Sisters chorale will ring in spring with songs

It's spring- the Cascades still have plenty of snow for summer, trees are blossoming in Sisters, and the 47-voice Sisters High Desert Chorale's Spring Concert is scheduled at Sisters Community Church, Friday April, 29, at 7 p.m., and again Sunday, May 1 at 2:30 p.m., same venue.

The chorale will present a wonderful variety of tunes from gospel, contemporary, spirituals, musical theater and classical origins. The Sisters Children's Choir - with 10 sweet voices singing, giggling and being kids - will perform after intermission, accompanied by the 11 wonderful musicians in Sisters High Desert Bell Choir.

While everyone dines on cookies and goodies volunteers have so generously supplied for the performance, participants will have the opportunity to drop some cash into the passing hat to help defray costs.

Among the chorale presentations will be the gospel number, "He Never Failed Me Yet" by Robert Ray. Chorale soprano Janie Buell will offer her solo in this snappy, energetic number. With its driving beat and beautiful message, this powerful gospel work has become the definitive selection in this style for an entire generation.

The chorale will also offer numbers that sing of hope - hope for the future, and for a better life, as in excerpts from from Ed Lojeski's haunting arrangement of "Les Miserables."

"You Raise Me Up," by Brendan Graham and Rolf Lovland is another beautiful piece of music of hope, praise and gratitude the chorale will perform. With one part of the lyrics being, "You raise me up so I can stand on mountains. You raise me up to walk on stormy seas," the message of strength and hope is strong.

"The Wizard of Oz" will be brought to life by the chorale as they perform the never-to-be-forgotten film number "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," arranged by Mark Hayes, with music written by Harold Arlen and lyrics by E. Y. Harburg.

The chorale is always looking for new talent to add more voices to the musical sounds Director Irene Liden works so hard to bring out. All you have to do is join the chorale and take part in the seasonal Monday- night rehearsals held in the Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church in Sisters on Monday nights from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Another selection will be "The Night They Invented Champagne," from the 1958 movie "Gigi" with lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. Leslie Caron as Gigi (dubbed by Betty Wand), Louis Jourdan as Gaston Lachaille, and Hermione Gingold as Madame Alvarez had a lot of fun with the number in the movie. Liden and the chorale have had just as much fun each time they rehearsed.