Mt. Rushmore Chapter

Mt. Rushmore
Shrine of Democracy Barbershop Chorus
Rapid City, SD


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July, August, September 2004 edition

Harmony Happening Coming Up
by Pete Anderson

As you all should know by now, the HH is rapidly coming up (August 20-21 for those of you that didn't know) and we will be performing some of our show numbers before the massed chorus does its numbers. Jim Bagby, director of the Heart of America Chorus from Kansas City, will be our guest director again.

The last time our chorus performed before the massed chorus we could have been out-performed by a junior high glee club. We need to redeem ourselves this year and to do that we need participation from many of you that haven't been showing up lately. We will be knocking the dust off a couple of our old numbers in the massed chorus as well, so you'll need to come to practice to re-learn (or learn) them. Those are "Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor", "This is My Country", "Yankee Doodle/Grand Old Flag", and one that Bagby picked, "The Good Old Summertime". Because there are enough of us that remember those songs, we should be able to pick them up in a hurry IF YOU WILL COME TO PRACTICE.

Something new this year. The Hill City Chamber of Commerce will be selling tickets for a fund raiser show that we and the massed chorus will be putting on in the high school auditorium at 4:00 Saturday afternoon before we head up to Mt Rushmore. The money will go to a local lady that had serious back surgery without health insurance. It is important that we have a MAJORITY of our members there for this performance. After all, who will support us if our own members won't?

Lovin' the 60's
by Steve Montgomery

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Show time is always like that. I can't thank you all enough for coming through with a very good show. I know the Beatles, etc. is not your favorite kind of music, but you hung in there and produced a real crowd pleaser. I want to congratulate our MC's. They really stepped up at the last minute when we had lost 2 other MC's and did a superb job.

Gary and his son came up with a magnificent submarine, Bill Andersen's designs were great. Matt filled in on lighting and Mike Cole really helped on sound. If we all work together we can do it.

I especially want to thank Carroll Korb for all his work on the program over the years. That's why we are as solvent as we are.

Special thanks need to be made by myself and all the chorus for the outstanding job done by Del as Administrative Show Director. Without all his work on the nuts and bolts, the show would never have happened. Thanks Del. And thank all of you for your dedication during the best and the worst of times during our show preparation.

Prez Says
by Steve Ferley

It's great to be a Barbershopper! You know it's true when you see a smile on the face of our friend Bill Andersen. A very wide smile was on Bill's face as we sang to him on his birthday a few days ago. Bill was all smiles and sitting up in a wheelchair and singing with us while having lunch at Rapid City Rehab. Only days before, Bill was lying flat on his back and in a lot of pain. How great it is for Bill to know he has the support of our Barbershoppers and he appreciates the time and effort given by all his friends.

I think our hobby gives us an insight into the lives of others in a way many cannot imagine. This happens partly because we feel the words we sing and we sing how we feel. The Hart Ranch performance was such an example. Do you remember the feelings you experienced while singing those songs and the pure enjoyment you felt expressing those words? The reaction of the crowd was truly amazing. When you see a tear in the eye of a veteran or a puffed chest of a proud military person as we sing and feel the words of patriotism, we also get choked up. We too feel proud! When we sing about Nellie and her sweetheart who can't go anywhere in the pouring rain, we convey that with feeling to our audience. So it is through those words sung and the thoughts and feeling expressed that we learn about others through their emotions.

Thanks to all of you who help others by your sincere expressions of happiness and caring in our joy of singing.

Del's Doodlins'
by Del Beck

Byron Myers and his St. Joe, MO singers are making a return trip through Rapid City. In August of 1999 we hostel this group with a picnic at Korb's, a concert at South Canyon Lutheran Church and an overnight provided by chorus members and friends. The date is July 26 and the details are pretty much the same as last time (not sure of the performance venue at this writing). We need members to host the young folks in this chorus. Can you provide an overnight and breakfast for two (or more) chorus members? Call Pete at 348-2683.

