1. March 13th Chapter Visitation to South Bay Coastliners Chapter for a quartet 'sing-off', and, take away two of the three trophies!

2. Two chapter members qualify for the Ancient Harmonious Society of Woodshedders, Inc.at the Pioneers/West Convention in Fallbrook.

3. Chapter quartets are continuing to entertain varied audiences in Orange County.

4. A 'House Duty' Quartet takes over the previous duties of P.K.

5. We drummed up 89 Singing Valentines to help us 'pay the rent.'

Seventeen quartet members traveled to the annual South Bay Coastliners Quartet Contest with emphasis on having fun in the spirit of a 'St.Patrick's Day Event' with (+) points for wearin' of the green and having some Irish heritage, and, (-) points for non-barbershop arrangements, and, not singing a 7th chord the way the judges would like to hear it.

Speaking of judges, there were three at the table with Pete Neuchel of '139th Street' and 'Buck 39' fame as du chairman of du judges and du most influential in du pit!

Top prize, a fifth of Bushmill's, went to a comedy-quartet combination of Southbay quartetters who obviously have done their 'shtik' many times for appreciative audiences before: Orange Town Four (P.Kelly, R.Lewis, V.Pletcher and D.Engel) took second prize with "Yona" and "Cecelia" 'cause "Yona" was the first song Pete learned in barbershop and we rang the best chord in the song; Balderdash (D.Gryvnak, M.Werner, K.Tillman and R.Kimberly) was applauded for their version of "Mary Was a Little Bit Ole Fashioned," and recognition by Pete that Mike Senter, (words, lyrics and arrangement) had 'turned over in his grave' at the completion of song. But it got them honorable mention. Other quartets provided variety in song and were applauded for their performances of "Stars Fell on Alabama" and "I Can Dream, Can't I" by Retro (R.Little, P.Roth, R.Kimberly, K.Tillman), "Up The Lazy River" by 4-2-the-Bar (Dan W, Dan G, Stan H and Chuck G), and "St. Louie Woman" by Fermata the Blue (S.Haymaker, D.Whipple, M.Werner and D.Gonzales) quartet.

We finished the evening with a tag quartet contest made up of 'paired Southbay and paired Orange men. Here we go again showing off our talents....Paul Kelley's quartet took home the other prize, another bottle of Bushmill's!

We are going to restore this tradition of a surprise chapter visit once a quarter, maintaining our goal of having fun singing in the barbershop quartet style.

Chuck Governale and Rich Lewis joined the Ancient Harmonious Society of Woodshedders, Inc. at the Feb.1 Pioneers/Fallbrook Western Convention. Rich qualified for both harmony parts, bass and melody.

In addition to their Singing Valentines quartet contributions, Balderdash, 4-2-the-Bar and Orange Town Four have had several entertainment engagements in February and March. They not only love to sing for their own enjoyment, but, enjoy uplifting the spirits of their audiences by bringing back 'the ole songs' for rhythmic swaying , 'toe-tapping' and just-plain bringing back memories of 'days gone by'.

And, oh yeah, thank the 4-2-the-Bar Quartet for taking care of the 'house' chores and 'coffee/cookie' detail this month. We took for granted the job that Paul Kelley and Paul Jockinsen did for us. We thanked P.K. last month during his 'retirement ceremony' (ha!) for his 11 years of service. Let's not forget to thank the duty quartet each week in the future for their efforts in table and chair, barberpole, music library and coffee and cookie setup.

Double Quartets With A Twist
Was That An Orange Octet We Heard?
by Stanley Tinkle

Michael Werner and Rich Lewis are continually finding new ways to keep our Monday meetings humming along. On March 31 Mike tried out an improvement on the double quartet system of reviewing a song. Someone (was it Rick Little, or Rich Martinez?) had commented that when the baris and tenors stood on the ends of the line, they were so far away from the leads that they couldn't balance the sound unless we gave them two tin cans and a string.

So Mike placed the two leads in the center, with a tenor on each side of them. Then the two basses stood outside the tenors, with the baris outside the basses, as follows: BrBsTnLdLdTnBsBr. You'll notice that each bass was flanked by two harmony parts. The result was a strong and beautifully balanced performance. I think all of the singers were listening to the other parts, so that good tuning and vowel matching took place. What's more, they all seemed to be enjoying the experience.

Lead singers will be pleased to see that a lead who is hoping to lean on his partner can still do so, although the other three parts cannot. Basses will enjoy the close proximity of both the tenor and the bari. Also, by placing the leads in the exact center, we promote the importance of the song's message, which is carried by the melody.

We can expect some jockeying for position, because everyone wants to have his good ear near a baritone, but you can't all be lucky every time. We're outnumbered, you know.

I suppose we've reinvented the wheel here, but we might as well give the format a name before some other chapter does. Although technically it's only a double quartet (with four singing parts) rather than an octet (which would have eight parts), it would sound catchy to call it the Balanced Octet, or the Lead-Centered Octet, or maybe even the Orange Octet. By any name, it will improve our singing. Just ask the audience.

Kelley's Retirement

There seems to be a misunderstanding by some people about my "retirement." Maybe I can clear that up.

