Sing! takes the summer off, so sit back and relax a while. And don’t forget to sing around the campfire.

It’s been a great year for the chorus. We spent a fair amount of time working on some music by Duluth’s hometown favorite band Low. First, we sang “Don’t Carry it All” for the Low 20th anniversary tribute concert at Sacred Heart Music Center. It was a beautiful song to sing and we really enjoyed working on it.

That gig led us to a sweet opportunity to open up for Low at the Homegrown Music Festival. Best of all, we got to collaborate with Alan Sparhawk and the band to sing back up on So Blue, I’m Nothing But Heart, and again for Don’t Carry it All. It was so fun to work with Alan and learn some things about singing with a band. The songs were awesome and felt so good to sing. The performance was definitely a high point, not to mention the visitation from a music loving bat from Sacred Heart’s belfry.

Finally, we celebrated Sing!’s 15th year with a concert of our own at The Underground. What a great venue for us. This was a sweet and emotional show. The calm setting and attentive audience led to some of our best singing yet.

The year wrapped up with our traditional pot luck. We don’t just sing, we cook! So much fun to gather casually with all of these wonderful women.

Up for next year is a change in the structure of the group. For the last three years we all sang together from 5:30-6:45 on Wednesdays, then a portion of the singers stayed on to rehearse for another hour – this group became known as Sing! 2.

The group has grown in size quite a bit over the last couple of years and Sing! 2 has grown in strength and purpose. To help me be able to pay attention to everyone and to accomodate the differences between casual and “serious” singing I’m planning for two separate groups in the fall. (See the Join page on this site for details.)

Sing! 1 will meet on Mondays from 5:30pm-6:30pm. This group is a classic version of Sing! We’ll get together to sing for fun, regular attendance is optional, and we’ll do some performing as well. This group is designed to allow busy women to participate as they can.

Sing! 2 will meet on Wednesdays from 5:50pm-7:30pm. As before, I request that singers in this group attend regularly. If you will miss more than two rehearsals in a session, I’ll request that you sing with the other group. This group will be a little more intense, and will learn more music. When everyone is present we can move a lot faster and work on more difficult music. There may also be more performing opportunities. This group is still open to singers at all levels, and is welcoming to newcomers. Just expect to set aside 9 weeks of Wednesday nights for singing only.

At the end of my 15th year I am astounded at what a rich experience Sing! has become for me. I can’t imagine my life without it.

Enjoy the summer, and sing out loud!
Mags