Senior singers

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SeniorVoicesDSC_3765.jpg

About 25 men and women attended last Thursday?s regular rehearsal of Parkside Voices in the congregate building at Parkside Homes. Director Stephen Vincent said there?s always room for new people wanting to join the group.

A group of senior citizens in Hillsboro love to hone their singing skills in preparation for their performances each year.

Known as Parkside Voices, the group?s director, Stephen Vincent, said he enjoys his dual role as director and piano accompanist.

?We have about 25 singers,? Vincent said, ?and anybody can join, whether they live at Parkside Homes or not.?

 

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Stephen Vincent, director, points to members of the tenor section and asks that everyone repeat the chorus of ?Make Believe,? one of the songs the group was rehearsing Thursday in the Congre?gate building at Parkside Homes. The singing group, Parkside Voices, is made up of residents and others from the area. New singers are continually being added to the group, Vincent said.

When Vincent isn?t practicing every Thursday morning with the group, he is working in the administration office at Parkside Homes Inc.

?I started last spring (as Parkside Voices director) and we are working on some brand new pieces,? he said.

Most of the music is a variety of sacred, show tunes and old-fashioned songs, he said.

?We perform a Thanksgiving dinner concert at the senior center, a Christmas concert and a concert at Park Village,? he said.

Although the singers enjoy traveling to a few places, Vincent said he tries not to put too many performances on the group.

?I have had people ask me, but we perform one or two outside shows and that?s all,? he said.

Prior to Vincent taking over as director, he said Dave Clark, former vocal music director at Hillsboro High School, directed the singing group for several years.

?We have soprano, alto, tenor and bass singers, but we always have room for more,? Vincent said, ?and actually we get new people all the time.?

In addition to directing Parkside Voices, Vincent is also an adjunct professor of organ on the music staff at Tabor College, and is accompanist for the Kansas Mennonite Men?s Chorus.

?About 300 men from across the state participate in the chorus,? he said, ?and maybe 20 to 30 of them are from Hillsboro and Marion.?

Vincent and the rest of the singers encourage other senior citizens to consider rehearsing with them starting at 11 a.m. on Thursdays.

For more information, call Vincent at Parkside Homes, 947-2301.

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