We scored 809 points, an increase of 19 over last year, and were crowned Small Chorus Champions for the second year in a row.

The Green Mountain Chorus from Burlington won the Division Championship this year with a well deserved win.

Seven of the eight choruses in the contest qualified for District in Providence, RI. Congratulations to the South Shore Saints and to the Cumberland Bay Chorus from Plattsburgh on their performances and for qualifying.

Congratulations to Steve Wheaton and his quartet mates Pascal Flambord, Steve Daunais and Alan Briand on their great showing. They were crowned Novice Champs and qualified for District. 12 quartets made the cut!

A native Canadian, Lightfoot will received his award during the Champions Show, immediately following an Ontario regional barbershop competition.

Drayton Justus, president of the Society, will bestow the honour. "It is our great pleasure to honour Gordon Lightfoot in this way," Justus said. "His music already has etched an indelible mark on modern culture. We like to think his early experience in barbershop harmony encouraged him in some way."

Lightfoot was a member of the Orillia, Ontario, chapter of the Society. His first barbershop quartet, The Collegiate Four, was formed in late 1952 before Lightfoot entered high school. They won first prize on the CBC television talent contest "Pick the Stars" in the fall of 1953.

His second quartet, Teen-Timers, competed in regional barbershop contests and placed second in November of 1955. The group’s performance schedule is said to have rivalled that of groups performing more contemporary music. The quartet disbanded as its members pursued university education.

Lightfoot volunteered his time to perform during a barbershop chapter’s charity auction in 2001. As part of that event, he sang with the award-winning Toronto Northern Lights chorus.

The singer/songwriter has five Grammy nominations, 17 Juno awards and the Governor General’s Award, the highest official Canadian honour, among many other honours.

Lightfoot was originally to be honoured at the Montreal convention in 2003, but was hospitalised, and unable to attend.

He joins artists such as Dick Van Dyke, Irving Berlin, Meredith Willson, Victor Borge, the Osmond Brothers, Sherrill Milnes and Gene Puerling in an elite group who also have been honoured by the Barbershop Harmony Society.

Well, only a few people know, but here are some of the highlights.

Music Judge Dr. Jeff Taylor appreciated the way we had set up Beautiful Dreamer with the tune up chord. He had some very good things to say about the leads and tenors, and suggested that the baris and basses needed to be "open and beautiful," and to have more warmth in their lower ranges.

In talking about Exactly Like You he said that even more linear singing or legato would help to make the swingy theme come out.

Singing Judge Joe Liles also liked the introduction to Beautiful Dreamer. He suggested that there were some intonation issues that the baris would want to address (the word songs was one area.)

He suggested that we work on "space and face" to bring the bright sound and round it into a fuller resonant sound by opening the spaces. He also suggested more consistent vowels on the word love.

He cautioned us not to muscle the tag on Exactly Like You.

Presentation Judge Rich Lavene was impressed with the fact we had a plan and worked it. "You looked cool, and everyone seemed to be in on it," he said "The moves were good."

He was excited to hear that Rob Mance would be attending university in Princeton, NJ, since he directs the Princeton chorus.

Rich noted some tuning issues in the upper parts on Beautiful Dreamer and again referred to some muscling of Exactly Like You.

Our highest scores were two 70s and our lowest were two 65s. We were very consistent and so were our scores.

New members = 2 Members in process = 0

Gerry Green visited us last week. Talk to somebody about barbershop this week! Our target for members this year is for a 7 member NET INCREASE by the end if 2006.

Remember: If you recruit 5 members this year, your International, District and Chapter dues for 2007 are 100% fully paid!

This has been seen in the Mini-Pitch/The Pitch before, but this time it is becoming urgent. The Phillips mansion is on the market, and when it goes, your editor goes against the flow and "goes East, old man."

Before that happens, it is important to the Chapter to have a willing volunteer to publish a newsletter for the Chapter on a regular basis. Weekly is best, but every two weeks would be fine, even monthly would be great.

Interested? Talk to Murray or Bert Brossoit, soon!

This years show is only 6 weeks away! Tickets are available, and Bert Brossoit is the ticket manager. Please give him a cheque dated May 15, 2006 for the value of the tickets you take.

When you turn in your money, tickets or combination, you get your cheque back, and the chapter is ensured that the tickets out are sold.

We have budgeted to make a profit on this year’s show – something we haven’t done for the past four years. One way we can do that is to sell enough advertising that we pay for the costs of the show. Flyers are available online.

It can be done, and there is no time like the present to start. See Murray or Steve! Talk up our show with your friends and acquaintances. The price of the tickets is $25.00 CDN or $21.00 US.

From http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/060417_voice_tips.html

1. Drink water to keep your body well hydrated, and avoid alcohol and caffeine. Your vocal cords vibrate very fast, and having a proper water balance helps keep them lubricated. Important note: Foods containing large amounts of water are excellent hydration-conscious snacks, including apples, pears, watermelon, peaches, melons, grapes, plums and applesauce.

2. Allow yourself several "vocal naps" every day, especially during periods of extended use.

3. Don't smoke, or if you already do, quit. Smoking raises the risk of throat cancer tremendously, and inhaling smoke (even second-hand smoke) can irritate the vocal cords.

4. Don't abuse or misuse your voice. Avoid yelling or screaming, and try not to talk loudly in noisy areas. If your throat feels dry or tired, or your voice is getting hoarse, reduce your voice use. The hoarseness is a warning sign that your vocal cords are irritated.

