Area Information
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Area!
* For a complete listing of chapter events,
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Area 1 (submitted by Susan Tucker -
April 24 2006)
Greetings from Area 1. We've come up with several
slogans "The place for Fun is Area 1" - "We Get Things Done
in Area 1" - "We Make Education Fun in Area 1" but we never
made any of them official as we do all of those things and
more!
We are one of six Areas in Harmony, Incorporated. Our area
covers Quebec East of 70 degrees Longitude, New Brunswick,
Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island.
If you are visiting the Atlantic Provinces, please check out
our web site for a location nearest to you where you may
drop in for an evening of song. If you are moving here -
we'd love to be the first to welcome you to our community.
If you've lived here for years and haven't checked us out -
what are you waiting for!
We have fellowship, vocal instruction, a chance to grow
musically and personally, an opportunity to meet others in
our Area and in other parts of Canada and the United States
with the same interests.
Area 1 offers education classes at our Area Contest and
Convention (AC&C) the weekend of the first Saturday in June
each year. This is hosted by one of our chapters so it may
be in a different location each year.
We also offer a weekend of education and singing at Harmony
Homecoming and the Harmony Youth Festival the third weekend
in July in Halifax. Female, male, young or young at heart
- everyone is welcome to join us for classes or just come to
our show on the Saturday evening. This event is
co-sponsored by the Sunrise Division of the Barbershop
Harmony Society and Area 1 of Harmony, Incorporated.
Information is available at
http://www.harmonyhomecoming.ca
Please visit our web site at
http://www.harmonyarea1.org to learn more about our Area
and contact me,
Area 1 Rep, if you would like any additional
information.
Yours in Harmony,
Susan Tucker
Area 1 Rep
Area 2 (submitted by Gail Kelsall -
May 19,2006)
Since assuming the Area 2 Rep position in May of 2005,
life has been interesting and challenging and fun! I
attended my first IBOD meeting in Chicago. An amazing group
of women are at the helm of Harmony, Inc.! Dedicated and
sincere in their efforts for the organization!
I chaired my first Area 2 Council meeting in August,
2005.Fortunately, "D" Dyer attended! She had given me a “Hot
Line” phone to call her when in need! The phone is red and
the hand set has pictures of "D" on it!! I have frequently
called on her for advice and direction over the past months.
I had the opportunity in Sept.2005 to visit The Barre-Tones
at their annual Show. At the Afterglow, I had a chance to
chat with several of their members. In November, 2005, I
visited "D" in Wyndham, Maine. I chatted with some of the
members of the prospective chorus – Harmony 207! I also had
an opportunity to visit with Lee Davies, from the Maine-ly
Harmony chorus. We chatted over a coffee in the Barnes and
Noble store in Gardiner, Maine. In Feb. 2006, I visited the
Capital Chordettes in Ottawa. The occasion was their annual
Show! The Afterglow was wonderful – chatted with many of the
members of the Chorus. In March, 2006, I had planned on
attending the March 11 ABC Day that was sponsored by Chair
City Pipers and Women of Note. However, family matters
intervened. I flew off to Winnipeg, Manitoba to attend the
90th Birthday celebrations for my Mother! It was a wonderful
Celebration! And of course, April brings Area 2 AC&C, which
this year was hosted by the Champlain Echoes! It was a great
convention and competition! 7 choruses and 6 quartets
qualified to attend IC&C in Jacksonville in November.
Congratulations to all! The Area 2 Council met during AC&C.
There were several new faces amongst the chapter Presidents!
The Showcase Entertainment Package – held on Saturday after
the Chorus contest was absolutely fantastic! The Emcee was
Linda Janes, the director of the Champlain Echoes. She did
an outstanding job! And a special treat was that we had the
opportunity to hear 5 Queens Quartets! Five, yes, Five.
Count ‘em! Limited Edition; After Hours; Synchronicity;
Exhilaration; and The Villagers! Three members of The
Villagers were on the Judging Panel! What an evening! There
was such an air of camaraderie, fellowship and fun that
evening!
May 10 – 14, 2006 found the IBOD meeting in Appleton,
Wisconsin. The meetings were often long and demanding.
However, a great deal was accomplished. I can say
wholeheartedly that the IBOD is an amazing group of women. I
count it an honor and a privilege to represent Area 2 at
these meetings.
And moving right along, on May 17, I drove to Brockville
Ontario to attend the Installation Ceremony of The Thousand
Islanders. This dynamic chorus has very talented members!
One of their members delighted us with her own composition!
And another member led us all in an Irish sing-along!
I am presently getting ready to leave for Winnipeg, Manitoba
again. I will be there for 2 weeks, visiting with my family.
And also, a special occasion for me – my nursing class from
the Winnipeg General Hospital is celebrating our 45th
Anniversary! It doesn’t seem possible that that many years
have passed! I am looking forward to seeing my classmates
once again.
I know that the qualifying Choruses and Quartets in Area 2
are busy with preparations for Jacksonville. I know that
Area 2 will be well represented!
