AROUND THE PARK AGAIN by Sharon Lee Tegler
At holiday time a year ago, the Chesapeake Harmony Chorus was performing live for the Greater Severna Park & Arnold Chamber’s 2019 Taste & Sip event. Decked out in holiday red and gathered before a lighted Christmas tree with new director Sally Burton at the forefront, they serenaded attendees at the Chartwell Golf and Country Club with a program of carols. They’d performed similar programs during Christmases past at venues throughout Anne Arundel County.
A competitive Sweet Adelines chorus that sings a capella harmony in the barbershop style, the group has been greatly enjoyed at other local holiday events including Severna Park Community Center’s Cookies & Carols gatherings and seasonal programs at Baldwin Hall in Millersville where they are currently based.
But this holiday season has required a very different approach.
Beginning in mid-March, the COVID pandemic prevented chorus members from practicing together and brought about cancellations of all their scheduled performances. However, they are a very resilient group of women. Inspired by their determined and innovative director Burton, they found ways to practice and to prepare their special Christmas performance – albeit a virtual one.
Burton explained how their harmonious holiday arrangement of “Happy Holidays” was recorded and presented as a YouTube video . They’d chosen “Happy Holidays” because it works for a variety of religions.
“To learn how we could do a virtual performance together I’d joined some Facebook groups of choruses and choirs who were already exploring the process,” she said. “I simply applied what I’d learned.
To make a long story short, Burton asked her singers to record themselves singing their parts into a digital device (even a Smartphone), while listening to a learning track from another device through an earpiece. By singing ‘exactly what they were hearing in their earpieces’, everyone was literally performing the song together though their individual recorders picked up only their voice.
The chorus members then emailed the individual recordings to Burton who put all the pieces together using a software package called Adobe Audition.
“I’d matched and combined all the recordings and exported them to the singers as one audio file,” she said. ” Then, with the audio recording playing in their ears, the women used their phones to record themselves singing to it in order to make “cameos” showing each singer.
The fifteen-member chorus’ “Happy Holidays” YouTube video is sung in four-part harmony with seven lead singers to carry the melody including Peggy Coulter, Reggie Cox, Leone Craven, Marge McGugan, Carol Gass, Diane Schwartz, and Lynda Walsh. Two tenors – Eileen Robinson and Sally Burton sang above the melody. Four baritones including Patti Platt, Sue Berger, Marjorie Rawhouser, and Cathy White filled in above and below the melody and two basses – Mary Beth Whisman and Mindy Cassel sang the lowest notes in each chord.
The process was made easier because the chorus had already held a Zoom rehearsal of the number. Since the pandemic, they’ve rehearsed twice monthly by singing remotely from socially distanced cars at two parking garage locations – one at the Glen Burnie Public Parking Garage and the other beneath the former Nordstrom’s at Westfleld Annapolis Mall.
Bringing audiences the gift of music during “Christmases Past” has always been one of the group;s greatest joys. “Christmas Present” required finding a new way to celebrate through song. Hopefully, “Christmas Future” will find the singers back in front of their ever-appreciative audiences. Meantime, you can view the Chesapeake Harmony Chorus’ tuneful YouTube video of “Happy Holidays” by clicking https://youtu.be/j7JKuY2at84 . For information and updated news about the chorus as we head into 2021 visit ChesapeakeHarmony.org .
It’s magical how spiritual music is also being created virtually by the St. Martin’s-in-the-Field Epicopal Church Choir of which Sally Burton is a member. St. Martin’s director of music ministries Dr. HyeSung Hwang puts together virtual performances of hymns using a unique process of her own. The choir’s latest offering is “Hark The Herald Angels Sing”.
Dr. Hwang films herself directing the hymn she chooses complete with audio. She then asks choir members to film selfies of themselves singing to her direction. The singers email her their recordings to be combined into one audio file. The process works beautifully. To hear the hymns, visit St. Martins-In-The-Field Episcopal Church | Facebook
A “Live Nativity” drive-thru style at Woods Church
Shepherds in the field watching their flocks is not something you commonly see in Severna Park – even in the nights before the birth of Christ. Yet, thanks to several wonderful families from the congregation of Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church, the entire Nativity story unfolded for visitors to safely view on December 17 and 18 as they drove by in their cars.
Shepherds Nikki and Kelsey Lawson, who own Annapolis-based Cowgirl Up Pony Parties watched over “part” of their flock aided by their miniature spotted donkey named “Donkey”, their Shetland pony “Mr. Ed”, their brown and white goat “Remy”, their white, tan and black goat Hunter and their largest goat “Pappy”.
While the shepherds minded their animals, three Kings or Wise Men from the Orient (depicted by the Ivey brothers, Nick, Keith and Gavin) were following a very bright star east toward Bethlehem where it was said they would find a newborn king. They carried gifts of gold, frankincense, and myhrr.
They passed a second group of shepherds (Jack, Lin, Mae and Jennifer Hayman) to whom an angel of the Lord had appeared with a heavenly host.
Another group of Shepherds (the Hayman family) was amazed to find ……………….. 
……………the Angel of the Lord and a heavenly host appearing above them.
Traveling on, the Wise Men came upon an Inn where the Innkeepers, depicted by Carol Ann and Vic Marone, informed them “there was no room”.
The Marones, who are very involved with the church’s WoodsWork Habitat for Humanity youth building projects, said the background for the vignette was designed and built by their teenage kids.
Journeying through Bethlehem, the Wise Men found the citizens of Bethlehem (portrayed by members of the Matthews, Smith, Albrecht, Harrison and Mays families) hard at work at various trades including bakers and blacksmiths. As the night was cold, the workers took turns by a fire pit.
Finally, the star the Three Kings were following came to rest over a stable where a baby had been born, wrapped in swaddling clothes by his mother Mary, and laid in a manger. By the time the Wise Men arrived, the baby they named Jesus, was being held by his mother (Jesse Binnix) and surrounded by the Holy family with Erik Binnix as Joseph along with Zack and Morgan Binnix.
A special stop-off was constructed at the end of the Living Nativity Drive-Thru where people left donations to benefit the charity Arundel House of Hope. Volunteers like Dylan Roche, Bob Royer and David Merrill, Woods’ Director of Music and Arts, kept the traffic flowing smoothly thereby guaranteeing success for the two-day event.
Merrill had some news to share and an invitation as well.
“I wanted to let everyone know about the premier of our community-wide, socially- distanced virtual movie “Amahl and the Night Visitors” being shown on the Woods’ YouTube page on Christmas Day,” the director said. “People can view it at 4 pm. ”
According to Merrill, a talented cast of young actors (from the Woods’ congregation) filmed scenes in October and November behind Severn School, in the Ulmstead community, and at Woods Church. He explained the story behind the production.
“Written in 1951, ‘Amahl’ is a Christmas story about a crippled shepherd boy, prone to telling tall tales. He lives in poverty and obscurity with his weary, bitter mother,” he said. “When the magi stop by their home on a cold winter night, a delightful story unfolds — one that is poignant and profound.”
Merrill and Woods Church hope the community will join the cast on December 25 at 4:00 pm on Youtube Premier, for “Amahl and The Night Visitors”. You may access the Premier link by going to: www.wmpcshows.com.
For more information, visit Events | Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church (woodschurch.org)
