Well, it is 2004. I hope everyone had a great Christmas and a terrific new year. From my point of view, I had a great time singing in the Orange Chapter. And I'm looking forward to this next year to being even better than the last. Let's just see what we have to look forward to.

You want to have some terrific barbershop fun? Plan to participate in the Singing Valentine program. Get with three other guys and form a quartet that will go out and sing love songs for Valentine's Day. You have a whole month to get ready, a whole month to learn two simple songs or even an extra one or two. Believe me, you will have the time of your life when you go out and sing these songs for some unsuspecting person. They will laugh, they will cry and they will love you for bringing so much enjoyment to their lives. You won't regret it if you participate. So make the choice now and talk to some of the other guys to get a quartet formed for Valentine's Day. Who knows, you may decide to get some matching socks and start a permanent quartet.

Another thing to look forward to is the Mid-West Pioneers gathering on January 22nd, 23rd and 24th at the Grand Tradition in Fallbrook, about 60 miles north of San Diego. If you haven't attended one of these, do yourself a great big favor and plan to attend. You will sing from the moment you set foot in the Grand Tradition until you leave. That's three whole days of singing. However, you don't have to attend all three days. The best is Friday night or Saturday night. But do come on down. You will meet barbershoppers from all over the country. And they all love to sing. You can be assigned a quartet with three other guys you don't know to sing in and perform on stage. The barbershop fellowship is terrific. Don't miss it. Virg and Marcheta Pletcher are members of the staff and will be giving us more information later. But, save those days and plan to go.

If you know any singers that can hold their own, why don't you introduce them to this great hobby of yours. You'll be doing them and us a great big favor. Remember, if you're too busy to sing, you're too busy.

Greensleeves Again
Out with The Grass Stains, Sirrah!
by Stanley Tinkle

Just when the Orange Chapter had accepted the idea that the song "Greensleeves" had been written by Henry VIII, who had been watching the wenches roll about on the grass, we were brought up short by a reality check. Dick Nuttelman informs us that his wife Sally, who has an advanced degree in English, says it’s just another piece of Internet blather. Sally offers us the real McCoy, with which any of us could impress the folks on Jeopardy.

The Melody: It comes from the late Middle Ages, before 1199, but even earlier was unwritten. It was well known by troubadours; they were the leading singers of that period. This was 600 years before Henry VIII and definitely not the type of music of his period. Times and tastes had changed by then.

The Lady: She is supposed to be Berengaria of Navarre, the future wife of Richard the Lion-Hearted. This was a political marriage. They didn’t even need to like each other.

The Engagement Portrait: It was a miniature, a visual document of the betrothal. She wears a beautiful dress with long green sleeves. Richard carried her portrait with him in the Crusades. When he was captured on his way home, the King of Bavaria kept him for ransom in Durnstein Castle on the Danube. When Richard heard the troubadour Blondel sing the song, he supplied the second verse, thus indicating where he was being held captive. To learn what happened next, you can either call Sally or actually open a history book. But don’t believe the Internet; it’s full of urban myths. You know, like the Neimann-Marcus cookie recipe.

If visions of wanton wenches skidding around on the grass still haunt you, rest assured that although some may have done so, they wouldn’t have stained their sleeves. Their sleeves were never white, but instead hemp-colored; so the green wouldn’t show. Besides, the chilly, wet climate of Merry Old England does not promote outdoor canoodling. Sorry about that.

Thanks to Sally for the "heads up."

Caroling Video
Submitted by Lee Anderson

Here's some video of the Caroling we did at the Chapman Medical Center. Just follow this link: http://www.softblend.com/orange

Editor's Note: This fun video runs slightly under six minutes.

Singing Valentines 2004
By Rich Lewis

We'll be especially busy this year with our Singing Valentines Program as our singing dates are Thursday, Feb.12th, Friday, Feb.13th and Saturday, February the 14th, a date-and-day combination that has brought a lot of gigs in the past.

