If you ask someone what their favorite piece of choral music is, chances are you’re going to get something on a short list. Beethoven’s 9th, Bach’s mass in B minor, etc. However, if you then ask, “What about the ‘Hallelujah Chorus’?”, you’ll often see some confusion and internal conflict (assuming that Handel’s monster wasn’t their […]

I’ve said it before (and you’ll probably hear it again every now and then), a non-profit runs on two things: volunteers and donations. The Joy of Music is no exception, in fact it’s a microcosm of the whole big monstrosity. Volunteers are already at work getting things primed and there will be an ever-increasing need […]

First and foremost, it’s time to get busy! Spring will be sprung soon and open house is tomorrow. Y’all come and sing some more and feel free to drag a bass or tenor with you (kicking and screaming if need be, Dean has a roll of duct tape to subdue the unruly ones). If you’re […]

A harsh reality of any musical performance: if you’re the performer and listen to a recording of it, more often that not you’re going to want to crawl under a rock and hide until the CD is smashed into little shards of mercifully silent silicon. Trust the Blogmeister, he is wise. Why is that? We […]

So we have dues that are paid by the Windward Choral Society members and we send out letters for donations and apply for grants (Jan, you are awesome) and every two years have a massive blowout fundraising monster. Why? What does a chorus need money for? Yeah, a few bucks here and there for music […]

One of the things that has kept things fun and interesting for the Windward Choral society has been collaborative events with other groups. It’s always educational and enjoyable to see and hear what other choirs are up to. The recent holiday concert hosted by the always-energetic Dr. Fan was a great example. There was everything from […]

“Weird Al” Yankovic has made a career out of mocking popular music and he’s great at it. I still remember the first time he twisted around a tune by Queen to come up with “Another One Rides the Bus”. Hilarious and very clever (and I still crack up every time I hear Freddy Mercury sing the […]

If you’re of a certain age (I ain’t sayin’ how old…the Blogmeister is smarter than THAT), you’ll remember Carnac the Magnificent, a recurring bit on the “Tonight Show” back when Johnny Carson was the king of late night television (sorry Dave, but Johnny was the best ever, no contest). He’d don a massive hat and […]

  Things that end poorly when one or two of something important is missing: Bike rides -> missing some spokes (thud) Skydiving -> missing some parachute lines (THUD!) NFL running back with the ball -> missing some offensive linemen (run) Lion exhibit -> missing some cage bars (RUN!) Choral concert -> missing a single voice […]

We’ve all heard it, that ticking watch that frames the introductions of the reporters at the beginning of “60 Minutes”. Well guess what? The Joy of Music clock just started making the same noise. With JOM now just a year away we officially transitioned from “that was fun” to “time to get back to work”. […]