jamestown choruses celebrate spring rutter’s flute solo, suite antique, and kathy durnell and amy...
TRANSCRIPT
www.auss.org
Published by the American Union of Swedish Singers In its 121st year of Performing Svenska Sånger in America
Volume CXXI June, 2013 No. 6
The Jamestown choruses combined for
their Annual Spring Concert on Sunday,
May 19, 2013. The concert was held in
the parlors of First Lutheran Church in
Jamestown, New York. Over 100 friends
and family enjoyed a varied program
including gospel, patriotic and popular
selections. Swedish selections included
Å jänta å ja’, Lovad vare Herren Gud, Dansen på Sunnanö and Hälsa dem där-hemma. A new, challenging piece for the
choruses this year was a medley of songs
from the Broadway show The Jersey Boys. The show is the story of Frankie
Valli and the Four Seasons. Our medley
featured December 1963 (Oh, What a Night), Working My Way Back to You, Stay, Let’s Hang On, Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You and Who Loves
You. Damkören performed I Can Feel the Rhythm, Linda Carlson performed
John Rutter’s flute solo, Suite Antique, and Kathy Durnell and Amy Stenta sang
There’s a Song Inside Me.
We started preparing for the program in
mid-January and performed a dress re-
hearsal for the residents of Tanglewood
Manor, an assisted living facility where
our director, Mary Schmidt, serves as
Musical Activities Director. Her hus-
band Andy very ably serves as our ac-
companist. We are very thankful to have
the two of them lead us.
Our next activity will be our annual
Ham & Fish Dinner served at the Viking
Lake Park on the beautiful shores of
Chautauqua Lake, in Maple Springs,
New York. The dinner will be served on
Sunday, June 9, from 1:00 to 4:00
p.m. The Viking Male Chorus members
prepare the ham, fish, mashed potatoes,
peas and rolls, and the Damkören mem-
bers serve and provide the cupcakes for
dessert.
Our next performance will be on Satur-
day, June 15, 2013. We will again be at
the Viking Lake Park, singing for the
Independent Order of Vikings National
Convention dinner. Our program will
consist of old favorites accompanied by
Viking Male Chorus member Paul Sand-
strom on the banjo. Then, preparations
will begin for the Scandinavian Folk Fes-
tival in mid-July.
Ah, summer in Chautauqua County—
gotta love it!
- Amy Stenta
Jamestown Choruses Celebrate Spring
The Viking Male Chorus and Damkören posing for a picture at their Spring Concert on May 19.
June 2013 MUSIKTIDNING page 2 of 7
OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE
AMERICAN UNION OF SWEDISH SINGERS (Organized November 24, 1892)
A Musical Journal in English and Swedish
"To teach, cultivate and promote Chorus singing, principally Swedish."
ELLEN SVENGALIS, Editor 204 Wyassup Road
No. Stonington, CT 06359
Tel: (860) 535-0362 Fax: (860) 535-0378 E-mail: [email protected]
CHARLES UPCRAFT Business Manager
4525 Parkside Lane Edina MN 55436
Phone: (952) 928-8173 E-Mail: [email protected]
JAMES R. MAURICE Subscriptions
445 E. North Water St. E2203 Chicago, IL 60611-5542
Tel: (312) 670-9570 Winter (Jan-Apr) tel: (727) 729-6269
E-mail (all yr.): [email protected]
OFFICERS OF AUSS 2012-2016 President: Alana Mapes
25500 NW Svea Dr. Hillsboro, OR 97124
Phone: (503) 647-5486 E-mail: [email protected]
Vice President: Christine Johnson
39201 Polo Club Dr. #105 Farmington Hills, MI 48335-5626
Phone: (313) 506-5458 E-mail: [email protected]
Secretary: Kelly Otto
P.O. Box 20835 Portland, OR 97294
Phone: (503) 318-7929 E-mail: [email protected]
Financial Secretary: James R. Maurice
445 E. North Water St. E2203 Chicago, IL 60611-5542 Phone: (312) 670-9570
Winter (Jan-Apr): 670 Island Way #904 Clearwater, FL 33767
FL phone: (727) 729-6269 E-mail (all yr.): [email protected]
Treasurer: Charles Upcraft
4525 Parkside Lane Edina MN 55436
Phone: (952) 928-8173 E-Mail: [email protected]
Librarian: Robert Voedisch
722 N. Haddow St. Arlington, IL 60004
Phone: (842)255-7253 E-mail: [email protected]
Director-in-Chief: Sherry Dreyfuss
11665 Gleneagles Lane Belvidere, IL 61008
Phone: (815) 885-1424 Fax: 815-885-2250
E-mail: [email protected]
Asst. Director-in-chief: Ken Olsson P.O. Box 445
Jamaica, VT 05343 Phone: 802-874-4366
E-mail: [email protected]
Asst. Director-in-chief: Vance Sele 314 NW Treglown Ct. Hillsboro OR 97124
Phone: (503) 866-9692 E-mail: [email protected]
DIVISION PRESIDENTS (2010-2014)
Eastern: Ellen Svengalis 204 Wyassup Rd.