Contest - The Music Committee has settled on "Thirty-five Years Ago" and "Wait Til the Sun Shines, Nellie" as our competition numbers. The latter song may need some performance enhancement; so, to get some ideas, we are looking for a tape or CD by the Internationally known quartet Gotcha. If you can help, call Al Pitts.

Check out the International chorus and quartet competition on your computer. (see Webcast schedule for International Convention) 54 quartets and 21 choruses are scheduled to compete. Denver's Sound of the Rockies and Salt Lake's Saltaires will make their presence felt among the Big Boys. Keep an eye on Denver's Saturday Evening Post and the great four-some from our 2004 show. Storm Front. MAX Q from SWD qualified with a Society high of 2148 points. This is truly an International contest with much participation from Canadian choruses and quartets. Toronto's Northern Lights Chorus has earned three silver medals in a row and is trying for a gold. It is really interesting to see the involvement of choruses and/or quartets from BABS (British) and SNOBS (Nordic). Barbershop Harmony is being sung in many corners of the world. How would you like to be part of Greg Lyne's chorus in St. Petersburg, Russia in August?

The Binnacle List
by Jim Gogolin

Recently we have had some of our members on the binnacle list. In the Navy of old a list was placed on the binnacle on the bridge of the ship for reference by the watch standers on duty. The list contained the names of men not fit for full duty. Usually the men so listed were either in sick bay or confined to quarters.

In our case we had two members admitted to Rapid City Regional Hospital. Frank Whitney was battling a fever of unknown cause and Bill Andersen was seeking relief from intense pain resulting from previous injuries.

Mr. Whitney stayed for several days undergoing numerous tests and treatments without determining the cause of the fever. Frank was released when the temperatures remained below alarm levels. Extensive further tests have not been any more successful in finding the cause of the fever. The good news is, if good news there be, Frank has been feeling well enough to attend chapter meetings.

Mr. Andersen has experienced constant pain since his unfortunate accident last summer. Lately that pain increased in intensity such that hospitalization was necessary for managing the pain. Like most processes in life, they are never as easy as they seem to be at first glance. After nearly a month and much experimentation with types, dosages, and placement of pain management medications Bill's pain level is now back to the point that he can stand. Bill is now in the rehab facility at RC Regional in Room 202. He will have to tone some muscles that were not used in the previous month. When he can get in and out of his wheel chair as he did previously he will be able to return home. And that is GOOD news.

Thanks to all of you who took the time or made the time to call or visit Bill and Frank during their stay in sick bay. As Bill is still there please visit or call him. Let him know how much you care and how much he is missed.

Signed: An old salt.

Chorus Web site
by Ken Weybright

At a recent rehearsal someone mentioned our website. I asked "We have a web site?" and was told that we did not. I then wondered, why not?. I spoke with Jim Gogolin and Del Beck about it and decided to pursue it. At the last board meeting I presented my idea and the board decided it was a good idea. Some pages that we have thought of are: schedule of events, copy of the newsletter, sing-out schedule. We are still working out various aspects of it. It is still in its infancy and will hopefully be undergoing many changes as we use it. Any questions, comments, thoughts, etc. can be directed to me in person or sent to me at webmaster @sodchorus.com.

WEBCAST SCHEDULE ANNOUNCED FOR LOUISVILLE, KY INTERNATIONAL BARBERSHOP CONVENTION

The following events are the only ones that will run on the webcast from Louisville. Please note: start and end times are subject to change.

Wednesday, June 30th -
Quartet Quarterfinals
11:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. EDT &
6:30 p.m. - 11:00 p.m. EDT

Thursday, July 1st -
Association of International Champions Show
6:30 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. EDT

Friday, July 2nd - MSNA
America Collegiate Barbershop
Quartet Contest
11:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. EDT

- Quartet Semifinals
7:00 p.m. - 10:30 p.m.

