July 2018 Making Music in the Middle of America Volume VIII, Issue 8

Keep the Whole World Singing!

The Chordnator

Memorial Day Services May 28

Nebraskappella! Day

Congratulations to

Chapter BOTM

August 26

As the Kearney Area 1733 Barbershop

Chorus winds its way through July and

August, the schedule will take the harmo-

nizers to a parade in Kearney, and fair-

grounds in Holdrege for the Phelps Coun-

ty Fair, July 22; and Grand Island for the

Nebraska State Fair August 26.

These events give

the chorus a tremen-

dous amount of ex-

posure to the public

and keeps the chorus

on the forefront of

an organization that

provides service

through our barber-

shop music.

The exciting thing

about barbershop

music is that it

brings both the

memories of early

20th Century tunes

to the audiences as

well as some more

contemporary songs

of recent popularity.

Many of the chapter

members are able to

attend nearly every

singing event. They

are also providing

glorious church mu-

sic at churches through the area from Lex-

ington to Shelton and Holdrege to Raven-

na.

There are bright eyes and smiles shown as

well as elderly nursing facilities visited by

chorus members on many Monday even-

ing starting in May and running to Sep-

tember.

Chapter President Gary

Helms even attempted to en-

courage men to join us if just for church

singing.

When we get to the end of August we join

barbershoppers and Sweet Adelines from

across the state to promote our hobby at

the Nebraska State Fair.

The following have been recognized

recently as Barbershoppers of the

Month, Jim Berglund, April; John

Moore, May; and Jeremy Hemphill,

June.

THE AVENUE OF Flags are part of

the Memorial Day services each year at

the Kearney Cemetery. The 1733 Cho-

rus add patriotic music as well. (Photo

by John Moore)

See the blog by Debra Lynn on page 4

1733 Chorus

Seen at Parades,

County, State

Fair Venues

Have a

Happy,

Flag

Filled

July

4th!

Website at kearneychorus.com

Weekly meetings at

Countryside Christian

Church, (west of Har-

mon Park) 3203 8th

Ave. in Kearney at

7:30 p.m. on Mondays

(except holidays).

Please use the south

entrance and south

parking area.

MISSION STATEMENT The mission of the Kearney Area1733 Barbershop Chorus is to pro-

mote, preserve, and perpetuate barbershop style harmony in both

choruses and quartets. To accomplish this, we will strive to improve

our singing and performance skills through fun, fellowship and team-

work, ultimately adding to the artistic quality and charitable outreach

in our community.

Page 2 Volume VIII, 8 The Chordnator July 2018

An official publication of the

Kearney Area 1733 Barbershop Chorus

Board of Directors and Officers of the Kearney Area 1733 Barbershop Chorus

Musical Director

Fran Wilson, frjgwils@yahoo.com, 308/234-5376

Assistant Directors

Monty McCollough, Ed Kohel, John Moore, Gary Davis

President

Gary Helms, ghelms@charter.net, 308/236-7472

Secretary

Ron Morris, armour@charter.net

Treasurer

James Berglund, jjberglund@yahoo.com, 308/627-6416

VP Membership & Chapter Development

John Moore

VP Music & Performance

Monty McCollough, flint.memc@gmail.com,

308/238-3423

Director of Pubic Relations

Gary Straatmann, gmstraat@yahoo.com, 308/234-3500

Chapter Hospitality & Sunshine Chairman

Donald Lif, lifdra@gmail.com, 308/746-2533

Chapter Historian

Mitch O’Neill, oneillm@unk.edu, 308/440-3330

Harmony Foundation Chairman

Mitch O’Neill

Board Members at Large Robert Wagner, bobwag-ner@charter.net, 308/240-1534; James Sanks,

