Week 24 Newsletter

April 8th, 2024

A note from Tyler…

It was great to be back Tuesday after our spring break!

This week is going to be fun, so let’s do it :)

Announcements

Solos for Songs

Here are the solos for the songs we’ve been working on in rehearsal:

  • Nine to Five - Dolly Parton
    Bar 13-19: Soprano solo
    Bar 57-63: Alto/Bass solo

  • Down to the River - Spiritual
    Bar 4-12: Any section solo

Auditions for Solos

  • When: Tuesday, April 23rd (15 before and 15 after rehearsal). This is for those who want to come and try their hand at singing the solos!

  • I encourage as many people as possible to challenge themselves and try singing a solo.
    As we know, we grow when we push ourselves out of our comfort zones.

Important Dates

  • Dress Rehearsal
    When: Tuesday, June 4th at Grace Presbyterian Church (1009 15 Ave SW)
    Time: 7-9:30 pm. The extra time in rehearsal will allow us more time to focus on areas of need.

    It’s an essential part of concert preparation to make yourself available for the final rehearsal before the concert (dress rehearsal). We will work on entrances, exits, the flow of the concert, attention to certain musical spots, etc. If you know you absolutely aren’t available for this rehearsal, please email info@ootbchorus.ca to let us know ASAP.


    Spring Concert
    When: Friday, June 7th at Grace Presbyterian Church (1009 15 Ave SW)
    Concert Time: 7:00 pm
    Member Call time: 5:30 pm

    This will be a fantastic night of singing 🎵 We’ll be joined by One Voice Chorus, a great choir in Calgary that, like OOTB, makes fun music and has a passion for building community.

Concert Song List

Click on the link below to print the list of songs we’ll perform at the concert. We’ll talk more about this tomorrow!

Concert Song List PDF

Next Rehearsal - April 9th

We’ll continue learning ‘Mama Don’t Dance,’ which rocked last week. We have a good sense of the groove!

-Sing through and work on songs from memory.

Musical Moment

Lean on Me

by, Brent Moore

One of the many great tunes in our OOTB repertoire is Lean on Me.  It was written and performed by Bill Withers back in 1972.  The song reached #1 on both the Soul and Billboard Hot 100 charts. He wrote it after moving to LA, where he missed the strong community ethic of his hometown of Slab Fork, West Virginia.  Slab Fork!  Although he lived in a poor neighbourhood, it was close-knit.

Here is an intimate live performance of the song Bill Withers performed for the BBC in 1974.

Bill had several great tunes, including Ain’t No Sunshine When She’s Gone and Just the Two of Us.   Although this soul legend passed away in 2020, his lyrics still resonate today.

Lean on me
When you're not strong
And I'll be your friend
I'll help you carry on...

For, it won't be long
Till I'm gonna need somebody to lean on

OOTB Chorus