Saturday, July 3rd - Chorus Finals
10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m, EDT

- Quartet Finals
6:30 p.m, - 10:00 p.m. EDT

More than 30 hours of webcast are scheduled. We need your support to continue this great service. Complete details of how to connect and how to donate are available at: http://webcast.spebsqsa.org

Be sure to keep this link for access when the webcast starts.

A "Yellow Submarine"?
by Leonard Willett (WWII Vet)

I like the song, "Yellow Submarine". However when I was behind the model, I wondered about it. Most of the real ones had backs. Also, I have seen several submarines and they were all black outside. No yellow ones.

A couple of times, when I was in San Diego, I got invited to have lunch on a submarine. A friend of mine was a member of a submarine crew during WWII, and he invited me to come aboard in San Diego Harbor. There was a ladder to go down, but it was nothing like ours. We had a very good lunch. Submariners ate very well.

From the inside of the real sub, it didn't look much like the inside of our yellow one, but I sure liked the outside of ours. I congratulate the builders of the "Yellow Submarine". A very good job.

Begin your interpretation at the end of the song
From (SPEBSQSA)

Answer this question: "At the end of the song, I want the audience to feel                       ."

Notice that the question was not, "How will I feel?" The illusion about how your ensemble feels is important, the audience's feeling at the end of the song is the focus. Seek the strongest emotion possible. "Nice" or "Okay" or "Feeling sorry for me" are not good answers. "Tremendous love for their mothers," "a deep yearning to go home," "to stand up and cheer," "a quiet, tender love," or "a deep sadness," "to march off to war for their country" - all would be great answers.

Now that you know what the end should look like, you can begin interpreting the rest of the song with purpose, design, and the intention to "serve the music".

You'll be a stronger performer if you plan carefully and are aware of the needs of the audience. When you focus on yourself, focus on being the messenger and giver of the music.

Singing In Tune
(From SPEBSQSA)

Singing out of tune is a recurring problem that we hear from performers. An important element of the barbershop "lock and ring" sound is in-tune singing. We need to sing quality musical tones that are specifically in pitch to the anticipated melodic line. To make this happen, we must sing in tune both horizontally and vertically.

Do we sing out of tune because we can not hear the pitch we are trying to sing, or because we just can not support the pitch in good quality in which we are trying to sing?

The answer is support. Chest breathing or shallow breathing causes the pitch to sag at the middle or end of every phrase. A freely produced, well supported, resonant quality tone with a good head voice will solve many tuning issues. Poor posture, mental and/or physical fatigue can also have significant influence on horizontal and vertical tuning. Spend time on good diaphragmatic breathing exercises every day to help develop better support and, therefore, better tuning.

Singing with a heavy vocal production throughout your range can also cause flatting, especially as you carry the weight of your chest voice up into your head voice. Learn to keep your head voice in your voice throughout your range. Furthermore, the use of warm air to support every pitch of every phrase will open up all the spaces needed for quality singing.

Some other more obvious reasons: singing wrong intervals, or taking too small of a step in an ascending line, or too large of a step in a descending line. Spend time singing major, minor and chromatic scales, both ascending and descending, with accuracy. Relaxing support when you're singing descending lines can also allow you to flat. Reaching for high note without lightening up and using your head voice can also cause flatting.

Scooping is another cause of tuning problems for your quartet, especially for the lead. Spend rehearsal time duetting in your quartet practice. It will make a difference in the overall sound and tuning of your quartet.

Lastly, it is important to pick songs appropriate for your quartet's vocal range and to sing them in the right key for your group. Avoid songs written too low for the quartet to sing comfortably. Be warned that if the melody has too many thirds or sevenths, there is a good chance the quartet will go flat.