Over the summer, which is often a time of much activity, I
plan on visiting some more Chapters. Have a great Summer -
when is the first day of Summer, anyway? I think Mother
Nature has forgotten – it has been rainy, and bleak for the
past two weeks here in Montreal. And I know that our sisters
in the New England area have been deluged! We will all be
glad to see the sunshine again.
Sincerely,
Gail Kelsall
Area 2 Representative
Area 3 (submitted by Wendy Pegg -
Apr 2007)
Even though spring has surely taken it’s time
arriving this year, it’s hard to believe that AC&C
2007 is once again around the corner. In just two
short weeks, we will be packing our bags and our
costumes and our wonderful Area 3spirit and heading
off to Buffalo,NY for a weekend full of fabulous
singing and wonderful “Memories”, both old and soon
to be created. The ACCT has once again worked
diligently to make sure our second centralized AC&C
is every bit as good as 2006 and perhaps even better
– we did listen to your concerns and acted on as
many as possible. The ACCT will be arriving on
Thursday evening this year to ensure that every
little detail is looked after for the arrival of our
members; we will be wearing our ACCT red shirts and
if you have a problem ( that you cannot solve),
please find one of us and we will do our best to
help you.
Note that the quartet contest will begin on
Friday May 4 at 5:30 – this will be a fabulous
contest, with many familiar and favourite quartets
and a few new ones as well. You won’t want to miss
a second of this contest.
Area 3 is proud to welcome Executive Secretary,
Carolyn Pellow, to AC&C – if you have not yet met
Carolyn, please make sure you introduce yourself.
Carolyn will be joining the new chapter president’s
class – and sharing some of her expertise with us.
Also please make sure our First Timers are
welcomed and embraced – Area 3 Membership
Coordinator, Lynne Hamilton, has sent First Timer
stickers to all new Harmony members plus arranged
for a poster of welcome to be signed. We all
remember our first time at an area contest –
exciting for sure but sometimes a little
overwhelming too. Many chapters are putting
together first timer survivor kits as well – and the
contents vary but are lots of fun to have.
Our new Education Coordinator, Judy Comeau, has
put together a first rate schedule of craft classes
for Sunday morning. Keeping in mind that AC&C is
not just a contest and convention but also an
educational experience – plan on attending at least
one class and make the weekend complete.
Exciting news too from our newly appointed Youth
Outreach Coordinator, Carol Wander ( of Rochester
Rhapsody) about the Harmony Explosion Camp being
held in Senecaland district, July 18-22. Chapter
presidents (US) have the information from Carol
about this exciting adventure – please seriously
consider sponsoring a young woman to this camp and
introducing a young person to barbershop harmony.
Investing time and dollars into Youth activities
remains a focus of Harmony, Inc. Area 3 is the
first area to appoint a Youth Outreach Coordinator
and we are so fortunate that Carol agreed to take
this position.
I am hoping that many Area 3 members will
consider attending HITS this summer at Humber
College in Toronto. Attendance from Area 3 in 2006
was low – we need more of you to attend in order to
keep it in this area. Chapter presidents have the
details of the Area 3 Representative Scholarship to
HITS and further details will be coming shortly –
this would be for any Area 3 member in good standing
who otherwise would not be able to attend HITS and
who would be prepared to share what she has learned
with the area on some basis in the future. Check
the minutes of the February council meeting for
further details. Deadline is May 15 in order to
take advantage of the early bird discount. Check
the HI website for information about HITS and all
other activities.
Arear 3 Membership Coordinator, Lynne Hamilton,
will be attending HITS this summer on behalf of our
Education Coordinator and bringing back new ideas
from HITS to share – thanks to Lynne for agreeing to
do this.
The Jackie Klooster Memorial scholarship is also
open to youth members, 23 years of age and under,
and provides for funds to attend ICC in London in
November 2007. Details, again, are on the HI
website.
You will note a new feature in the Area 3 website
– our webmistress, Charlene Sudore, is very
innovative and she does a wonderful job of keeping
all the area events up to date with information-
“chapter chatter” has been added and submissions are
welcomed.
You will also be receiving details about
Barbershop at the Beach which takes place in the
Rochester area on July 22 – participation is by
invitation only – but everyone is welcomed to
attend. The members of the Harmony explosion camp
will also be performing. Makes a nice weekend
outing and there is camping and accommodation
nearby.
Since the focus of Harmony, Inc. remains this
year both of youth and membership recruitment,
please take time to send in your success stories to
PR Coordinator, Margaret Lavictoire. If something
works for one chapter, it may just work for
another. There are some fabulous ideas out there
just wanting to be shared.
Plan also on attending a chapter show in your
area soon – these are wonderfully creative and
entertaining and your support of these events means
a lot to the chapters. See the calendar of events
on the websites for dates and details.
Enjoy AC&C – it’s a busy, but wonderful weekend.
Save your best singing and performance for the
contest stage and let’s send a full compliment of
choruses and quartets on to ICC in London in
November.