No. Stonington, CT 06359 Phone: (860) 535-0362
E-mail: [email protected]
Central: David Winter 3550 N. Lake Shore #1004
Chicago, IL 60657 Phone: (773) 549-1678
E-mail: [email protected]
Western: Karen Jones 2521 S. W. Bertha Boulevard
Portland, OR 97201 Phone: (503) 244-1469
E-mail: [email protected]
OTHER OFFICES Website Coordinator:
Ellen Svengalis 204 Wyassup Rd.
No. Stonington, CT 06359 Phone: (860) 535-0362
E-mail: [email protected]
Chorus Recruitment Chairman: Carl-Erik Westberg
P. O. Box 178 Londonderry, VT 05148 Phone: (802) 824-6578 Fax: (802) 824-3358
E-mail: [email protected]
Membership Directory Coordinator: Kelly Otto
P.O. Box 20835 Portland, OR 97294
Phone: (503) 318-7929 E-mail: [email protected]
HONORARY PRESIDENTS, AUSS
Donald Lamont Carl-Erik Westberg
Jody Jones Joseph P. O’Leary
HON. DIRECTORS-IN-CHIEF
Robert Read Arthur W. Elander
Ernest Gunn Jeffrey DeLay
MUSIKTIDNING SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:
Please send material to the Musiktidning Editor. If possible, please send both stories and photos via E-mail ([email protected])
Material for the September issue is due Sept. 8.
President’s Message Alana Mapes, AUSS President, [email protected]
I love it when I hear from other AUSS singers across the
nation. Last month, I got a phone call from David Winter,
Central Division President. He had been browsing on the
AUSS website and was excited about all the information that
was there. He suggested that maybe many members have not
been aware of this wonderful resource, and it might be a topic
to address in the Musiktidning. So, David... here it is, and
thanks for the idea.
Go online, and type in: american union of swedish singers,
or even AUSS, and you are on your way. Once it comes up,
you will see a picture of all the singers on stage for the Grand
Concert. There is a fun slide show of candid pictures on the
right, and a nice WELCOME. It also tells about the objec-
tives of the AUSS. It reports that there are 24 choruses, and
lists the states where they are located. The topics you can
click on are: About Us, CHF, Choruses, Coming Events, Pic-
tures, Musiktidning, Song Translations, Links and Contact Us.
Under “About Us” you can get information about the his-
tory, membership, music, Musiktidning, tours, conventions,
and the CHF, with a link to the Museum in Midway Village in
Rockford, IL.
The CHF section has a wealth of information. It tells about
the Singer’s Museum Room, the Archives, and the book A Century of Song. This section explains the Seth and Gloria
Hokanson Music Scholarship Program. It discusses require-
ments for applying, and even has application forms that can
be downloaded. It explains where to send the applications
and the timeline for getting them in. The CHF section also
tells of the AUSS Records at Augustana College. You can
lookup information from 1896 to 2005. The arrangement of
the collection, box number and contents are clearly listed and
easy to follow. Another section under the CHF is information
about the financial support of the organization and the 1892
Campaign. It explains grant distribution, support opportuni-
ties and even includes a donation form that can be printed.
