Just for men : New all-male choir lifting voices to an ever-increasing audience
Posted on Sunday, August 24, 2008
COURTESY The Singing Men of Arkansas, a choral group that formed late last year, has nearly 40 volunteer members. The group is pictured here during its performance at a recent fundraiser for presidential candidate John McCain.
There were songs to sing, but no way to sing them. Then, in October of last year, two men had an idea. There should be an allmen's choir, similar to those Michael Bedford had participated in while he lived in Texas. A few weeks later, the group had a governing board. After a few months of auditions, the group had a roster of 37 members.
It's been a busy year for the Singing Men of Arkansas, an all-men's volunteer choir that had its first public performance in February at the First United Methodist Church in Springdale. Since then, the group has performed several more times, including at an Aug. 8 fundraiser for presidential hopeful U. S. Sen. John McCain. All this after a bit of uncertainty from Bedford, the group's director and a former music minister at a local church who has many years of experience directing choirs. But he knew there were talented male voices in the area, and he knew there was a lack of a similar outlet in the area as well. "I didn't know what to expect. I was hopeful it would take off," he said. The Singing Men of Arkansas is founded on the idea that even though the members are not paid for the shows, the results of the combined voices can be professional.
"We wanted to have not just a choir that gets together and tries to sound decent, we want something outstanding," Bedford said.
Bedford expects hard work from each of the members of the choir, but says the vocalists also have fun in the process.
"I don't find many people who approach things haphazardly are those having fun. … We work hard together, and we accomplish something wonderful together," he said.
Part of that fun comes from the friendships the members of the choir have made among their ranks. Vocalists come from not only the larger cities in the area, but also outlying towns such as West Fork, Huntsville, Lowell, Prairie Grove and more, bringing together people who might not otherwise meet.
The members are not just diverse in the towns they live in. One of the members, Bedford said, has experience singing in Broadway productions in New York City. Others have only the work of a church choir on their singing resume.
It is the director's firm belief that anyone can learn to sing. He finds that many men are discouraged not only by the stereotype that male singers are "sissies"but also by those in their past.
"One of my greatest irritations is that so many men have missed out on being able to use their voices because someone has told them, ' You can't sing. '"Bedford said.
"In order to match a pitch, you have to do a little work, and that's why people spend a lifetime to get good at singing."
Oh, and make no mistake about it, this group is not made up of sissies - several of the members ride motorcycles to the group's weekly practices at George Junior High School in Springdale.
As a unit, the men sing a wide variety of tunes, ranging from American classics to gospel to more contemporary cuts by artists such as Billy Joel. The group has also recently expanded its knowledge of patriotic songs as it expects to be called upon to sing at more political functions during the election season. Since just as many of the members are Democrats as Republicans, Bedford said his group would welcome the chance to perform at a rally for the Democratic presidential hopeful.
But concerts for highcaliber guests are not the main goal of the Singing Men of Arkansas, Bedford explained.
"Our goals are musical, and the byproducts will come," he said.
To help build the program, the group is always looking for new members and plans two audition periods each year. One of those takes place Sept. 2, and prospective members are asked to visit the group's Web site at www. singingmenofarkansas. org for a list of membership requirements and an application form.
All auditions are conducted privately.
"We don't want people to be intimidated," Bedford said. "The majority of folks who audition have a great chance of making it."
The membership requirements are minimal, but a certain amount of time spent rehearsing is expected from all the members.
Of course, if things keep going the way they are, potential members might need to save a lot of dates - the group is already booked through April 2010.
"I do have big aspirations for the group, and they are achieving in many ways," Bedford said.
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