We'll have seven organized quartets to sing the Valentines. Each quartet will be contacted for date assignments early in January so that members who work in the quartet may have an opportunity to get a week day off, as we anticipate a lot of Thursday and Friday gig requests for singing at a business office for a 'loved' one.

In addition to placing announcement and application 'tent-boards' up in our businesses that each of us frequent, such as cleaners, hairdressers, nail salons, barbershops, restaurants, and most of the stores in the Orange Plaza, we will be embarking on an aggressive promotion program to maximize the $$$ for our efforts.

At the Jan.5th chapter meeting we will pass out our 'Singing Valentines' business cards for each of us to carry, and give out to those people we engage in conversation with. Most-likely, he or she will ask, "Are you still singing in a quartet?" And you can answer, "Yes, and I will be singing a Valentine's song in a quartet the week of Valentines' day. Are you interested? Ok, here's how it works...."

Each of us in the chapter is asked to not only sing in a Valentines' quartet, but sell some gigs! It is a 'soft-sell'--that is, present the benefits and it will sell itself. We thank you who have provided sales for the event. We ask you who haven't to try it and improve our sales.

We provided $2000 to the Far Western District Youth-in-Harmony program last year. This year we want to help the 'youthful' members of the Wesminster 'Heritage-of-Harmony' Chorus with their expenses in competing at the International SPEBSQSA Contest in Louisville, Ky.

We are asking for all of your help in making this year's Singing Valentines program the best ever!

Rich Lewis

Gaining Three Brothers
How to Include Personality in Your Performance
by Stanley Tinkle

Barbershop is so much fun for us amateurs that we seldom consider what an unlikely phenomenon it is. For a reality check, just imagine a well-rung chord. Then let one singer alter his own input a little bit; he could sing sharp or flat, or alter the vowel, or just sing a tiny bit too loud. The ring disappears, and those four guys in flashy suits become folksingers.

But most chapter quartets don’t ring a lot of chords, anyway. Once they’ve learned the notes and words to a song, they stop listening to each other, just as four brothers in any family tune each other out.

Good quartets try to perfect every chord; that’s how they get to Carnegie Hall. They practice, practice, practice. But once they are highly tuned, they must add one more ingredient if they are to become a truly great quartet. They have to add an extra script to their act, something audible such as a sustained "hanger" note that adds suspense to the progress of a song. Or it may be a visual element that turns into a running joke: a hat trick, a pushy tenor trying to hog the mike, or even a rubber ducky that materializes from the bari’s pocket. (It worked for Sam’s Club.) The extra activity makes the whole act seem effortless, as when four high-wire acrobats pause above Niagara Falls to juggle live chickens. If your group can do all this and still maintain its nonchalance, you will win over your audience. You have added variety without extending your performance time.

Where then do these funny tricks come from? I’d say that they are gifts from the class clowns who have made schoolteachers turn grey over the years. At their best, they are what creative minds come up with when they have mastered the mechanics of a song. Once the members of a quartet are at ease with each other, they develop a group personality. It may be contentious and full of creative disagreements, but they see each other as brothers do. Thus, when the quartet FRED puts a helmet on Pookie and starts to pound on him like a snare drum, the audience senses that somehow the little snit deserves it.

Any quartet that perseveres becomes like four grownup brothers. Nothing in nature says they have to stick together, but they have what four strangers can never have: the common interests that come with a shared history. These elements ring as true with our audiences as a perfect chord does. They add excitement and complexity to our performance. Let’s include them in every song. Hey, did you think we were just here to sing? Now, I have an idea for the line "Passed me by one summer day, flashed those big brown eyes my way..."

Quartet Performances
by Rich Lewis

Here's the latest from our quartets and their performances for the months of November and December.