5. Keep your throat and neck muscles relaxed even when singing high notes and low notes. Some singers tilt their heads up when singing high notes and down when singing low notes. "The high notes are on the ceiling and the low notes are on the floor," Rosenberg says. "Over time, you'll pay for that"—not just with strained vocal muscles but also by causing future limits on the vocal range.

6. Pay attention to how you speak every day. Even performers who have good singing habits can cause damage when they speak. Many skilled singers don't continue their healthy habits when they speak; indeed, says Herseth, "many people—including singers—should have much more breath flow when they speak."

7. Don't clear your throat too often. When you clear your throat, it's like slamming your vocal cords together. Doing it too much can injure them and make you hoarse. Try a sip of water or swallow to quench the urge to clear.

8. When you're sick, spare your voice. Don't talk when you're hoarse due to a cold or infection. Listen to what your voice is telling you.

9. When you have to speak publicly, to large groups or outdoors, think about using amplification to avoid straining your voice.

10. Humidify your home and work areas. Remember, moist is good for the voice.

Those who owe Chapter Dues, please pay them tonight. We need the cash to operate the Chapter. If you aren’t sure if you owe, you probably do. You can check with Murray Phillips or Ray Watkins if you want to get the exact figure.

Antique Gold had competed four times before at the Midwinter Seniors Quartet Contest, placing second in 2004 and fifth in 2005 (not the right direction, I know. We realized that if we could win in 2006, Tom, George, and two more Metzger brothers would bring gold to Evergreen and to the Gentlemen of Fortune. We would add four gold medals to Canada’s medal count, and could wind up on stage with Realtime on the Saturday night show in Sacramento! Reason enough for all of us!

Well, we worked hard. We got coaching from members of Realtime, from Marty Lovick, and from Sandy Robinson. We went to the Top Gun school and got some great coaching there. We rehearsed more often, making sure that we fit in a rehearsal session after every coaching session. We were more ready than we had ever been.

Arriving in Sacramento on the Thursday, we spent a pleasant day Friday seeing the sights and attending the evening show. We were relaxed and singing well, performing now and again for groups of people – no pressure! Saturday we slept in a while, had a leisurely breakfast and went to the Gold Medal Hour with the Champs session where Realtime was sharing their story. That’s when some of life’s dissonance endangered our plans!

George Wakeham, our lead, had experienced a difficult night, was on a few medications, was fighting off a cold with Cold Fx, had a very light breakfast, and was severely dehydrated and exhausted. Near the end of the session, he passed out, slumped in his chair unconscious, supported only by Pat Bates, the wife of Tom Bates, our tenor. People revived him. He sat up. He passed out again. Doctors advised. The paramedics came, and brother George, bass, traveled with lead, George, to the hospital for tests. (It’s always best for leads and basses to work towards consonance.)

Tom and I went to our rooms to cool our heels and wait for news. Tom was a worried man singin’ a worried song, and I immersed myself in some interstellar science fiction space opera, preferring that to the opera that was playing itself out in real life.

At the hospital, the nurse discovered that the saline IV George had been given in the ambulance was not properly in a vein and got it flowing. It’s amazing what a little saline can do for someone who is severely dehydrated. George’s status changed from "zombie" to "Zowie, let me out of here I need to sing!!" in short order. After a final test, the doctor cleared him for harmonious relations and brother George called to advise Tom and me to get dressed and ready. Tom had arranged for us to compete last.

George and George arrived and off we went to the theatre. We rehearsed a little, and sang – surprisingly well, we thought, under the circumstances. We lived through the countdown to learn that we, indeed, had won the contest, marginally ahead of a strong group of quartets. Joyfully up to the stage for trophy and medals we went.

We were squired over to the AISQC reception and duly inducted. The capper, though, was getting to perform on stage the song we had practiced with Realtime. It was now even more appropriate: The Quest – To Dream the Impossible Dream! Antique Gold and Realtime, all brothers together with half the octet Metzger brothers singing bass and baritone. It was Antique Gold’s best singing ever! Exaltation, standing ovation and the elation of sharing barbershop love in one of the most profound ways –an experience of a lifetime.

Hm. And now Tom has two little boys. I wonder if sometime in the early 2030s…

We've been visiting my mom in Chicago this week, and as I was packing I came across a letter. I read it, and yelled downstairs to thank her for leaving it out for me to see.

"I didn't," she said. "I left it there so I'd remember to write Ray a note."

She was wrong. She may not have realized it, but she DID leave it there for me to see.

Ray was the kid next door when mom was growing up in Iowa. She's kept in touch over the years, even though she now lives in Chicago, and he's in New York state.

Ray suffered a stroke last fall. His children sent out this letter a couple weeks ago to update family and friends on his progress. One of the paragraphs, written about his first few days in the hospital when he couldn't speak, and "went up and down in his ability to understand what was going on around him," reads as follows ...

"One of his SPEBSQSA friends came over while Chip (Ray's son) was there and burst into song when he walked into the room. Dad lit up and joined in, on pitch, and with the correct words. The speech part of the brain is different from the 'singing' part."

This is truly why we do what we do.

Here is our current repertoire list: [mp3] means that the mp3 file is on the Members' Only web site

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

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

Our Chapter was 56 years old on March 13, 2006!

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