sanks@live.com, 308/237-7136

Bulletin Editor Web Site Administrator

John Moore, 308/325-5430 john.moore@dawsoncountyne.org

A Minneapolis lawyer went duck hunting up north. He shot a bird, but it fell into a farmer's field on the other side of a fence. As the lawyer climbed over the fence, an elderly Norwegian farmer drove up on his tractor and asked him what he was doing. The litigator responded, "I shot a duck and it fell in this field, and now I'm going to retrieve it." The old farmer replied, "Dis is my property, and you are not coming over here." The indignant lawyer said, "I am one of the best trial attorneys in Minnesota and if you don't let me get that duck, I'll sue you and take everything you own." The old farmer smiled and said, "Apparently, you don't know how we settle dis-putes. We settle small disagreements like dis with the 'Three Kick Rule.'" The lawyer asked, "What is the 'Three Kick Rule'?" The farmer replied, "Well, because the dispute occurs on my land, I get to go first. I kick you three times and then you kick me three times and so on, back and forth until someone gives up." The attorney quickly thought about the proposed contest and decided that he could easily take the old codger. He agreed to abide by the local cus-tom. The old farmer slowly climbed down from the tractor and walked up to the attorney. His first kick planted the toe of his heavy steel-toed work boot into the lawyer's groin and dropped him to his knees. His second kick to the mid-riff sent the lawyer's breakfast gushing from his mouth. The lawyer was on all fours when the farmer's third kick to his ample rear end, sent him face-first into a fresh cow pie. The lawyer summoned every bit of his will and remaining strength and very slowly managed to get to his feet. Wiping his face with the arm of his jacket, he said, "Okay, you old fart. Now it's my turn." The old farmer smiled and said, "Nah, I give up. You can have da duck.”

Shared By

Chorus

Comic

Bruce Beitler

Joke of

the Month

This One Just ‘Quacks’ Me Up!

The Chordnator July 2018 Page 3 Volume VIII, Issue 8

Don Lif and I travel nearly

every Monday evening from

Lexington on Highway 30 to

the weekly meetings in

Kearney.

During the summer we often

commute as well on Sunday

morning when we can to join

the 1733 Chorus at a church to

sing for vacationing choirs.

We often remark how fast the

corn fields grow, even from

week to week We of course

have to wonder if it will be

“knee-high by the 4th of July?”

This is one of those years when

it appears it might be “elephant-

eye-high” by the 4th. And that

got me to thinking about all the

wonderful musicals penned by

Rogers and Hammerstein. Not

the least of which is Oklaho-

ma!” and “O, What a Beautiful

Morning!”

That’s a long way to encourag-

ing us all to get into the mood

to begin organizing next year’s

annual show in April. I have

almost always mentioned at this

juncture of the summertime in

my column that a show of

Broadway

hits would be

a fantastic

show theme.

I say that not because I am sold

on that theme, but to get some

conversation rolling among the

membership that leads to a sol-

id decision for next year’s show

theme/title and someone or

more than one someone to chair

the event.

I have been told there was dis-

cussion at the board meeting

June 11 and proposals are forth

coming.

Please give as much support as

you can to the decision. And,

be sure to add your thoughts for

a good theme as well, even if

you are not interested in the

chairmanship part of it. We

need to start ordering and learn-

ing new music, and resurrecting

known music in our library so it

can be polished.

As has been the case now for at

least the last three years, the

parts are in place and well-

oiled for making the machine

purr. Fran Wilson as the musi-

cal director of the chapter, my-

self as the program and script

guy etc., and many standing

committees and their chairmen,

are already in place.

As chairman or co-chairmen,

you have the opportunity to

write your own job description

too. Give it a try.

Onward and Upward

Of all the things that are on the

future

schedule,

this sum-

mer is

proving

to be

especially

busy. We

continue

to enjoy

our

Holdrege connec-

tion and head for a

July 22 show at the

Phelps County Fair.

Speaking of that

connection, have

you noticed that the

younger Mr.

Hofaker (Sam) has

added fire and

knives to his juggling act? So I

would be careful about getting

in his way.

We have to be just glad that his

family has given us part of

their continuously busy

lives. In case any of you have a

special talent, we have lots of

room in our chapter circus.

In case you haven’t been

thanked —I suspect Fran has—

here is another pat on the back

for getting into the swing for

church singing,

and all that we do

out there in the

public arena to

keep our name

alive and well.

I have tried to

keep up with

photos and hand-

shakes from the

president Gary Helms on the

monthly barbershopper of the

month recognition too. I get a

little confused these days about

whether I have printed a photo

or not...but thanks to all of you.

From the Barber’s Chair

are tidbits about both

members and non-

members who have

recently contributed

time and effort to the

betterment of the

Kearney Area 1733

Barbershop Chorus

and barbershopping

in general. By jpm

Elephant-Eye-High By The 4th of July

Here’s the Pitch

Volume VIII, Issue 8 Page 4 The Chordnator July 2018

Guest blog: The impact of the male singing

experience, shared with everyone – Debra Lynn

Recently, in an impromptu Facebook

video post, guest blogger Debra

Lynn shared her thoughts about why the

male-only chorus and quartet structure

is so important to preserve. We asked

her to share her story and perspective.