Orange Town Four
12/18 Xmas Party - Orange Park Acres

Phil's Harmonics
11/06 Nwprt Bch Ebell Women's Club Luncheon
11/20 Enderle Ctr Annual Holiday Affair
11/22 Kiel's Skin Care-S.C.Plza Holiday Affair
12/04 Pacizo's Rstrnt-Dana Pt. Holiday Affair
12/12 Golden Eagle Construction Holiday Affair
12/14 Survivors of Pearl Harbor Holiday Affair
12/17 Toys for Tots Benefit-Dana Point

We know that other quartets also performed during the holidays, but if we don't get the word, we can't publish. Let us know and we'll publish in the next Squeezins'. Rich Lewis

Vocal Synthesis
by Phil Roth

During one of my Internet surfing sessions I ran across a shareware program called Melody Assistant (I’ll refer as MA). MA is a software program for computer-assisted writing and composition. It runs on Macintosh (Mac OS 8.6 to Mac OS X) and Windows (95, 98, 2000, XP or NT4).

I use MA as a music learning tool for my INDIGO music. I just enter the notes and words and when I finish it sings them back to me. I can adjust each vocal line, as needed, to be predominate, Bass, Bari, Lead, or Tenor. With this type of program you learn the words and music exactly as written and then do your own interp.

The vocal synthesis reproduction is about 80% accurate, but with a little bit of juggling of the word spelling the accuracy can be increased.

You can download this program free for as long as you want, but it has restrictions. The registration fee is $15 for MA. You will also need the Virtual Singer ($15). Not too shabby for $30 total.

The website for these two programs is: www.myriad-online.com. There are demos on the site, also.

Also coming down the line LEON ($325) powered by Yamaha’s VOCALOID. It is scheduled for launch at the NAMM show at the Anaheim Convention Center, 15-18 January 2004. If you really want to hear something unbelievable in voice synthesis go to website: http://www.zero-g.co.uk/index.cfm?articleid=802 and listen to Little Bird, a LOLA Demo.

I hope that downloading MA will help increase your enthusiasm in learning new music, maybe even an INDIGO part.

Phil

Orange Plaza City Serenaders
Chapter Focus
By Rich Lewis

It's that time of year again--new chapter officers,and hopefully, something new in store for us "barbershoppers" doing what we like to do best--sing in a quartet! In preparation, let's refocus on our chapter goals (focus or mission statement), as stated in our founding of the first "quartet-only" chapter in our society in 1991, to keep our chapter on track in preservation and encouragement of barbershop-quartet singing as in SPEBSQSA:

Preserve the "old songs"

Develop quartet men through:

Singing with an organized quartet,
Providing encouragement,
and improving his "singing skill" as a barbershopper.

Develop the "woodshedding" skill (ear training) of each member through

Participation in the weekly woodshedding forum, using the quartet method

Provide entertainment for the communities surrounding Orange.

Developing their awareness of our quality of entertainment, thereby providing
a forum for perpetuation of our style of entertainment--the "barbershop quartet."

And, most importantly, to have fun improving our barbershop quartet skills.

With these goals in mind, our organized quartets are going to "share the fun" singing their songs. As part of the opening program each meeting, one of the organized quartets will sing one of the songs they are going to "share" with you. If you are interested in learning that song and singing it with that quartet, the music and a tape of the song will be offered to you for your task of learning your part. Now, all you have to do is to get your name on the board, first thing, with the program man, Don Engel, so that you can sing with that quartet in either the first or second 20-minute quartet session. Those quartets are: Balderdash, Indigo, Retro, Orange-Town Four, Fermata The Blue, Four for Harmony and California Blend. The rest is up to you. Sound like fun?

The music committee, made up of a member of each organized quartet, will put together a list of songs they wish to learn and share with you non-quartet members of the chapter. We should have this published in the February "Squeezin's."

Dick Nuttelman, Board Member-at-Large, has accepted responsibility for the "Guest Books" and will be incorporating our newly-learned songs from the "New Repetoire" books into the guest books. If you have any suggestions in this regard, please let Dick or Rich know.

