ISLAND CITY CHORUS

GREATER MONTREAL CHAPTER

Northeastern District

SPEBSQSA Inc.

The Little Chorus that could!

MINI PITCH

Date: September 1, 2003 Late Edition Volume 2003 - 36

Alan MacKenzie, President of the Greater Montreal Chapter, sent the following to Cotton Damon, NED Vice President of Contest and Judging.

This does not mean that the chorus will not enter any competitions. We are planning to enter the CBC Choral Competition again in 2004, as well as the qualification contest for District 2004, and ARCIM, if the timing will permit.

This should ensure that we keep learning new music, and keep our members interested, as well as providing the opportunity to recruit new members. This must be a top priority activity for the Chapter and the Chorus.

CHICAGO - A new study says eating dark chocolate can lower your blood pressure.

"You can sin with, perhaps, a little less bad feeling," said Dr. Franz Messerli, a hypertension expert in New Orleans.

The study appears in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

German scientists gave 13 adults with mild hypertension three-ounce (85g) chocolate bars daily for two weeks. Half of the patients got white chocolate, the other half dark.

Blood pressure remained unchanged in the group that ate white chocolate. But in the dark chocolate group, the systolic blood pressure fell an average of five points and the diastolic, an average of two points.

Dark chocolate contains plant substances called polyphenols, the same ingredients responsible for the healthy benefits of red wine. Polyphenols have also been shown to lower blood pressure in animals.

The average blood pressure of the participants was 153 over 84. During the study, their blood pressure did not fall into the desirable range — below 120 over 80. However, researchers say their results are promising enough to warrant further study.

"(Dark chocolate) might serve as a promising approach to reduce systolic blood pressure," said Dr. Dirk Taubert, the lead author of the report.

Taubert noted participants substituted the chocolate bars instead of the sweets they usually consume and did not gain weight during the study.

The study received no industry funding. Researchers bought the chocolate themselves from the supermarket.

The Bolton Landing Barbershop Quartet Festival began on Friday, August 29, 2003, with Le Dixieband and several quartets hitting the stage. Rain failed to put a damper on the fun.

Saturday Morning at 9:30 am the boat ride on Lake George took place ubder sunny skies. Quartets sang around town during the "treasure hunt" and earned a chance to get in the draw for prizes.

The Saturday afternoon and evening shows featured Fanatix, Swinglish Mix, Heat, Wheelhouse, Fortissimo, Saturday Evening Post, Reckless and more. After the show, folks with Hog Passes enjoyed the "free" afterglow at the Algonquin Restaurant, while those without paid $5.00.

Sunday morning the 9:00 AM contest started. Over 30 quartets took part, but this number was down considerably from previous years. ANY group of four could sing one song!

At 6:30 PM - "The Bolton Landing N.Y. Chapter Chartering Show!" celebrated the chartering of the newest chapter in the Northeastern District! The 2003 "Festival Chorus" was directed by Mark Hale, director of the World Champion "Masters of Harmony" and the lead of the World Champion "Michigan Jake"! The members of the Bolton Landing Chapter, Associate members and guests formed the chorus. For a group with only 5 or so hours of practice together, they did well. Having a great director certainly helped.

The Saratoga Springs "Racing City Chorus" also entertained the audience with some songs from their repertoire. We then spent our final evening with the talented quartets we'd been watching all weekend, but again presenting all different material!

What a weekend it was! Hog Tickets are already on sale for 2004. Make a date to go and participate in the great fun.

Practice is something we do at home, every day, between rehearsals!

Rehearsal is where we reinforce what we have been practising every day!