New Dimension Chorus

"Let's celebrate, no don't hesitate! Why not drive all your cares away!" starts the delightful ditty from the musical Cabaret, set in the horror of Nazi Germany. Throughout 2010, the New Dimension Chorus aims to make the happiness a crowd pleaser and show stopper.

Chorus members, remember that you need to log in to the site for access to the learning tracks. Right-click on the file, and click "Save As…"

When life gives you lemons...ring some chords. I believe life is designed to be one challenge after another. If you don't take a moment to reflect on how you live...you'll realize that you spend your life battling challenges without take a breath to have a little peace. Even though singing (and directing now) has its own challenges, it brings me peace.

explained by Tom Wheatley, editor, Dundalk, MD Charivari

Last month, this column addressed one of the functions of those markings on sheet music called notes. Specifically, we covered the length of time a note is to be held. There is a second major function that notes fulfill. This involves how high or low the note sounds. In effect, it fleshes out the melody and harmony parts.

explained by Tom Wheatley, editor, Dundalk, MD Charivari

Most things I’ve read on how to read music dive right in and start swimming. If you’ve never even been in the water, you are lost from the get-go. As I think back to when all that music fol-de-rol was just so much hen scratching on paper, I recall the frustration as I tried to figure out what the paper had to do with the sounds I was to make. In a rehearsal the other day, I heard people talking about roots and fifths and the third degree of the scale. It occurred to me that others must be facing the same frustration that I experienced in high school.

The Barbershop Harmony Society has released 64 arrangements from the Heritage of Harmony Songbook, a great collection of Public Domain music compiled and arranged by the Society in the late 1980s. Go to the "Get Music>>Free Download" section of the Society website and scroll down to the "Heritage of Harmony" section.

Tom Raburn, Big D Bulletin, September 1998

Question: When does 2 + 2 = 5? Answer: When barbershop harmony is sung correctly, creating harmonic overtones and “expanded sound.”

by Nick Papageorge
Submitted by Dave Gunther, editor Whittier Choralaires, “SHOWCASE"

Dave asked me to write about ways that you can learn your music quickly and efficiently. Here are some simple, yet effective, steps you can take to help you in the learning process:

In 1998, the New Dimension Chorus was chartered. Along the way, various publications have gone out to the whole free world. Some of them were actually preserved for all time. As some of the others are found or recovered, they will be linked from this page.

January, 2009 ushers in a new realm of New Dimension Chorus newsletters. The newsletters are scheduled for monthly issues, each one linked from this page. Make sure you sign up for the announcement list of when each new issue is posted.

The school semester is ending. End of year performances have wrapped up. You've completed your juries. Now what are you going to do for the next three months?

Come sing with the New Dimension Chorus! We foster a friendly environment of fraternity and singing at Chabot College in Hayward. Learn a couple of old songs with harmony true. We'd love to sing them with somebody new.

We welcome you to come sing with us Thursday evenings starting at 7:00. Remember that all singers under the age of 18 must have a parent or guardian present during the entire rehearsal.