Forté formed in the summer of
2002 at a chorus rehearsal of the Southern Gateway Chorus. Forté
is the current 3rd place medallists of the Johnny Appleseed District
of The Barbershop Harmony Society. This is the first registered quartet
experience for three of the members of Forté. We are all current
and active members of the Southern Gateway Chorus.
Singing tenor is the experienced
member of the quartet, Jim Koch. Jim has sung in numerous quartets such
as Our Gang, Brand New Gang, and most recently When Hector was a Pup. Jim
has been a member of Southern Gateway since 1965 and when not singing he
is now semi retired from his own antique furniture restoration/refinishing business.
Jim is a Past President of Southern Gateway.
Jim is married to his lovely wife Fran and they have 2 children and 5 grandchildren.
Born in 1944, you do the math!
Ernie Blevins is our lead singer. Ernie
attended Eastern Kentucky University as a music education major with an
emphasis in voice and piano. Ernie has been a member of Southern Gateway
since 1998. In college, Ernie gained a wide variety of vocal experience
including lead vocalist in a rock band and singing Lead in his college
quartet, The Dixieland Four.
Ernie is a Customer Service
Rep for Convergys working on the Procter and Gamble floor.
Todd Farrow is our x-tenor singing baritone.
Todd has been singing barbershop since the fall of 2000 with the Southern
Gateway Chorus and was previously with the Dayton Metro Chorus. Todd
has served on the Board of Directors for both choruses and was named
Barbershopper of the year in 2002 by the Dayton Metro Chapter. In his
spare time (HA!), Todd is a Network Engineer working at Wright-Patterson
AFB in Dayton. Todd is married to a VERY understanding wife, Cindy and
they have four children, Amanda, Mary, Gabrielle and Jon.
Finishing the quartet is our bass singer Terry Healey. Terry has been
a member of Southern Gateway since 1979. He has held several positions
such as President and Presentation Coach for the chorus. Terry also
coaches several quartets and choruses in Sweet Adeline International,
such as Cincinnati Sound, the 2007 Region #4 Champions. Terry is a Laboratory Technician
for The Urology Group in Cincinnati.
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