The “Choruses” link lists the choruses by name, tells their
city and state, when and where they rehearse, and the contact
person.
“Coming Events” lists national events, including the event
name, the location, and the date. There are also pages for
local events. As choruses send in their information, Ellen
posts the state, the chorus sponsoring the event, the location,
the date, time, cost, if there is any, etc.
There is a “Pictures” link. This is really fun to look at, and
it always brings a smile as I watch a slide show of past AUSS
events from 2002 to 2012. It is a treat to sit back and enjoy a
trip down memory lane viewing pictures that have been sent
to Ellen.
Continued on page 5
June 2013 MUSIKTIDNING page 3 of 7
The Arpi Swedish Male Chorus of
Metropolitan Detroit, and the Scandia
Women's Chorus of Michigan presented
their Spring Concert on Saturday, May
18 at the beautiful United Methodist
Church located in Novi, Michigan.
The concert was entitled "This is My
Country," under the direction of Ron
Houser, Arpi director, and Ruth Anne
Zimmer, Scandia director. Mary Baker
was the accompanist, along with chorus
members Margaret Retting, guitar ac-
companist, and Ann Steffani, flute ac-
companist.
The program opened with the com-
bined choruses performing the American
and the Swedish National Anthems. The
combined choruses then sang Woody
Guthrie's This Land Is Your Land. The Scandia Women's Chorus was then
showcased singing the following: Out In the Open by Ulf Lundell (often referred
to as "Sweden's Bob Dylan"), Med En Enkel Tulipan by Jules Sylvain, What A Wonderful World by G.D. Weiss (this
song was used in the first five episodes
of the ABC network sitcom "Family
Matters"), and Barndomshemmet (same
tune as On The Banks of The Wabash) by
Paul Dresser.
The combined choruses then sang Kör-trall by Kjell Lönnå (a Swedish com-
poser, choir director and television host).
The Arpi Men's Chorus then performed
an American Sea Chanty Blow Ye Winds, arranged for the Arpi chorus by director
Ron Houser. Next was Sverige by Sten-
hammar, followed by Sköna Maj by L.
M. Been, and then two more selections
arranged for Arpi by its director: Free At Last and Music Shall Live.
The focus of the concert was the com-
bined choruses performing the program
dedicated title This Is My Country by Al
Jacobs.
The concert concluded with the com-
bined choruses leading an audience
sing-along of old favorites: Hälsa dem därhemma, You’re A Grand Old Flag,
and God Bless America. A reception followed the concert. Our
Arpi singer, Pastor William Lindholm,
beautifully audio recorded the concert.
CD recordings are available.
- Cortland R. Book, Arpi First Tenor
Spring Concert in Novi, Michigan
At left: Ann Steffani accompanies on the flute. At right is piano accompanist Mary Baker.
June 2013 MUSIKTIDNING page 4 of 7
The Scandinavian Women's Chorus of
Rhode Island had its annual spring con-
cert on June 9 at Bethany Lutheran
Church in Cranston, RI. What a wonder-
ful day to sing about flowers and bees
and everything that awakens after a long
winter - that is the denominator in Swed-
ish music.
We started with the Swedish National
Anthem because our concert was so
close to June 6, Sweden’s National Day.
Stephen Moye had arranged the anthem
in 3-part women's chorus and everyone
in the audience was welcome to sing
along.
We sang The song inside me, Vårvin-dar Friska (Lee Ann Hurtubise did the
English translation), Fryksdalsdans, Små Blommorna, The Echoing Green, Count your Blessings, and Vår.
For intermission, so the chorus mem-
bers could get a breather, Jessica Stens-
rud on violin and Stephen Moye on or- gan, played a duet of Edvard Grieg’s
Våren (Last Spring), Op. 34, No 2.
Stephen arranged the music just for
them. It was just wonderful.
