Keys Choral Arts ensemble off to fine start in performance debut
“Sing for all the teachers who told you that you couldn’t sing . . .” – “Sing”, The Dresden Dolls
BY TERRY SCHMIDA
KONK LIFE STAFF WRITER
They love to sing.
And sing they did, at the debut concert of the Keys Choral Arts ensemble, which took place Sunday, April 15, at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church on Duval Street.
During a passionate and inspired hour-long performance, the dozens of singers – from as far off as Marathon – came together to showcase a new and somewhat streamlined set of chorale offerings that resonated well with the packed house.
Rising from the ashes of the now defunct Keys Chorale, which performed exclusively at Florida Keys Community College, the KCA, under the energetic direction of conductor Tim Peterson, seeks to bring together singers of all ages from throughout the county.
As music is the language even secular people use to communicate with a higher spiritual plane, it is fitting that the KCA’s new home be a house of worship with great acoustics, as Peterson himself noted at one point.
Over the course of a program that saw the chorus sing Mendelssohn in German, Gabriel Faure in French, and even a plaintive Billy Joel love lament in English, the KCA hit all the right notes, both literally and figuratively.
There weren’t too many dry eyes in the house during a heart-rending yet hopeful “River in Judea,” during which Peterson moved over to “his love” the piano, and regular accompanist Ann McFarland began to sing what became an unofficial tribute to Peterson’s late father.
“We love to sing,” the conductor explained to the enthusiastic audience. During the process of coming up with a name, he continued, that phrase was even suggested as a moniker for the new group. The KCA, of course, won out, and now appears on the paperwork for this newly created 501(c)(3) non-profit.
However the intent of the phrase remains. Cleansed of the politics which occasionally eclipsed the musical achievements of its predecessor, the chorus and concert reflected nothing but the joy of music, and Amen to that.
During the standing ovation that followed the final, extended note of Victor Johnson’s “And This Shall Be For Music,” the audience’s message was clear: “We love to hear you sing!”
The KCA is actively looking for new singers to participate in upcoming rehearsals for the next concert in December, as well as financial assistance. For more information, email [email protected].
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