Official Weekly Bulletin of the Fairfax Jubil-Aires Fairfax Virginia Chapter, Southern Division, Mid-Atlantic District of the Barbershop Harmony Society Vol. 63, No. 8 Chartered November 30, 1953 March 4, 2015 Editor: John Knueven: John@Knueven.net Staff: Robyn Sandler: auntdodah1@cox.net Booking Agent: Art Medici This Week we re rehearsing at Lord of Life, West 13421 Twin Lakes Dr., Clifton, VA 7:30 PM Rehearsal NOTE: Performance times are approximate. Mar 14 noon St. Patrick s Day Celebration Mar 27 6:15p Performance at The Hermitage Apr 17 5p Show Tech Rehearsal Apr 18 2&7p Jubil-Aires Annual Show Apr 25 Performance at Wardensville, WV May 22-24 Southern Division Contest Jun 14 2p Potomac Green Purple: Tentative Performance RED: Newly Scheduled How to Memorize a Song -John Knueven- Sometimes the lyrics are hard to remember. I try to make a story out of them. Take Anybody Here from Out of Town, for instance. OK, I picture a road trip in a nice car. When I m a roamin He s on a tour Then I m at home in any place you mention in the USA. that s easy, He s touring in the USA! Just a rover, stopping over OK, he spends some time when he reachs a place. Makin some new friends on my way guess He s a really friendly guy! That s why he stops over. To Arizona All right, we finally have a starting point! Where I m a gonna miss the winter weather by the border land. oops, guess he started north of Arizona perhaps Nevada where it was snowing at the border? Then to Utah now then that doesn t help miss the snow! What s this guy doinggoing north??? On a Hee Haw He must watch the old TV show! Ridin thru the Rockies and the Canyon Grand! wow, was that breathtaking! A fellowship of men devoted to the art of a cappella barbershop singing, committed to excellence in musical performance and good will in the community. Visit the Fairfax Jubil-Aires s Web page at http://www.fairfaxjubilaires.org
2 They expect us back in Texas Ah ha! Turned around and went south again! Down in Amarillo where it s roundup time OK, we are in the pan handle and it must be summer now. Why spend Christmas, on the isthmus Hmmm must be gettin close to winter again where in the %^&* is an isthmus? Talking about Mexico? The sun they have in Florida is mighty fine! OK, we swung way over east to Florida good place to be in the dead of winter!! To New England, in the spring Road trip up the coast! And then to take a summer by the Golden Gate Oops, there goes our road trip theory. Maybe picture this guy as mighty rich and actually hires a huge transport plane and flies his hotrod to San Francisco? Howdy brother! Yep, he s a friendly ol cuss! Have another OK, he drinks, and because he s rich he hands out drinks to his friends? Here s to every state in the USA Hmmm he s traveled a lot but certainly not every state? Guess he s just dreaming! Do doodle doo etc. Must be a doodler too? So you see, it s easy to memorize a song if you just make a story out of it! The crazier the story the easier it will be to remember! More On Our Society -John Knueven- We had several articles on how the Society may be changing our music. Seems like they are promoting more modern songs. Some of you don t like the change. Did you know that our music style has been constantly changing thru the years? Did you know our singing roots came from Jazz? What a leap from Jazz to early barbershop! If you are interested in how our music has already changed thru the years, view the YouTube videos (5 of them) of Dr. David Wright Future History of Barbershop. I think you will find it quite interesting and revealing! I know I did. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncwtt DmEn_c&list=PLcwXdNVvSNbg02cbWGe05zS Y50SEFowP7 Cobbler s Corner -Cliff Shoemaker- I don t know about you, but I love to read The Harmonizer and the Mid l Antics. I sometimes wish I had the time to go back and read all the old issues, which I am sure are filled with wonderful stories and valuable information that would help make me a better barbershopper. If you still have your November/December 2014 Harmonizer, please take the time to read the President s Page by outgoing President Shannon Elswick. His article really goes to the heart of our recruitment of new members. His ideas come from a TED talk by Simon Sinek which I would recommend that you watch (http://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how _great_leaders_inspire_action ). So, some of you have heard me say how much I appreciate what barbershop singing has done for me. I go to bed with songs in my head, and they drown out the problems and worries that might otherwise prevent me from sleeping quite so soundly. I always have something to look forward to, even if it is only next Wednesday s rehearsal. And I love the expressions and emotions that we see in the eyes of our audiences whether we are singing as a chorus or a quartet. I think of President: Randy Moller Immediate Past President: Fred Geldon Executive VP: Alex Laufer Music and Performance VP: Cliff Shoemaker Membership VP: Steve Hatch Marketing and Public Relations VP: Harold Weinberger Corresponding Secretary: Don Collier Recording Secretary: Ray LaTurno Treasurer: Kevin Deasy Gig Master Art Medici Members-at-Large Bob Eamigh, Gerry Grimes, and Paul Grano
