As cold as it was outside - barely 60 F by noon - I still ventured out.
I had been looking forward to this all-female group of singers for almost a month.
The Spectra Choir is a local bunch, formed about a year ago... but I never heard of them.
My thanks to Randy Canady for bringing them to Asbury Memorial for us.
The group is termed a treble clef choir, a term that had confused me until I saw the mnemonic for the notes:
Every Good Boy Does Fine
That's when I realized that's what I learned in Glee Club in middle school!
Hmm... when they have their open call for new members in September, I think I'll go.
They were careful to say that you don't need a great voice... and, since I am out of practice with singing, my voice has an issue with finding a key.
(A little joke for anyone who's ever done karaoke with me!)
So, how did things go at this matinee concert?
Splendidly, with Kathy Hodges spotting me and coming over to sit with me, Preston in tow.
That means she got to witness me tapping my foot and waving my hands and singing along, sotto voce, for those songs I knew.
I very much enjoyed "What Happens When A Woman", a tune I hadn't heard before, but used early in the set list to help set the tone.
This was not just a concert with random songs; these had been carefully curated to tell a story of being "Grounded In Truth, Empowered By Song", much like concept albums are.
Such a marvelous idea!
Later, there was a favorite: "How Can I Keep From Singing?"
I promise you, I could sense Joan Hester Byrd right there with the solo singer!
(smile! That was Rebecca Flaherty, who did concerts here with Sanford Jones years ago.
Joan would have been a big fan of her voice, especially ringing out as it was today.)
The final song in the program was the Helen Reddy anthem, "I Am Woman", which came out in 1972, when I was in 9th grade.
Mama and I would sing it and I credit that song with giving her the strength to eventually divorce Daddy.
They had developed a bad pattern of behavior toward each other and nothing seemed to work to enable them to break out of hurting each other.
I couldn't see that at the time, but I've seen the pattern in other couples over the years.
Being married takes work from both parties; love itself isn't enough, and walking away is the best choice for the family.
This song still makes me proud to be a woman, proud to make my own decisions and accept the consequences for them, all thanks to my beautiful mother.
So... did I say that was the final song?
Well, only on the program!
Spectra Choir gave us two extra songs!
The last one was an Irish prayer set to music, one that Mama had done as a cross-stitch sampler and had on the wall.
May the road rise gently to meet you,
may the wind be always at your back,
may the sun shine warm upon your face,
may the rain fall gently on your fields,
and may God hold you in the palm of His hands.
Very nice, right?
But it was the penultimate song that found me singing to myself.
It was a tune I'd first noticed when it was done during a service here, some time back.
"One Voice" is the title.
It starts off with a soloist for the first stanza, with a second joining in for the next, and a third after that, until at the end there is a multitude harmonizing in unison.
Beautiful.
In honor of Memorial Day, I've found a version on youTube.
It features the United States Navy Band, from about 8 years ago, after the Wailin' Jennys' tune had found its way onto a movie soundtrack.
Feel free to chime in... I will!
(smile!)
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