My Dad was a Barbershopper in The

Coastmen in the early 1960s, at the

time directed by Harlan Wilson and

Gene Cokeroft. He was profoundly

impacted by the chorus’s District

Championship win during that peri-

od, later going on to sing with the Silk

City Chorus under Vin Zito, after

relocating our family to Connecticut

for job reasons. This career move ulti-

mately led him away from singing on

the risers, so by the time that I was an

adult, he had long let go of his Mon-

day night rehearsals.

My father didn’t have an easy life, for

reasons only he knows. This very private

man, highly accomplished within the

aeronautical industry, was acclaimed in

Aviation News for inventing the Vector

nozzle, an aviation game-changer. But

even with that success, inner peace and

joy eluded him. If I had known twenty

years ago what being on the risers could

do for the emotional well-being of a

man, I would have dragged him back

into a chorus lickety-split!

Men around the world are struggling.

We see it on the evening news every

single day. Abuse, horror, violence,

these are things that happen when the

hearts of men are wounded and lost. A

wise teacher once said to me, “there is

no greater task than that of easing the

suffering of mankind.” Barbershop har-mony does exactly that, every week, in

every chapter, on every set of risers.

Whether male or female, whether in the

Barbershop Harmony Society, or Sweet

Adelines International, or in Harmo-

ny, Inc., we do this through the gift of

song and four-part harmony, which re-

quires us to play together as a synchro-

nized team, a rare accomplishment in the

world of agreement.

Last year, when the Barbershop Harmo-

ny Society took a stand with the new

Inclusion Statement, I was deeply moved

and proud of the contextual intent behind

these words. As I was preparing this blog

I discovered this quote that speaks to the

potential impact of this statement: “A

choice of inclusion allows us to learn

how to bring apparently opposing forces

together into harmony within us, and in

our world.” ~A. Fairchild

While focusing on this expansive vision,

I believe it’s also possible to maintain

the original integrity of this men’s organ-

ization. Not only is it important to pre-

serve the unique sound that male-only

quartets and choruses generate, but also

to preserve the sanctity of men’s chap-

ters, where men are able to rely on each

other in fellowship and brotherhood. I’ve

witnessed the power of male mentorship,

where younger men navigating into

adulthood have been encouraged and

supported by men with a few more years

of life and work experience. This unique

multi-generational environment offers

benefits beyond the risers, and plays out

in the healthy family dynamics that we

see throughout the Society.

I believe that through the addition of the BHS Inclusion Statement, we are opening our minds to an added third pathway, where major issues of gender, religious, sexual orientation, and ethnic inequality can be mitigated and trans-formed, as we impact our world through barbershop singing. For example, by supporting Mixed Barbershop Chorus and Quartet opportunities, we add a new dimension — not only to our singing experience, but also to our world view.

I envision that we will become a culture

noted for embracing people, and facili-

tate playing together in new and expan-

sive ways. We in essence create a

win/win, where

each of us gets to choose how we want

to participate, and on which team I have

long believed that well-tuned barbershop

harmony is spiritually important to our

world. As many long-time members are

aware, we are doing much more than

singing together, we are transforming

people’s lives in a fundamental and, per-

haps, critical way.

Change can be challenging to navigate,

but when we recognize the great emo-

tional need that exists around us in socie-

ty, and the unique opportunity barber-

shop singing offers, our unified focus

can be on exponential impact.

Since my publication in The Harmoniz-er in 2010, the Barbershop Harmony

Society and many colleagues I cherish

have helped to shift the course of my

life, giving me meaningful purpose and

direction, as I offer my understanding in

service to men like my Dad. Who knows

how harmony will change their world?

Although we may never know, I suspect

it. (Ms. Lynn is the author of Bel Canto

Buzz: Beautiful Singing Made Sim-

ple!; the “Sing Like an Italian” and

“Breathe Life into Your Singing” arti-

cles in The Harmonizer. She has

served on the faculty of Harmony Uni-

versity and many District, Regional

and International level events.)

Editor’s Note: This came by way of Fran

Wilson to share with you. Posted on May

17, 2018 by Brian Lynch