The chorus continued with Fiolen Min,
with violin solo by Jessica Stensrud
(Stephen Moye created a good arrange-
ment of the piano and the violin part),
Den blomstertid nu kommer, and Ved Rundarne (a Norwegian song by Edward
Grieg). We decided that if we should
call ourselves Scandinavian Women's
Chorus we should have some songs
from other Scandinavian countries. That
was followed by Det spirar i Guds örta-gard, with a trio of Jessica Stensrud,
Astrid Drew and Lee-Ann Hurtubise,
Under the Greenwood Tree, Ain't He Sweet, Paul and his chicken (another
Norwegian silly song that was fun to
sing), Dans på logen, and Sugartime.
After the concert everyone enjoyed
coffee and home baked goods provided
by the chorus.
This was the last event of the season
for the chorus.
- Astrid S Drew, SWCRI
SWCRI’s Spring Concert Features Norwegian and Swedish Music
Director Stephen Moye acknowledges the audience applause.
Members of the Scandinavian Women's Chorus of Rhode Island, singing at the Spring Concert are (left to right): Shirley Nordquist, Astrid M. Drew, Lee-Ann Hurtubise,
Christin Zaikowsky, Astrid S. Drew, Barbara Lundgren, and Jessica Stensrud.
Den blomstertid nu kommer by Israel Kolmodin
This song is often sung at graduations.
English translation:
The blooming time now comes
with great joy and beauty.
You draw near, sweet summer,
when grass and crops grow.
With gentle and lively heat
to everything that has died,
the sun's rays approach,
and all will be re-born.
The fair flower meadows
and arable noble grains,
the rich herb beds
and grove's green trees,
They will remind us of
the goodness of God's wealth,
we ponder the grace
that lasts all year.
One hears birds singing
with diverse sounds,
must not then our tongue
praise the Lord God?
My soul raises up the glory of God;
Tuning up your joyful song
to those who wish us close
and rejoice at once!
June 2013 MUSIKTIDNING page 5 of 7
Funeral
Homes
Peace of mind for you
and your family
Preplan your funeral. Complete selection of burial and cremation services.
Janet Nelson • Funeral director
5149 N. Ashland Avenue • Chicago • 773-561-5147
820 Talcott Road • Park Ridge • 847-823-5122
“Musiktidning” doesn’t need a lot of
explaining. Past issues are online for all
to enjoy (user name is svenska, password
is 2008conv).
“Song Translations” is one section that
is very helpful. As we sing the beautiful
Scandinavian songs, it is helpful to un-
derstand what we are singing. We can
sing with more expression and passion
when we understand the message. There
are so many songs in this section. It is
helpful to us in Portland, as we sing all
our program in Scandinavian languages
now. (We did do the National Anthems
for the US and Canada in English.)
There is a section called “Links” that
can connect people with other Swedish
groups throughout the US.
The last section is “Contact Informa-
tion.” This is to help people who have
questions for the AUSS.
Ellen Svengalis is our outstanding
Webmaster. She does a tremendous
job. The information and layout of the
AUSS website is very complete and pro-
fessional. It makes us look great.
THANKS ELLEN!
- Alana Mapes
Swedish Glee Club - Waukegan pre-
sented their Spring Concert on Sunday,
June 2nd at St. Andrew Lutheran Church
in Mundelein, IL.
The full chorus opened the concert
with Together, America and Du Gamla, Du Fria. A trio consisting of Evert
Schmidt, Deb Curren and Jeff Delay
sang You are Holy. There were many
selections from the Men's chorus, the
Women's chorus and the Full cho-
rus. The finale was Majsång (Sköna
Maj).
Guest performers were Chris Sepos
and Rachel Young, an eclectic
duo. They performed several selections
ranging from classic to country to jazz.
Chris is a published singer/songwriter
who can play several instruments. Ra-
chel is a former classical singer. Follow-
ing the concert, the Singers’ Wives
group provided refreshments.
The After the Concert Dinner was held
at Jimmy's Char House Restaurant in
Libertyville, IL.