The only thing I retired from was the jobs I somehow inherited from Paul Jockinsen and some others I forgot to thank. In other words, other people can have the honor of coffee making, janitorial duties, etc. Henceforth, I will arrive as I see fit and simply enjoy singing barbershop harmony.
Paul Kelley

Mail & Email

Hi Dick:
Got the Orange Squeezins on line. Great. You can send mine that way all the time. Thanks a lot.
CHORDially, Frank Devine

Hi Dick,
A tip of the old bowler to you for your fine on-line bulletin. Love the music and other innovations. Great stuff---keep up the good work---because you are the mortar that holds the bricks of the chapter together! And keep it on-line for all of us to see!
Dick Girvin
FWD DBC Coordinator

Dick,
Great idea. the internet is a great way of getting the bulletin out. But you're right, not every one is on the internet. So you'll probably still have to print up some copies.
Dave Gryvnak

Hooray! It came thru beautifully.
Good Idea. I think Pal-Pac is going to do the same shortly, although we are members of the Escondido Chamber of Commerce and we are going to be on their website soon.
En harmonie,
Gene Hartzler

Dick:
I for one would be happy to have the Email version as the only one.
Thanks again
Ken Tillmans
PS I like getting it on line

D. and D.,
I would prefer to get my newsletter on line.
Thanks,
Steve Moore

A great idea. Put me on the list of "On-liners."
Phil Roth

I was able to read most of the newsletter on my phone! I didn't get any graphics, but I got to read it! I was Bull. Ed. in my chapter once. I know what it's like being in charge of the Chapter's Bull. Having to go through a lot of bull just to get the bull, so you can get the bull out... It can be tough. Trying to get the necessary information out of the males in time to get the necessary information into the mails so it'll get out to the males before the next mail can be a pretty tall order sometimes!
Thanks. For all that you do. Keep 'em coming!
Bill Shoemaker.

Nice copy, Dottie, and, having music while you read the bulletin is a great idea. Maybe you could play some of the 'quartet' music from the 'preview tapes' made available three or four times a year.
Yours in Harmony,
Rich Lewis

Hi, Rich,
Unfortunately, I can't put music on a webpage unless it is in MIDI or .WAV format. It has to be coded through a computer before the computer can read it on a webpage. The music I used is in MIDI format (which stands for Music in Digital something-or-other). You can't do voice in MIDI. Voice can be done in .wav or MP3, but they are huge files and would make the page very slow to download for people with a dial-up connection. So I'll continue to add music to be "background music," and maybe I can scrounge up some .wav clips or MP3's of true barbership.
Dorothy

Eavesdropping on an Email

Editor's Note: This is part of an email sent by Rich Lewis to Casey Parker. What a way with words!

Good Afternoon, Casey: Thanx for the bulletin.

I note you have a quartet by name of 'Cavity Four'. Back in the 'sixty's', we had a registered quartet in our Reseda Valleyaires called The Cavity Four, consisting of Rang Hansen on Bass, John Currin (former FWD Prez) on lead, Larry Lloyd, Bari and Jim Lafferty on Tenor. They wore overcoats, rain hats and sang without their teeth..."Somebody Stole My Choppers, somebody stole my teeth. Somebody came and tookum away, they didn't even say they were leavin'....etc., etc.,...
What a funny bunch. I will find their pix and e-mail it to you.

Five quartets for the Orange Quartet-only Chapter visited with Pete Neuschel's Southbay Coastliners on Wed., Mar.13th for a St. Pattie's Day Quarter 'sing-off'.. We walked away with two of the three trophies...a couple u' botul's of Busmill's. Had a blast singing some old songs like "Yona" and "Cecilia" and some tags.

Yours in Harmony,
Rich Lewis

The Masters Voice
RANGE EXTENSION AND
VOCAL STRENGTHENING
Part 1 of 3: Warmups Redux
by Dr. Rene Torres

Some time ago I wrote an article about the warmup, and I mentioned that it was not for sissies. That remark stemmed from a comment I overheard from a fellow riser member one day that we were warming up at one of our regular chorus meetings. I am happy to report that that member is now part of a medallist quartet! So., things do get better if we give them a chance.

And a chance is what we are going to discuss in this first of three articles on vocal strengthening and range extension. A chance to make that vocal instrument of yours more at ease with the singing process. A chance to minimize exertion, fatigue and effort when singing for prolonged periods of time. A chance to add (maybe) a few well-sung notes at the top, the bottom, or both ends of your singing register.

The best way to start discussing vocal strengthening and range extension is to mention what it is not. The tips and exercises I am going to talk about are not to be used for regular warmups. They are not to be undertaken when you are going to go on and sing later that day. They are not to be done if you feel indisposed, are tired, have a sore throat, or are in any way physically indisposed. Just as a weightlifter trains and develops his or her muscles by exercise and repetition, so it is with your vocal chords and the entire vocal apparatus. But every weightlifter knows to have a warm up session and a cool down session before subjecting the muscle group under training for that day to a vigorous workout. Do the same with your voice. As a matter of fact, it would do no one any harm if everybody got into the habit of warming up the voice every day, just as they are in the habit of, say, brushing their teeth. A little vocalized humming (even while brushing your teeth!) for a few minutes would get you ready for the speaking day.

