learn about what shipping options are available for the quickest delivery. Or call 800-876-7464 and order yours today!

RULES FOR SINGING MUSIC IN A CHORUS

From the HarmoNet

Everyone should sing the same piece.

Observe the repeat signs only if what you just sang was interesting.

If you sing a wrong note, glare at one of the other singers.

Carefully warm up your voice before singing. Then if you sing out of tune, you can at least do it with a clear conscience.

The right note, at the wrong time, is a wrong note. (And vice-versa.) A wrong note, sung timidly, is a wrong note. A wrong note, sung with authority, is simply your Interpretation of the phrase.

If everyone gets lost except you, follow the ones who are lost.

Strive to always sing the maximum notes per second. This will intimidate the weaker singers and gain you the admiration of the ignorant.

Markings for slurs, dynamics, and accidentals should be completely ignored. They are only there to make the score look more complicated.

If a passage is difficult, slow down. If it is easy, speed up. Everything will even itself out in the end.

You have achieved a true interpretation when, in the end, you have not sung one note of the original piece.

When everyone else stops singing, you should stop also. Do not sing any notes you may have left over.

Contributors welcome! All copy without a byline is the responsibility of the editor and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Olean Chapter, members or those of its officers and Board.

For comments or inquiries

Sharps & Flats – Editor Patrick (Pat) Close,

5 Fourth Avenue, Franklinville N.Y. 14737

716-912-4795 mrpclose@aol.com

Harmoniously serving:

Olean- Bradford –Coudersport

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January 2010 SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY

1 New Year's Day Happy Birthday Bob Sader

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3 Happy Bday Harold Pierce Happy Anniv Bob & Mary Ellen Sader

4 5 6 7 8 9

10 11 Bradford Eccum.

12 13 14 15 16

17 18 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

19 20 Happy Birthday Harry Malone

21 22 23

24 25 26 27 28 29 30

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February 2010 SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY

1 Bradford Chapel Ridge

2 Groundhog Day

3 4 5 6

7 8 9 10 11 12 Happy Birthday Nan Norton

13

14 Valentine's Day

15 President’s Day

16 H.Bday Reta Derx H.Anniv Sandy Marshall Allen

17 18 19 20

21 22 23 24 25 26 Happy Birthday Minnie Case

27 Happy Birthday Terry McDowell

28 Happy Birthday Romayne Burr