A Drop in the Bucket

Matthew participated in Youth Harmony Day again this year. He wasn’t super excited about the whole thing like he has been in the past, but he went anyway. I think a lot of the joy he found in the experience in the past has been surpassed by the joy he has found in jazz choir this year. However, he did have one standout moment in the day. One of the barbershop quartets that performed for them sang a song that Matthew loves and has been trying to find people to sing with him for a long time. He approached this quartet, and they offered to sing with him for a few minutes after the organized practices and performance were over. For him, that was the highlight of the day! It was another one of those checkmarks on his bucket list. 

Sing Your Way Home

In the past year or so, Matthew has remembered that he really likes to sing. Lately, he has really been loving the barbershop and the swing era jazz numbers. When he has a few minutes on his hands, he’ll record all four of the parts on a barbershop tag, overlay them, and share the results with us. He cycles through a lot of the old jazz standards and often what he is singing becomes my earworm as well. And they are songs that I’m perfectly content to add to the soundtrack of my life. He has discovered that he really enjoys listening to Ella Fitzgerald, which I think is cool since very few of his generation even know who she is. But let’s be honest. Very few of my generation even know who she is. Kevin and I just grew up in homes where music of great variety was very much a part of the tapestry of life, and as a result of our love of so many types of music, our children have had a varied exposure as well. As I’ve said in the past, they get everything from plain chant to Mozart to Bon Jovi to Dr. Demento. Some they like more than others and different kids develop love for different music, but they get to hear it all. Pretty much the only genres we really don’t like are rap and hip hop, but they get exposure to those in other places and none of them have taken a liking to it, so I feel justified in those omissions. But I digress. Matthew loves to sing. And he has very much been looking forward to today.

Today was the annual Youth Harmony Day, the one where some of the local barbershop groups host a bunch of teens for the day and give them a chance to sing some barbershop. This is Matthew’s third time attending and considering this year was the fifth annual Youth Harmony Day, I can safely say that he loves it and is one of the old timers. In fact, one of the directors of the boys’ choir, who happens to be a member of an award-winning barbershop quartet called Stormfront, remembers Matthew’s name and knows exactly who he is. It made Matthew so stinking happy to know that he has made an impression on this guy! Another member of Stormfront was directing the girls’ choir this year, so Matthew was doubly pleased to get to meet him. And when they asked for volunteers to sing tags with them to show how important it is to be able to hold your own part, Matthew was quick to volunteer, of course. And then he geeked out just a little bit and shared it with us!   

Kevin, Malia and I attended the concert that was held at the end of the day, and Matthew was clearly having a wonderful time. His enthusiasm didn’t wane with the end of the concert either. He was still all hyped up when he got home. He was asking Daren, the Stormfront guy, some questions about how to get a barbershop group started and Daren gave him some advice, shared his email address, and invited Matthew to reach out with questions. That made Matthew super excited! Daniel was even just a little bit jealous. 😉

Once again, I’m so incredibly glad that my kids find such joy in music. I’m glad that Matthew has remembered that he loves to sing. And I love that he is filling the house with music. It was pretty quiet for a bit there after Nathan left and that was different and a bit sad for me, but now the house is filled with the sounds of singing and trumpet, and it makes me so happy! My home doesn’t quite feel right when things are too quiet. I know that in future years it is destined to be quiet more and more often, but for now, I’ve been reveling in the music.

Joy in the Music

Two years ago, Nathan and Matthew participated in a one-day workshop focused on barbershop music called Youth Harmony Day. This normally annual event was cancelled last year due to COVID but was back on the calendar this year. Matthew really enjoyed his last experience, so he was quick to sign up for another round when he discovered it was happening again. The gentleman who was conducting the men’s choir was a member of a well-known (at least in the barbershop music world) quartet and was the same person who conducted the choir two years ago. I think the highlight of Matthew’s day was the fact that the conductor remembered him from the last event and pointed out that he had been unafraid to sing full voice in his tenor range last time and was still unafraid to sing out in his current baritone voice. 

After a day of workshopping, the kids performed in a short concert. It was incredibly fun to see a group of kids, all of whom love singing enough to voluntarily give up a full Saturday, sing their hearts out. Their passion for the music and their joy in it were evident. Matthew had a good day.

Tight Harmony

A couple of months ago, the middle school choir teacher sent Nathan an email with info about a free all-day barbershop workshop for middle school and high school age kids. For those who may not know, we’re talking barbershop, the acappella vocal music style, not barbershop the place where you get your hair cut. Nathan and Matthew both thought that sounded like a fantastic way to spend a Saturday so they both signed up.

Today was the workshop and after spending their day learning some things and rehearsing, there was a short concert featuring the kids in the workshop as well as a few numbers from several local barbershop quartets. It was short and sweet and so much fun! Both boys had a great time and if they can, I think it is something they would like to do again next year.