Vocal strengthening is really weightlifting for singers. It is the systematic approach to exercising the vocal muscles with the intention of (guess what!) strengthening them. This makes them capable of enduring more work, with less energy expended, and with less fatigue at the end of a session.

In addition to the "weightlifting" aspect of vocal strengthening, we have to be careful that we don't have a muscle-bound voice. In other words, we need flexibility in the vocal muscles as well, in order to properly and accurately negotiate rapid passages, large leaps in musical intervals, and overall floridity in interpretation. This part of the "strengthening" process could be called vocal aerobic exercises. We will be discussing both vocal weightlifting and vocal aerobics in subsequent articles.

What about range extension, you ask? Isn't that part of this article series? Aren't you going to give us tidbits and pearls of wisdom to extend our ranges? Well, the short answer is no, I'm not. I'm not going to give out any range extension techniques, because there are none. Range extension is a natural by-product of the weightlifting and aerobics. There is no magic pill for range extension. It just happens when you have a flexible, conditioned vocal apparatus. So on to the exercises!

The warmup exercises presented here are to be undertaken prior to any vocal workout. They are quite similar to the warmup exercises you may do to prepare for a regular singing session. In that regard, you could almost say a warmup is a warmup is a warmup. It consists of conscious muscle awareness and activation, slight stretching, and a range and "phlegm" check.

Try to do these exercises three times a week. More than that is even better, but give yourself at least a day in between to rest the muscles and allow for their development.

Start with humming. Find a pitch towards the lower side of your range, but without "pushing" and hum the pitches of 12321. Go up a half step and do it again. Repeat this procedure until you reach almost the upper end of your range, but not quite, and then repeat the exercise coming back down the scale in half step intervals to where you started. Do this softly, with no effort, and just concentrate on two things. Maintain pitch, and see if there are any spots where "phlegm" is being a problem. Make a mental note of the approximate pitch where this happens, as you will cross check this with the closing hum later. Most of the time, the vibrations of your vocal muscles as you warm up are enough to dislodge any phlegm that may be lurking, and by the time you hum a closing, it is gone.

The next exercise is a soft-loud-soft combination to awaken and strengthen the muscles that control volume. Pick a pitch in the middle of the lower third of your range, and on a "yah" sound, start as softly as you can, and slowly increase the volume to as loud as you can, and then slowly decrease the volume once again to as softly as you can. Do it twice in the lower third, twice in the middle third, and twice in the upper third of your register. Think of your voice as a laser beam you are trying to point to the far wall of your room as you do this. The objective is to do it without wavering in pitch, as slowly as possible, and all on the same breath. Strive for a seamless sound (without breaks or gurgles) from soft, to loud, to soft again. This exercise will be an eye opener, I assure you.

Next, do the humming exercise you did at the beginning of the warmup session, but this time start at the middle of your range and go as high as you can, and then a little further (even if pitch suffers), than down the scale to your low end, and keep going a little bit below. Keep the volume soft throughout. This stretches the muscles a little (don't overdo it!) and gets you in shape for the "weightlifting" to follow. More on this in the next article of the series.

Dr. Rene Torres is a frequent contributor to The Master's Voice, with articles on vocal techniques and craft. He is a vocal coach with an MA and all but the dissertation for the Ph. D. in Music Education for Performers from New York University, and holds a Ph.D. in Business Administration. He is also a member of the Musical Education National Conference (MENC), a soloist member of the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA), and a SPEBSQSA Singing Category Judge Candidate. (from Dave Gryvnak)

Smile, Darn Ya, Smile

WARNING: New virus warning. It is called C-Nile.

Even the most advanced programs from Norton or McAfee cannot take care of it so be warned. It appears to mostly affect those of us who were born before 1959.

Symptoms of C-Nile Virus
1. Causes you to send same e-mail twice
2. Causes you to send blank e-mail
3. Causes you to send to wrong person
4. Causes you to send back to person who sent it to you
5. Causes you to forget to attach the attachment
6. Causes you to hit "SEND" before you've finished the

GROANERS

Two peanuts walk into a bar. One was a salted.

A jumper cable walks into a bar. The barman says "I'll serve you, but don't start anything."

A sandwich walks into a bar. The barman says "Sorry, we don't serve food in here."

A dyslexic man walks into a bra...

A man walks into a bar with a slab of asphalt under his arm and says "A beer please, and one for the road."

I went to a seafood disco last week.... and pulled a mussel.

Let your computer sing in close harmony!

How would you like to hear your computer sing "Hello" to you in close harmony? How about "Good Night," "So Long," or six different tunes telling you "You've Got MAIL"? The Far West District website has ten .WAV files for your personal use on your computer. Head on over to the Far West District website at http://spebsqsafwd.org/files/, scroll down to almost the end of the page, and enjoy them!

Next issue

Target publication date for the next Squeezins' bulletin is May 19. Send your articles to Dick Acton at racton@adelphia.net or bring to the Monday meeting. Newsletter is on the Web at http://www.dacton.com/orange/