Smoky Mountain Chorale's recent 13-day European trip came to an end in Milan, Italy, where the last performance was presented to an audience of more than 500 in Monza Cathedral. "It was an exciting experience for the singers and players, and the ovation received at the close of the concert will be a lasting memory for everyone involved," co-director James Dooley said. The chorale, which was formed in 1994 for a special Christmas concert and recording project, will give a local performance this Saturday, Aug. 25, at 6 p.m. in Western Carolina University's Coulter Building recital hall. Admission is free.
On their recent European concert tour, several members of the Smoky Mountain Chorale were "made to walk the plank, after which they were swallowed by a dragon." That's according to an account by SMC member Jean Lewis, who claimed, "Although no icebergs were sighted, there was a loud explosion, then our boat suddenly stopped. Some of our members were even thrown out of first class." Members might share some of these experience, which eerily resembled that fateful night on the "Titanic," during a free performance this Saturday, Aug. 25, at 6 p.m. in Western Carolina University's recital hall, located in the Coulter Building. In actuality, several members of the chorale were enjoying a leisurely boat cruise on Switzerland's Lake Thun, when blasting at a nearby rock quarry caused an explosion. The boat's engine overheated right about then, causing the motor to stop. "Attempts were made to cool the engine by placing ice and rags on it," explained SMC member Barbara Dooley. "Some of our group had gone to first class by mistake, but when authorities notified them, they moved to second class." "While our boat lay dormant in the water, we sang songs of comfort like 'Row, Row, Row Your Boat.' Mike Nichols was with us, so we sang, 'Michael, Row Your Boat Ashore," but he didn't. None of us dared sing 'Nearer My God to Thee,'" said Lewis. "We got a chance to talk to other passengers and invited them to our concerts," said Chris Friesner, another chorale member on board the stalled boat. Meanwhile, a boat shaped like a dragon arrived, and passengers had to walk on a board to get from their boat to the dragon boat. The rescue was reported in the regional newspaper, Berner Oberlander. "Leave it to our group to make the news again," SMC co-director James Dooley said of the Drachenschiff (dragon ship) adventure. "At one point during the 1999 concert tour of England, when the chorale was making its way to dinner in downtown London, the group unintentionally found itself stranded in the area where demonstrators staged a 'Carnival Against Capitalism' under way in the city. (See The Sylva Herald's account in issue published Aug. 15, 1999.) "This year's Group of Eight global economic forum in Genoa also coincided with the chorale's tour, and a few members witnessed demonstrations in downtown Milan during their three days there. Fortunately, however, the riots associated with the meeting did not take place in the city where the group was singing," he said. This year's tour included a series of concerts in Zurich, Bern and Interlaken, all in Switzerland, and Milan, Italy, where the chorale's 13-day trip came to an end in front of an audience that numbered more than 500. "It was an exciting experience for the singers and players, and the ovation received at the close of the concert will be a lasting memory for everyone involved," James Dooley said. Smoky Mountain Chorale was formed in 1994 for a special Christmas concert and recording project. No one then would have predicted the group would under take three European concert tours, James Dooley said. In 1995 and 1999, the group toured Germany, Austria, Czech Republic and England. The group's original membership came from the Western Carolina Community Chorus and the Chancel Choir of Waynesville's First United Methodist Church. The chorale's European tour members have included these same groups, plus singers from the Chancel Choir of First Centenary Methodist Church of Chattanooga, Tenn., the Scenic City (Chattanooga) Chorale and a core of musicians from Athens, Ga. The expansion of membership resulted through the longtime friendship and professional association of the co-directors, Dooley and William Long of Chattanooga. Accompanists for the chorale were Barbara Dooley, piano and organ, and Jeryl deSabla, piano. Janet Hale, flutist from Chattanooga, and John Corina, oboeist from Athens, Ga., were featured in solo and ensemble performances. |