We'll have some "woodshedding" sessions throughout the year to help improve your "ear-training." You've shown your woodsheddin' skills already at the annual "Afterglow-without-a-show" and at the "Barbershop Pioneers" gathering in Fallbrook and Chicago, and we're proud of you.

In addition, to improve your balance-and-blend, harmony-accuracy, and entertainment skills, we'll bring in some "experts" in those categories.

Each of you has some ideas for improving the fun and quality in the musical activities in and out of our chapter. Please share these ideas with us so that we can improve the quality of our chapter activities, and have more fun doing it.

Rich Lewis
The Music Man

Whittier Choralaires "Showcase"

Sad to report that The Whittier Choralaires chapter bulletin "Showcase" is losing its editor. Dave Gunther has been putting out a very nice bulletin, but now he is moving on to serve as Associate Director for the Whittier Choralaires chorus. We hope the Whittier chapter will be able to find a volunteer to carry on "Showcase." Here is one of the gems from the most recent issue: "Do your friend a favor--Introduce him to Barbershop Harmony." We'll be requesting permission to reprint their hilarious collection of one-liners headed "You might be a Barbershopper if..."

Auld Lang Syne

"Auld Lang Syne," sometimes called The World's National Anthem, is an extremely old Scottish song that was first written down in the 1700s. Robert Burns is the person whose transcription got the most attention, so the song is associated with him. However, Robert Burns said he merely wrote down the words sung by an old man. After he had added a couple of new verses, Burns wrote to Mrs Agnes Dunlop in a letter dated December 7, 1788, "Light be the turf on the breast of the heaven-inspired Poet who composed this glorious Fragment! There is more of the fire of native genius in it, than in half a dozen of modern English Bacchanalians."

Auld lang syne literally means "old long ago." A better translation is perhaps "times gone by." Many people know only the first verse and chorus of this song.

Auld Lang Syne--One Translation
Source: http://www.tamoshanter.free-online.co.uk/Auldls.htm

Should old friends be forgotten and never remembered Should old friends be forgotten and the days they shared together Chorus For days now in the past, my dear For days now in the past We'll drink a toast of kind remembrance For days now in the past You can pay for your pint tankard and I will pay for mine We'll drink a toast of kind remembrance For days now in the past

We two have run about the hillsides and pulled wild daisies but now we are far apart in distance From those days now in the past We two have paddled in the stream from morning untill noon but oceans now lie between us since those days now in the past So take my hand, my trusty friend and give me your hand and we will take a hearty drink together In memory of those days now in the past

Find another translation here:
http://www.worldburnsclub.com/newsletter/auld_lang_syne_what_about.htm

For everything else you ever wanted to know about "Auld Lang Syne," visit these websites:
http://www.robertburns.org/encyclopedia/AuldLangSyne.5.html
http://www.chivalry.com/cantaria/lyrics/auldlang.html.

Classic One-Liners

Diplomacy - the art of saying "nice doggie" until you can find a rock. Woody Allen
A word to the wise ain't necessary--it's the stupid ones who need the advice. Bill Cosby
Gravity cannot be held responsible for people falling in love. Albert Einstein
I've been rich and I've been poor. Rich is better. Sophie Tucker.
Inflation is when the buck doesn't stop anywhere. Robert Orben
Modern music hasn't been around too long and hopefully won't be. Victor Borge
Everybody is ignorant, only on different subjects. Will Rogers
The early bird would never catch the worm if the dumb worm slept late. Milton Berle.
Nothing is more responsible for the good old days than a bad memory. Robert Benchley
I had plastic surgery last week. I cut up my credit cards. Henny Youngman
Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read. Groucho Marx
The sooner you fall behind, the more time you'll have to catch up. Steven Wright

Next issue

Target publication date for the next Squeezins' bulletin is Feb. 1, Feb. 8, or whenever we get enough articles. Send your articles to Editor at acton17@adelphia.net or bring to the Monday meeting.