PORT TOWNSEND — From the William Tell Overture to “Dancing Queen,” “Moon River,” “Lonesome Road,” “Penny Lane” and “Singin’ in the Rain,” the Wild Rose Chorale has assembled a rich repertoire since its birth in 1992. And in a pair of concerts titled “Thank You for the Music: A 20-Year Retrospective,” the mostly a cappella chorale will showcase its history tonight and Sunday afternoon at Grace Lutheran Church, 1120 Walker St.
The 10-voice ensemble, which usually performs without instrumental accompaniment, is known for dishing out an eclectic mix of tunes — plus a surprise or two. There are familiar songs and “there are some unexpected sounds involved,” quipped bass Al Thompson.
To wit: Queen’s “Seaside Rendezvous” and the Beatles’ “Revolution” are on the chorale’s menu tonight and Sunday.
Admission to the 7:30 concert tonight and the 3 p.m. performance Sunday is a suggested $12 donation. Listeners can plan on an 80-minute performance with a short intermission. For more information about the concerts and the singers, phone 360-385-1402 or email wildrosechorale@gmail.com.
To prepare for the 20th anniversary retrospective, the chorale drew from a repertoire of 350 songs performed over the years.
The singers specialize in small-ensemble pop and jazz choral music, “something that no other group in our area does,” director Leslie Lewis noted.
The group was founded in early 1992 as the Wild Rose Choral Society, and gave a performance at the July opening of Port Townsend’s Rose Theatre. Later incarnated as the Wild Rose Chorale, the singers then staged a mostly classical program in December of ’92.
In the years since, the chorale found its niche in pop, jazz, folk and many other styles of a cappella music. The Wild Rose singers don’t concern themselves so much with genre; instead, they look all over the musical map for intricate, beautiful or just plain fun arrangements, according to chorale spokeswoman Lynn Nowak.
Before Lewis, other directors of the group have included Robert Fitzgerald, Sally Orsborn, Estyn Goss and Rebecca Rottsolk. The singers range from veterans like Nowak, who has been with the Wild Rose since 1992 to Brian Goldstein, who joined in 2011.
Longtime singers figure they have gathered for more than 1,000 rehearsals, sung in 250 concerts in Jefferson County and beyond, delivered two dozen singing valentines, retired a few kazoos and, this past March, performed at one choral competition.
“Even though we came in fourth, it was a thrilling and educational experience for us all,” Wild Rose soprano Barb Matter said of the Harmony Sweepstakes regional competition in Olympia.
While the occasional instrument is incorporated into a program, “it’s always the pure sound of human voices that brings us back,” said Lewis.
“The challenge of tuning and blending our voices keeps us on our toes. But the reward is great.”
