February 2019 Making Music in the Middle of America Volume IX, Issue 3

The Chordnator

Keep the Whole World Singing!

Website: kearneychous.com

Singing Valentines Part

of February Calendar

Singing Valentines are on the schedule in Febru-

ary for the 1733 Barbershop Chorus. Quartets

from the chapter travel throughout the area to

provide singing surprises to all sweethearts.

This annual occurrence is offered by various

quartets that are made up for the occasion from

members, or perhaps those quartets active in the

chorus such as Habitat 4 Harmony, Just 4 Fun,

and others.

Recipients are given a song or two, a flower and

card from their honey. Pictures may be taken as

well. Songs most often heard include ‘Heart of

Heart”, “Let Me Call You Sweetheart”, “My Wild

Irish Rose”, or any love song known by the quar-

tet that fits the moment.

Headquar-

ters for the

activity are

at Jim Ber-

glund’s

furniture

store in

downtown

Kearney.

The chorus

charges $25

for each

stop. Con-

tact a cho-

rus member

to schedule

a song.

THE KEARNEY AREA 1733 BARBERSHOP CHORUS has been attract-

ing new members by the family recently. These are the Bogus children who

sang on the Christmas concert. The boys sang with the chorus as well as

in this family quartet. Their sister is Kayla, and the boys are (l-r) Seth,

Joshua and Blake. (Photo by John Moore)

HAPPY

VALENTINE’S

DAY!

Songs Announced for 2019 Show Here is the list of songs for the spring show “Cool Water”: “Dear Hearts and Gen-

tle People”, “Bridge Over Troubled Water”, “King of the Road”, “Cool Water”,

“Galway Bay”, “Danny Boy”, “Irish Blessing”, “Loch Lomond”, “Heute’kommt

der Has zu mir (Oberammergau)”, “From the First Hello to the Last Goodbye” and

“Keep the Whole World Singing”. Learning tracks are available as well as sheet

music. Jim Sanks is show chairman.

VISION STATEMENT

The vision of the 1733 Kearney Area Barbershop Chorus is to be

recognized as a quality men's choral group, bound by a love of

four-part barbershop harmony. Our aim is to have ordinary men

produce extraordinary music, with every member encouraged to

actively participate in the chorus and its related events.

Page 2 Volume IX, Issue 3 The Chordnator February 2019

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, 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

Terry Hofaker

Chapter Hospitality & Sunshine Chairman

Allen Krohn

Chapter Historian

Mitch O’Neill, mitchoneill99@yahoo.com,

308/440-3330

Harmony Foundation Chairman

Mitch O’Neill

Board Member at Large

James Sanks, sanks@live.com, 308/237-7136

Bulletin Editor Web Site Administrator

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

Shared By

Chorus

Comic

Bruce Beitler

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.

Moth goes to a podiatrist.

The podiatrist says, "Come on in. How can I help

you "

The moth says, "Well, I've been kind of depressed

lately. The missus and I aren't getting along and I don't see much point

in going on."

The podiatrist says, "Well, you need a psychiatrist, I'm a foot doctor.

You don't even have feet, why do you come to me?"

The moth says, "Well, I was passing by and your light was on."

Two good ol' boys in a Alabama trailer park were sitting around talk-

ing one afternoon over a cold beer after getting off work at the local

Nissan plant. After a while the first guy says to the second,

"If'n I was to sneak over to your trailer Saturday and make love to

your wife while you was off huntin' and she got pregnant and had a

baby, would that make us kin?"

The second guy crooked his head sideways for a minute, scratched his

head and squinted his eyes thinking real hard about the question.

Finally, he says,

"Well, I don't know about kin, but it would make us even!"

When the Light

Comes On

mailto:%20mitchoneill99@yahoo.com

The Chordnator February 2019 Volume IX, Issue 3 Page 3

I don’t recall how often I have used

the “It’s Your Chapter” graphic that is

on the front page of this issue, it has

been often.

I try to put that and other hints out

there for you every time the newsletter

goes out. Then, this month, Fran Wil-

son, among his emails, sent one about

how he had been on the Barbershop

Harmony Society’s web site and no-

ticed that as a chorus we are lacking in

attracting new members.

Not that we haven’t tried. I know Gary

Helms has offered numerous ideas for

years. We have seen new and younger

faces the past two years on our Christ-

mas concert due to the push during

that season to have singers jump

aboard. In fact, we have been growing

by families and friends with the

Hofakers and others from Holdrege

last year, and the Bogus boys this year

(and their sister on the Christmas con-

cert.

Still, Fran makes a point that we too

often ignore: each

one could bring

one. I am not any

better than the

rest of you on this.

My main area of contacts are from

Lexington so Don Lif and I offer to

help with transportation to Kearney as

well as promoting the harmony.

I don’t think singing ability is as much

of an issue as we sometimes make it.