We are in the planning stages of our
Annual Picnic to be held in July. Tell
you all about that in the fall.
- Pat Minkler, Swedish Glee Club - Wau-
kegan
Swedish Glee Club - Waukegan Presents Their Spring Concert
Above: Swedish Glee Club - Waukegan presenting their Spring Concert on June 2, directed by Jeff DeLay. Marcia Tradell is the accompanist.
Below: Deb Curren and Evert Schmidt singing a duet.
Continued from page 2
President’s...
June 2013 MUSIKTIDNING page 6 of 7
For Swedish Americans, we are enter-
ing a season of celebration. And, the
American Swedish Institute Male Chorus
will participate enthusiastically, singing
at the Midsummer celebration and the
Svenskarnasdag celebration.
When the American Swedish Institute
reopened last June 30th to a gathering of
9000 people, the celebration went from
9:00 a.m. until 11:00 p.m. But, this was
too late for Midsummer. This June 15th
will be the first Midsummer celebrated in
the classic Turnblad Mansion and the
new, Swedish modern Nelson Cultural
Center.
There will be singers, dancers, and
fiddlers from both Sweden and Swedish
America. Our chorus will sing early in
the morning of the 15th to help kick off
the celebration, singing the national an-
thems of both Sweden and America. We
will also sing songs about beautiful
Swedish summers.
One of the best dancing couples at ASI
will miss Midsummer at ASI because
they will dancing in Sweden. Yes, there
are strong connections between Sweden
and America.
And on Sunday, June 23rd, the ASI
Male Chorus will join our St. Paul Male
Chorus friends as we celebrate Svenskar-
nasdag in beautiful Minnehaha Park in
Minneapolis. Svensakarnasdag has been
celebrated since 1933 in this wonderful
park that surrounds nationally famous
Minnehaha Falls.
Minnehaha is "the beloved" of Hiawa-
tha, the Ojibway hero of the great Long-
fellow poem, "The Song of Hiawatha."
The Visitors Center is even a replica of
Longfellow's famous home at Harvard
University. But, there is a Swedish
touch: a handsome statue of Gunnar
Wennerberg, the 19th century Swedish
poet and composer.
We will sing on a beautiful outdoor
stage that has been graced by such ac-
complished artists as Lulea's Lennart
Johansson. Our two choruses will be
alternately led by our two wonderful
directors. We will sing our two national
anthems and also several Swedish sum-
mer songs.
The ASI Male Chorus wishes everyone
a wonderful summer.
- Richard Sandeen, ASI Male Chorus
ASI Male Chorus June Celebrations
Sveas Söner of Rockford, Illinois at their Spring Concert on April 28. Left to right are: Jerry Lofquist, Ralph Pullin, Steve James, Wayne Hoffstrom, Dave Wood, Dan Lindberg, Don Anderson, Chuck Dreyfuss, and Robert Smith. Sherry Dreyfuss is their director.
Sveas Söner Concert
June 2013 MUSIKTIDNING page 7 of 7
Shown at right is a flyer that the Portland, Oregon cho-
ruses send out, and distribute at all of their events. “Austin
Buchholtz, our resident graphic artist, and wonderful bass
does it for us,” says Alana Mapes.
There are two across on a standard 8½ x 11 sheet of pa-
per, which are then cut in half for mass distribution. There
is also a single JPG copy for chorus members to e-mail to
family and friends.
Besides the handout, they keep their website up-to-date
with events. They also have a Facebook page where they
post news.
How Portland Does Publicity
Thank You!
Another singing season is coming to a close. So, too, is
the Musiktidning season. Our next issue will be in Septem-
ber.
I want to thank everyone who has contributed pictures and
articles this year. The paper cannot happen without you!
A big thank you to my proofreader, and husband, Kendall
Svengalis. His writing skills have been invaluable, and help
make the paper look more professional!
Tack, alla!
Editor’s Notes Ellen Svengalis, Muiktidning Editor, [email protected]
ZÄtw `|wáÉÅÅtÜ4 [tÑÑç fâÅÅxÜ4