Aftermath

The Fall Vocal Majority shows were an amazing experience, at least from a performer's point of view. Thankfully, the feedback from our audiences suggest it was a huge success for them as well!

Me in my first-half cowboy getup.
The theme of the show was "How the West Was Won."

Where to begin? I enjoy the regular rehearsals with the VM so much that it's easy to lose sight of how much more fun it is to perform for a live audience! It's a pleasure just to perform with these guys -- and then to have such overwhelming response from the packed theater on top of that, it's beyond description. What a blast!

Max Q performs as we watch quietly (most of the time) behind the scrim.

Our own champion quartet Max Q were guest performers, and man oh man are they good. They opened the second half of each show with a 30-minute set, and the guys of VM got to sit on our risers onstage, in the dark, and watch them perform from behind a scrim. It was a treat each time. They are so talented, funny, and entertaining! I sometimes tell myself that I'd like to give the quartet competition a try, and then I hear what champions sound like and quietly decide to stick with what I'm doing now.

My mom & son Benjamin with me after the show.
(Older son Brandon took the picture!)

A special treat for me was that my family finally got to see me perform! Up until now, only my father & father-in-law have seen the VM in a show (in Denver in July). My wife and boys have seen me in rehearsal, but it's not the same. They and my parents, along with two uncles, one aunt, and a few family friends, were able to attend the Saturday matinee, and they all really enjoyed it. (Whew!)

As for me, I didn't trip, fall, or miss any (obvious) choreography moves. Yay!! It speaks for the amount and quality of the singing that I've been doing in the past 7 months, too, that after three 2-hour shows and all of the wide range and vocal gymnastics required of a VM baritone, my voice is not in the least bit hoarse or strained. I'm probably in the best "singing shape" of my life, more than after a summer touring with the Continental Singers (26 years ago -- yikes!).

My feet and legs are not nearly as sore as after Denver, but that week included a lot of walking. Upper body is a different story. My shoulders, chest, and arms are sore!! We pump a lot of energy into our choreography, and even the non-choreo songs demand a lot of intensity in our bodies. Consequently, I am pretty stiff and achy. Tylenol, aspirin, Motrin and Aleve have become my close friends!! (Not all at once.)

All in all, a wonderful weekend. VM being VM, of course, we continue with our regular rehearsals on Thursday, shifting our focus to our next events: Sky Ball on October 13 and our Christmas Shows on December 13-15, along with a smattering of private holiday appearances! As they say, the music never ends.