We have put together a community

mixed chorus for Christmas in Lexing-

ton for more than 10 years now. So I

think we can assume there is time in-

volvement—commitment.

That commitment starts the last week

of September and ends with the con-

certs in early December.

Let’s Try Something Different

So along with working out details for

the upcoming annual show in April,

Jim Sanks has devised a written pro-

posal that sets up ways to attract new

members.

He either heard

some of us conver-

sationally mention-

ing how we can

attract singers by

offering some

monetary attrac-

tion, or came up

with it on his own.

Regardless, it’s a

way of trying

something differ-

ent.

By the time I am

writing this, you

may have already

heard what the board

of directors has ap-

proved. We have

several levels of

Valeencouragement for young

and old, student and grownup.

We are also in that historic peri-

od of al-

lowing

inclusion

by male and female.

So there are now scholarships, sti-

pends, gifts, or whatever works for

you to call them ,may be offered to

someone you wish would join us. We

are contacting music teachers who

may nominate their students. And we

continue to work UNK’s music depart-

ment.

The most important element in all this

of course is all of us or “You” as it

were. I think there’s a real concern

among many barbershoppers that our

chorus continues to grow older and the

hobby is fading.

In case you haven’t read it, the “It’s

Your Chapter” ad also has words be-

low it of “imagine, inspire, influence”.

That also is up to each of us.

Knowing Your Music

We are heading into the part of the

calendar when we need to learn music.

It’s not only important in terms of just

knowing, there are all those other de-

tails, like choreography, to name one.

I received a bushel basket of learning

tracks from Fran this week, so I am

assuming all of you on the Internet got

something as well to help you.

If you want those and haven’t received

them be sure to let one of us know. I

will also try to put as much of that on

kearneychorus.com too.

High achievement

always takes place in

the framework of high

expectation.

- Charles F. Kettering

Here’s the Pitch

By jpm Membership Means You

THE MAELSTROM QUARTET will be the headliners for the 2019 show April 6. Members include: (l-r) Kevin Mey-

er, Seth Fetzer, Tyler Wigginton and Wes Short.

(Photo courtesy Maelstrom Quartet)

Volume IX, Issue 3 Page 4 The Chordnator February 2019

Fran Wilson and Jim Berglund are heading for the Leadership

Academy and HEP School slated for February 8-9 in St. Jo-

seph, MO. Be sure to check with chapter treasurer Berglund if

wish to join them.

The two have said they are planning on driving down on Friday

and returning home Saturday.

Classes will be held at Missouri Western State University.

Registration will be at the Red Lion Hotel at 102 S 3rd St in St.

Joseph.

Registration will be on Friday evening where there will tag

singing and social time at the hotel. Further registration will

begin Saturday morning at 7:15 in the Spratt Hall Lobby at the

university.

Classes begin at 9:00 with numerous breakout sessions. Your

chapter leaders encourage you to attend.

Two Chorus Members Attending

Leadership Academy at St. Joe

Down and Dirty

Woodshedding Tips

MITCH O’NEILL GETS advice from Nebras-

ka District President Ron Flock of Fremont

during the installation of the leadership team

in December. Mitch is Harmony Foundation

chairman as well as the 1733’chapter histori-

an. Bob Wagner is sitting in front of them.

(Photo by John Moore)

Woodshedding isn’t done by more than

four singers at a time, except during a

group learning process. Woodshedding

isn’t faking a four part along with three

singers who are singing an existing

written barbershop arrangement.

Woodshedding isn’t trying to sing s

song you’ve never heard (at least

once). And woodshedding isn’t singing

Polecats or tags.

Authentic woodshedding is defined as

a bass, bari, and tenor “discovering

harmonies by ear” around a lead sung

melody without reference to a familiar

or written barbershop arrangement. In

woodshedding there are no wrong

notes. But some notes

are better than others.

The bass part is not

always as low as you might think. Stay

on a note until you are forced to move

(good advice for all parts really). Most-

ly you sing the root and fifth of the

scale.

Baris singing woodshed most often

know what they are doing anyhow. But

many beginners tend to sing too high.

One rule is that if the melody is going

up the bari is most likely going down,

and vice-versa.

The tenor part is not always as high as

one might be tempted to sing it. The

tenor will usually have success in har-

monizing in thirds above the melody.

Stick close to the lead. Try to irritate

the baritone who wants to steal the

“7th” every once in a while. He’ll fig-

ure something out.

Leads should know that the purpose of

woodshedding is trying to ring chords.

Leads will sing more slowly than at a

concert environment. He will may have

to hold some melody notes for as long

as it takes to find a feasible chord.

It’s The

M U S I C

Editor’s note: I have always thought

this was part of the heart of barber-

shopping. I have even used the tone off

the heat register as a pitch. Try this for

fun!