Sing for spring

Jeff Say
Published: May 2, 2008

Virginia Erwin made her way down the aisle of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, arms outstretched encouraging audience members of the Blue Ridge Chorale to join in the heavenly sound emanating from the altar.

It was just another day for the Blue Ridge Chorale director, as she put her choir through its paces April 20 during the Chorale’s “Songs for the Unsung Hero,” the conclusion to Culpeper’s Remembrance Days celebration.

The event was a tune-up for the Chorale’s annual Spring Concert, scheduled for May 11 at 4 p.m. at St. Luke’s Lutheran Church. The mini-concert, consisting of eight songs, was the culmination of months of hard work the choir had put in.

“If you’re not a singer or a musician you never realize how many hours or preparation go into these concerts and songs,” Erwin said. “We’re very lucky in the Blue Ridge Chorale to have a group of very dedicated singers and they do work very hard.”

The close to 40-member group, comprised of residents of Culpeper, Rixeyville, Brandy Station, Warrenton and Locust Grove, belted out each song with abandon — lifting their voices to praise soldiers and other heroes who have passed through the area.

“We knew that it was Culpeper Remembrance Days,” Erwin said. “We are actually very fortunate to have (Culpeper Tourism Director) Beth Bunch (Burns) in our choir and she’s very good at letting me know the important events that are happening here in Culpeper. My philosophy as choir director is to try and integrate music with what people are doing in the area.”

The May 11 concert will expand on that theory but incorporating a tribute to four soldiers — three of them local.

Three soldiers from three wars will be honored for their service to the country — Waller Jones from World War II, Bill Chase from the Vietnam conflict and Leonard Cowherd Jr. from Operation Iraqi Freedom.

There will be a power-point presentation honoring the heroes throughout the years and Jonathan Krawchuck from Channel 21 will narrate the multimedia production.

“The narrations are very moving,” Erwin said. “The stories they tell are just inspiring to me. I think will be a beautiful thing.”

Area veterans are encouraged to attend and are asked to wear their uniforms to signify their service.

The concert will be split into two programs. The first half will be the serious remembrance of the three heroes marked by the playing “Schubert’s Mass in G,” a 20-minute major work featuring violinists from the Shenandoah Conservancy.

The second half of the concert will be more patriotic and more upbeat in nature, more like the Remembrance Days concert April 20.

Erwin, from Keswick east of Charlottesville, could quite possibly take a foray into the crowd in the second half of the show, in an effort to stoke audience participation.

“We’re trying to be more audience friendly,” Erwin said. “I like to be more informal when I can be. If an opportunity presents itself I like to go out into the audience. It gives me a chance to hear people sing, and recruit them for the choir.”

The Chorale has two big concerts a year, the Christmas Concert —usually the second weekend in December, and the Spring Concert.

Blue Ridge Chorale President Wanda Osborn hopes that the community comes out to enjoy the sounds of the spring event.

“We work very hard,” Osborn said. “We are all totally volunteer singers. This is our joy to bring this music to the community. This patriotic program should be meaningful for the community.”

The concert costs $10 and the Chorale is always looking for donations. They can be made at brcsings.com.

Jeff Say can be reached at 825-0771 ext. 115 or at .

Want to go?
What: Blue Ridge Chorale Spring Concert
Where: St. Luke’s Lutheran Church
When: 4 p.m., May 11
Cost: $10 for adults, $5 for children, $25 for a family ticket (two adults and multiple children ages 5-12)
Notes: There will also be a concert at 8 p.m. at the theatre in Washington, Va.
Info: brcsings.com