Tips for Success as a Chorus Director
(From SPEBSQSA)

Want to know the secret of being a successful chorus director...who doesn't. Well, students at Directors College were asked to, "List three habits of successful chorus directors." Below are some of the responses:

Used by permission from Fullerton, CA Clippin's

Barbershop sight singing

By Burt Szabo
burtszabo @choralconcepts.com

A B C D E F G A B C D E F G

Seven little letters which have served the musical world for centuries. Mozart used them to compose his great operas. Tchaikovsky used them to write his wonderful symphonies. Hoagy Carmichael, Rogers, Hammerstein, Gershwin, Bernstein - all used the same seven letters to create their music. Tin Pan Alley writers used them to create the magnificent treasure of songs that all of us like to sing. Barbershop arrangers make use of them to notate the arrangements we love so much.

Seven little letters. We learned them in kindergarten. But - now - I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Shh! In Germany, the musicians use eight letters, adding the letter "H." At least they used to. Maybe they've abandoned the "H" and are using only seven letters in the 21st century. H? Don't ask. If you're curious, look in the New Harvard Dictionary of Music under "H."

Most folks, when they sing a scale on the letters "C" thru "C," do so easily, not realizing that the spaces (intervals) between the scale tones are not all alike. When we learned our numbers, we knew the differences between one and two, two and three, three and four, etc. are all the same - the whole number "1". We didn't think about fractions when counting from one to ten. Nor did we think about any intervals when we learned our ABC's.

In the musical alphabet of seven letters it's a whole different world. You are probably somewhat familiar with the piano keyboard. You can easily find the keys matching the musical alphabet. For example, a "D" lies between each set of two black keys. The next white key above (to the right) is "E," and so on. This whole picture will be much easier to visualize with a keyboard, so put the pitch pipe back in your pocket. Since all adjacent keys, regardless of color, are half step intervals apart, it becomes obvious that the steps (intervals) from "E" to "F," and from "B" to "C," are smaller than the intervals from "C" to "D," "D" to "E," etc. Play them and listen closely to them.

Try singing a pitch (note) between "C" and "D," and between "F" and "G." Easy. Now try to sing a note between "E" and "F," and between "B" and "C." Can you do it? It's almost impossible for us with our "western" system of music. Some "eastern" music systems, and the music of the Asian subcontinent, do make use of intervals smaller than half steps. That's one thing that makes their music so easily identifiable and sounding strange to our ears.

Think about this. Musical pitches are measured in cycles, or vibrations per second. If you're familiar with Hertz, fine. Most of us are not, so we'll use the term vibrations per second (vps). If the vps of "C" in the middle of the keyboard is 256 vps, and the black key just above (C#) is 270 vps, what is the name of the note having 263 vps? Huh? Can we hear these teeny, tiny intervals? You bet we can! You can certainly hear if one singer in a section is slightly under the pitch - even by four, or three, or two vps. So he or she tunes it up a bit, by a micro interval, to get in tune.

Play and sing the scale from "C" to the next "C" above. It's the C major scale. Note the pattern of whole and half steps intervals in the scale. The pattern is the same for all major scales. Now sing the major scale starting on "G" up to the next "G." What happens? It doesn't take long to figure out that you need to use one of the black keys for this scale so it sounds right. Right? Which one? It's called F#. This gives us the G major scale. And music written in this scale is in the key of G major and has a key signature of one # (F#).

Now play and sing a scale starting on "D" up to the next "D". You find you need to use two of those black keys - C# and F#. When singing or writing scales, the next higher note of a scale always uses the next letter of the musical alphabet. Important point - remember it. Now try a scale starting on "F". Hmm. Got to do something about the fourth note of the scale. What is the letter name of the fourth note? Yes, it has to be B something. Don't call it A#. It's called B flat.

You can take it from here. But go easy. Stay with scales starting on "C," "D," "F," "G" and "A" for now. If there is someone who can help you a bit, you may wish to advance to scales starting on "B flat", "E flat", "A flat."

That's enough. More in the future. Keep tuned.

Editors Note: This article was found on the Harmonet by Spence Graves. Thank you, Spence, and thank you Burt, for giving your blessing to publishing it here.



© copyright 2004 Shrine of Democracy Barbershop Chorus