It has come to the attention of the board that the attendance is down. It may be due to the usual summer doldrums or it may be that we have lost a number of members. In any event, we should take some action. I suggest that there are lots of ex-b'shoppers out there that you know. Ones that are from other chapters that are on your old rosters. If you would make a list with their names and addresses and get them to me, I'll contact them. Or you know singers that would like to do some q'teting. Get me the information and I'll contact them. People from your church choir, from other singing organizations or wherever. Get me their names and addresses. Either bring them to the chapter, or send them to my home, or e-mail them to me. However, remember, we want singers that can sing and carry their part.

Dave Gryvnak
2625 View Lake
Santa Ana, CA 92705
GryvnakD@wmconnect.com

A Great Quartet For Pat Claypool
Keeping Up With The Times
by Stanley Tinkle

The Orange Quartet Chapter can be proud of the quartets whose members got their start with us. To list them would require an article on that subject alone. The latest star in our constellation is baritone Pat Claypool, whose brand new quartet, "O.C. Times", sang for the chapter on Monday, August 18. Their tenor is Shawn York, whose head voice is always beautifully clear and strong. Shawn reminds us of Gary Texeira, the stratrospheric tenor of Gotcha!. Their lead is Sean Devine, of Alley Cats and Sam's Club fame; he's a front-line man with the Masters of Harmony. Sean has his own patent on sincerity and a brighter smile than Buzz Lightyear's. The bari, our own Pat Claypool, has an excellent ear, and his secret weapon is a laser-sharp head voice, which comes in handy when the tenor is otherwise occupied. Their bass is Drew Harrah; he has the self-assurance of a fullback and a clean and vibrant voice, which backs up the lead perfectly.

Two members of O.C. Times are new to barbershop, although you won't believe it. The quartet will compete at FWD in Bakersfield in October, and I predict they'll place. They already have the expressive faces and the winning personality of a champion quartet, and they held our interest all the way beyond the end of each song. Musically, the lead and bass blend well, and the tenor and bari can place accents and embellishments wherever they wish.

They entertained us with two ballads and an uptune. The first song was an original by the hot arranger Jay Giallombardo, who directs the 2001 International Gold Medalist Chorus, Northbrook. It's called "You're the girl I love," and it's a fine vehicle that displays the agility with which their young voices can navigate the fine harmonies and chord textures that Giallombardo has prepared for them.

The second song was Clay Hine's arrangement of one of my favorites, "Paper Moon." A gold medalist quarteter (with FRED) and a first-class director (with The Big Chicken Chorus), Hine gives the foursome a song that romps along with the theme, "It wouldn't be make-believe if you'd believe in me," and a come-and-get-it rhythm that has its own logic. Then toward the end, a beautiful tenor post sails out over the chords--only you notice that the tenor is busily singing other harmonies. The bari, Pat Claypool, has that moment of glory! It makes me think of a certain bari in another quartet, called Platinum. Pat also has a powerful low range. Wait until you hear what he does with "Tonight," from West Side Story.

Performing at this level requires that you put a lot of yourself into each song. It's not a stroll through the park. So O.C. Times sang only one more song, Don Gray's arrangement of "I Wonder If We'll Ever Meet Again," as sung by the quartet Marquis and by the Southern Gateway Chorus. This song pulls the strings of memory so hard that you suddenly realize you've been thinking about people and events you'd forgotten. It demonstrates the awesome power of music. Hats off to Don Gray, by the way; he does not charge for his arrangements!

If you missed this session, I have good new for you. O. C. Times said they'll be back, some time before October 2. What a quartet! What an experience! By making young performers feel welcome, we're ensuring the future of this great hobby. "Stay tuned!" You'll love it.

Stuff & Things

Stan French runs the "Friday For Lunch Bunch" in Fullerton. They have a darn good turn out every week, primarily due to Stan's hard work, and it's a real enjoyable event with gang singing, tag quartets and organized quartets. You're constantly surprised at each weeks' event. It starts at 11:30 each Friday, with most people grabbing what Giovanni's serves, which is a lot! Subs, salads, pastas, pizza, etc. Beer, wine and soft drinks galore, too. The gang singing starts at noon with quartetting til 2:30 plus or minus.

Quite a few of our Orange Quartetters are there consistently and Stan wants to warmly thank us for our continued support. Well, thank YOU, Stan!! We get our weekend singing fix just because of YOU!.

FYI, Giovanni's is at 3920 N. Harbor Blvd. in Fullerton. That on the southeast section, Imperial and Harbor.
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On a Sunday afternoon a few weeks ago, I got a phone call from Jack Jungroth, our member who moved to Oklahoma City several years ago. He's been active in the Chapter there and I believe their chorus must be pretty good. They received an invitation and are going (went?) to the big Buckeye Invitational! They don't invite bums. Anyhow, Jack maintains a dual membership with us. He had some unused time on his cell phone and wanted to gab awhile. He says Hi to all and would like to crack a chord with us again. Nice man! Paul Kelley