Sarah Autry
Newswriting student
Cameron University presented its first vocal music performance of the semester at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 16 at the McCutcheon Recital Hall with the all womens voice ensemble, Bella Voce.
Chorus conductor and Cameron University Adjunct Professor Doris Lambert formed the 24-member group this summer.
“The concert was a huge success,” Lambert said. “There was standing room only in the audience, and they were extremely receptive and enthusiastic and seemed to really enjoy the variety of musical styles we sang.”
The ladies performed a wide range of music, from ballads, classical music and spiritual songs to theatrical tunes, jazz numbers and “pop” songs, showcased on Fox Network’s hit television show “Glee.”
Lambert spent days in a music store trying to find the perfect songs for this group of women. Extensive research went in to finding the music for the performance.
“I looked at what other all-women groups have done before,” Lambert said.
As a member of
the American Choral “Half of these ladies
Directors Association, she also pooled her resources to find songs that suit all- women choral groups. She used “YouTube” to listen to the songs to see how well they fit in to the concert.
“In organizing the program, you want to pick a few different styles of songs and different tempos because you don’t want everything to sound the same. You want to keep the audience interested and engaged,” she said.
Before each song, Lambert provided the audience with a brief history lesson about the song, the writer and the time period in which the song was written.
Sydney Marshall, a child in the audience, had a couple of things to say about the performance.
“I really liked the concert,” she said. “My favorite song was the ‘who do you think you are’ song by Jar of Hearts. I recognized it from the car.”
Lambert and the ladies who make up Bella Voce said they were very happy with the way the program turned out. The audience included children, students, family and friends of the performers. Event ushers added more chairs to the auditorium to accommodate the amount of people walking through the door.
are teachers, and our schedules are all so complex,” Lambert said. “Finding time to rehearse and perform is difficult.”
Many of the ladies were excited about joining the group because as educators, they’re on the conductor’s side all day, instructing others. Lambert said the ensemble had the opportunity to work hard on challenging songs, sing for an audience and be proud of their performance.
Lambert has worked with many of these women in vocal groups through church and other community performances such as the Lawton Philharmonic. The only man involved in the group is Tom Willoughby, pianist, whom Lambert has known and has been friends with for more than ten years.
“He is a fine pianist,” Lambert said. “When I was thinking of someone who would be able to play and would enjoy it, I thought of him. I asked him and he accepted, which was a great thing.”
The next time any of the women will sing together will be in October when they begin to prepare for Handel’s “Messiah,” which will be performed in December.
[vimeo]https://vimeo.com/75069447[/vimeo]