See everyone in Buffalo – travel safe and keep a
song in your heart.
Wendy Pegg,
Area 3 Representative
Area 4 (Submitted by Beth
Montgomery, Area 4 Representative)
Greetings from your Area 4 representative! I hope this
message finds everybody doing well!
Harmony, Inc. and Area 4 are in the midst of exciting
times as we promote our youth initiatives and focus on
membership growth in the coming year.
Congratulations to our chapters celebrating anniversaries
this year. Area 4 is proud to honor Village Vocal Chords
for 45 years; Electric City Harmony for 15 years and Harmony
Magic for one year as a Harmony Inc. chapter!
Area 4 will be having our Area Education Day on March
24th. Janice Westphal has done an excellent job of
assembling a wonderful faculty for the day.
We will be having our spring council meeting in
conjunction with Area Education Day and look forward to
discussing youth and area development initiatives.
Our AC&C 2007 will be in Louisville, KY, hosted by our
current international chorus champions, Derby City Chorus.
We look forward to once again visiting the bluegrass state
and sharing in a weekend of education and competition.
Area 4 and Harmony, Inc. have also be asked to
participate in the 2007 Harmony Explosion Youth camp
sponsored by the Cardinal District of BHS scheduled for July
11-13 at the Indiana Wesleyan College in Marion, IN. The
Guest Clinician will be Jim Henry, PHD, and the other staff
positions are filled from the ranks of BHS, HI and SAI
chapters in and around Indiana and Kentucky. Derby City
Chorus and Hot Topic will be the representatives from
Harmony, Inc. and Area 4. Tuition for the 3 day camp is
$195.00. Please let me know if you want additional
information and would like to sponsor a student to attend.
I also wanted to mention the international membership
committee that has been formed and is chaired by Kathy
Custis of Area 4 as our international member services
Administrator. The participants have participated in a
teleconference call and are looking for ways to increase our
membership and promote Harmony, Inc. The call generated
excellent ideas to help chapters and it was interesting to
hear from the different areas what methods they have used –
from guest nights, to promoting holiday singing to the
suggestion of putting member information and testimonials on
the Harmony, Inc. website to even a billboard posted in
every city with a Harmony chorus.
As we move forward, we want to promote our hobby by
increasing our membership and determining ways to target our
audience and prospective members.
In other general area news, our area 4 website has been
updated and will continue to add new information. Please
visit the
http://www.area4harmonyinc.org and let me know of any
comments/suggestions you have for the site. Special thanks
to Melanie Concklin for all her work on the site.
Area 4 polo shirts will be available at AC&C this year.
Elda Edwards, our Area 4 Ways and Means chairman and I, are
working on getting final approval for our Harmony, Inc. logo
and will plan to have them for sale in the hospitality room
at AC&C.
Area 5 (submitted by Joyce Bradley)
Anniversaries
Several Chapters are celebrating important Anniversaries
this year. Nickel City Sound in Sudbury, ON is celebrating
its 10th Anniversary. Lake Country Harmony in Orillia, ON
celebrates 20 years in Harmony, Inc. , Queen’s Bush
celebrates 25 years and The Over Tones, Inc. have their 40th
Anniversary this year. We are honored that we have two 40
year members of Harmony, Inc. in our Area - Win Andrews of
The Over Tones and Jo Rider, currently an Associate Member.
Education Day, Saturday, September 16, 2006
We are looking forward to another jam packed singing and
learning fest at our Area 5 Education Day at Georgian
College in Orillia, ON. Our coaches are Gary Bolles, Susan
Spencer, Janet Foster, Sara Stone, and Beverly Miller.
Susan, Janet, Sara and Bev are the members of “Change of
Heart”, 1999 Harmony, Inc. Queens. In addition to singing in
this energetic and exciting quartet , Janet, Sara and Bev
also direct women’s choruses and Susan sings in Janet’s
chorus. Gary Bolles is a Music Judge and a silver medalist
member of “Vintage Gold” quartet who came second in the 2006
Barbershop Harmony Society’s Seniors’ Quartet Contest in
Sacramento, California. Gary is well known by Harmony, Inc.
members having taught Mainline Directors classes at our
Harmony Intensive Training Schools (HITS) and judged at our
contests.
Area 6 has been very busy already this year.
We successfully completed our 2006 Education Days in
January with “Barbershop Boot Camp.” General Mary Capper
whipped us all into vocal shape with breathing exercises,
tongue twisters and quartet coaching.
From there all the chapters closed ranks and successfully
seized AC&C 2006! We are proud of all our quartets and
choruses especially:
Wire for Sound – 1st Place Quartet and International
Qualifier
Destiny – International Qualifier
Hernando Hill D’Lites – International Qualifier
The Georgia Connection – 1st Place Chorus, Recipient of
the Aura Daye Trophy and the Barbara A. Kadel Music Award;
International Qualifier
Atlanta Harmony Celebration! – International Qualifier
and recipient of the Most Improved Chorus Award. |
