In three concerts in as many communities this month, the Community Chorus of Port Townsend and East Jefferson County will offer its spring program, “The Blue & The Gray: A Civil War Commemoration.”
This event marking the sesquicentennial of the Civil War will come to three venues:
■ First Presbyterian Church, 1111 Franklin St., Port Townsend, at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
■ Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, 45 Redeemer Way, Chimacum, at 3:30 p.m. Sunday.
■ Quilcene School, 294715 U. S. Highway 101, Quilcene, at 7 p.m. Wednesday.
Tickets are a suggested $15 donation at the door, while concert-goers are asked to arrive early for good seating.
“More than 600,000 Americans died during the bloody conflict that raged from 1861 to 1865,” said Leslie Lewis, the chorus’ director and an ardent history buff.
“Because 1863 saw both the Emancipation Proclamation and the Battle at Gettysburg,” she said, “I felt the 150th anniversary needed to be noticed.”
Lewis has assembled a varied program around her theme. It includes popular songs of the era such as “Beautiful Dreamer” and “Some Folks,” both by Stephen Foster.
She also wanted to incorporate songs from both the Union and Confederate sides of the conflict and to reflect the cultural heritage of African-American spirituals.
The powerful “Deep River,” for example, represents the burden of slavery.
President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, which went into effect Jan. 1, 1863, brought a renewed moral cause to the prolonged war, Lewis said.
In July 1863, Union and Confederate troops met in battle in Gettysburg, Pa. Some 50,000 soldiers were killed or wounded during that three-day encounter that proved to be the war’s turning point.
Lewis has selected arrangements of wartime songs such as “Just Before the Battle, Mother,” “When Johnny Comes Marching Home” and “Dixie.”
She also found contemporary songs about the Civil War, including the 1998 “Brother, My Brother” from “The Civil War: An American Musical,” and a piece written in 2012, “The Blue and the Gray.”
“’Just Before the Battle, Mother,’ and ‘Brother, My Brother’ are both very moving,” Lewis said, “particularly if we imagine how a family might feel sending one or more members off to war.
“Families today can relate to that as we face war in our own time.”
Speeches, letters
During these concerts, the singers will offer excerpts from Civil War speeches, letters and other writings, and dedicate a “Wall of Honor” to their ancestors who fought in the Civil War.
“History has always come alive for me when I can place my own people in it,” Lewis said.
“The stories and events suddenly have more relevance when I realize my family members were involved and affected.”
Lewis said chorus members have joined in shaping this program, and “they have added elements that I could not have imagined.”
Pianist Lisa Lanza accompanies the singers, while guest musicians will include Kim Clarke, Heather Gordon, Barbara Henry and Karl Bach.
Two student groups, the PT Vocal Ensemble teen choir directed by Lewis and a trio of string players, also will be part of the three concerts.
Handmade quilt
Also at the concerts, the chorus will unveil a handmade quilt designed by chorus board member Linda Atkins.
The quilt will be the prize in a drawing whose winner will be announced at the group’s holiday performance in December.
Tickets are available for $3 each at this week’s concerts, with proceeds to benefit the chorus and its vocal music scholarship.
For concert or raffle information, phone 360-385-1402 or visit www.PTchorus.org.
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Features Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5062, or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.
