PORT TOWNSEND — With more than 125 years of combined experience in their group — not to mention plenty of additional choral singing — members of the Wild Rose Chorale once again will bring local audiences their brand of playful harmonies in concerts this weekend.
The eight-voice a cappella ensemble’s “Seize the Day” performances are at 7:30 p.m. today and Saturday. Both are at Quimper Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 2333 San Juan Ave., Port Townsend.
Admission to the concerts is a suggested $18 at the door. Donations to the scholarship fund will be accepted. The Wild Rose Chorale is a 501(c)(3) organization.
For 26 years, the Wild Rose Chorale has been a performing mainstay in the community, organizers said, adding that this doesn’t mean the group is not adventurous.
Popular songs
It performs popular songs from nearly all the decades of the 20th century and well into the 21st. Repertoire usually includes not only pop, but an eclectic mix of jazz, folk, international songs, rock ’n’ roll, show tunes and the occasional classical or traditional piece.
Illustrating the “new” in this concert program is “Try Everything,” a 2016 Shakira song from the children’s film “Zootopia.”
“I love how sometimes we can sing seemingly with abandon, although the arrangements we use are sometimes difficult,” said director and member Leslie Lewis. “Working on this song, for instance, is a blast.”
JES Schumacher, a member of the group, concurred.
“The payoff is in the last few weeks prior to our concerts,” she said.
She said preparation takes months of weekly rehearsals. Schumacher also listens to recordings and practices on her own by plunking out her part on a keyboard.
“The goal is to surround one another in delicious musical dynamics in every direction,” Schumacher continued. “When we achieve that, I savor every minute of it.”
While Wild Rose Chorale performs new and innovative songs, it also appreciates a juicy arrangement of a familiar melody. The upcoming program features, for example, standards such as “Loch Lomond,” “Crazy” and “Smile.”
At least 1 Beatles song
And no Wild Rose concert would be complete without at least one Beatles song, according to member Al Thompson.
For this program, singers present an eight-part arrangement of “When I’m Sixty-Four.” Thompson’s personal favorites are a couple of tunes from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Phantom of the Opera.”
The concert theme, “Seize the Day,” is a new arrangement from another musical, Walt Disney’s “Newsies.” Members liked the sentiment in the lyrics: “Now is the time to seize the day/Stare down the odds and seize the day/Minute by minute, that’s how you win it/We will find a way/But let us seize the day.”
The Wild Rose Chorale offers a youth scholarship to graduating high school seniors or to college students pursuing choral music in college or their post-secondary education.
Scholarship recipient
Hannah Williams of Quilcene High School is this year’s scholarship recipient.
She plans to study music theory and vocal performance at Olympic College next year, with a goal of auditioning for the music program at Western Washington University in Bellingham.
“All of us look back and are very grateful that we pursued music education in one form or another,” Schumacher said.
“Making this scholarship money available is important,” Thompson said. “Encouraging young adults to stay involved in music is a way to cement our vocal musical heritage in this county.”
For more information about the group, concerts or scholarship, call 360-385-1402, email wildrose chorale@gmail.com, visit http://wildrosechorale.org or see the group’s Facebook page.