3 how many awful renditions of the Star Spangled Banner I have heard on TV at sporting events over the years. Then I think about the expressions and comments when the Jubil-Aires walk off the basketball court at GMU or when Shameless has walked off the field at Camden Yards (definitely a bucket list moment). And I think about the tears in the eyes of a couple when they realize what we are singing to them in a song like Grow Old With You, the smiles when we sing Don t Blame Him, and the many other emotions that our music can inspire. These are just some of the reasons why I love barbershop. The thrill of ringing chords, the pride when our chorus learns 6 new songs [Editor: actually 8 new songs!] for the show in short, the fun, the fellowship, and the sense of accomplishment. But so much more than that the joy, the peace of mind, the connecting with other people. There are so many reasons why we do what we do. No matter how many times we ask people, Where do you do your singing? the important thing we have to convey to prospective members is WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO! In Shannon s words, The bottom line is people don t buy what you do; they buy why you do it. So we need to start with why, speak from our hearts, and tell others what we believe. As Shannon says, barbershop harmony changes lives. Before we tell people what we do and how we do it, we have to tell them WHY we do it. Makes perfect sense to me. So, that s the President s Page (page 2), and the very next page is some great Straight Talk from COO Chip Gallant. As he points out, there are many activities competing for one s spare time these days. And that goes for people who are retired! So again we are faced with answering the WHY President: Randy Moller Immediate Past President: Fred Geldon Executive VP: Alex Laufer Music and Performance VP: Cliff Shoemaker Membership VP: Steve Hatch Marketing and Public Relations VP: Harold Weinberger Corresponding Secretary: Don Collier Recording Secretary: Ray LaTurno Treasurer: Kevin Deasy Gig Master Art Medici Members-at-Large Bob Eamigh, Gerry Grimes, and Paul Grano
4 question. Why should someone spend time with us? One of the most important things that Chip talks about, though, is how to expand the choices we offer. There may be those who don t want to compete, for instance, but just want to learn to sing better. There may be those who don t want to sing but want to be around barbershop music and contribute in other ways sales, marketing, management, photography, video, social media, web sites, etc. Chip has had experience with non-profits, and he knows how the talents of diverse people can be brought together to benefit the whole. Harmony How-To on page 8 reminds us that we need to do a better job using audio and visual recordings to enhance our performances. Sam s audio recordings are an invaluable tool, and we all need to take the time to use that tool. We also need to implement individual recordings, such as we have done in the past, to constantly work at self-improvement. For this to be successful, however, we need strong section leads and people who are willing to take the time to evaluate our recordings and help us with places where we need to improve. Hopefully, we will launch a new program for this in the near future. Video recordings of our choreo would also be helpful, and would be a critical part of choreo instruction. Again, this is an area where we need to show improvement, individually and as a unit. Well, that s all for this week. I am up to page 17 and look forward to reading the tips and techniques from some of the society s best coaches to improve your quartet s impact immediately. P.S. I just got the January/February 2015 issue, and I can t wait to read about The African-American Roots of Barbershop Harmony and Why It Matters. Paul Grano On the Mend! You may have noticed that we haven t seen Paul Grano in a while? That s because he hasn t been feeling too well. In fact he is scheduled for more surgery soon. Hearing of his plight, Men in Stripes decided to pay a visit to Paul and his wife Mary Ellen. Of course there was some singing going on, and we naturally sang Mary Lou to Mary Ellen (no, we didn t risk changing the words!). Paul sang with us too. We hope to see him up on the risers soon!! President: Randy Moller Immediate Past President: Fred Geldon Executive VP: Alex Laufer Music and Performance VP: Cliff Shoemaker Membership VP: Steve Hatch Marketing and Public Relations VP: Harold Weinberger Corresponding Secretary: Don Collier Recording Secretary: Ray LaTurno Treasurer: Kevin Deasy Gig Master Art Medici Members-at-Large Bob Eamigh, Gerry Grimes, and Paul Grano
5 Gerry Grimes: 36 Years President: Randy Moller Immediate Past President: Fred Dave Geldon Whitney: Executive 21 Years VP: Alex Laufer Music and Performance VP: Cliff Shoemaker Membership VP: Steve Hatch Marketing and Public Relations VP: Harold Weinberger Corresponding Secretary: Don Collier Recording Secretary: Ray LaTurno Treasurer: Kevin Deasy Gig Master Art Medici Members-at-Large Bob Eamigh, Gerry Grimes, and Paul Grano
The Fairfax Jubil-Aires Chorus Proudly Presents its 59 th Annual Show: A Western Tale with Western Tunes - Barbershop Style! Featuring Epic Quartet with the Bella Nova Chorus and Special Guest Quartet: Throwback Throwback (6 th Place 2014 BHS International Finisher) Epic (Epic: Harmony, Inc.2012 Int l Champion) Date: April 18, 2015 two shows, 2PM & 7PM New Locatiion:: Lanier Middle School Theater 3801 Jermantown Road, Fairfax, VA 22030 For more information go to: www.fairfaxjubilaires.org Questions? Call Gerry: 517-418-3840 571-418-3840
4 rehearsals. 3 songs. 1 show. Your 15 minutes of fame. SM BellaNovaChorus.com Do you sing in your car? Shower? Yup, we do too. Join us March 1, 15, 29, and April 12 from 1-2pm PERFORM WITH BELLA NOVA April 18 Show! United Methodist Church, Leesburg, VA