It was one of the last things Minnesota state senators expected to hear in the closing hours of the 2014 legislative session. While waiting for paperwork to be processed before they adjourned, senators began to pour out of the chamber into the Rotunda, where they heard four legislative staffers sing the national anthem and a few old-timey standards. It was the debut of the unofficial Minnesota Senate barbershop quartet, the Fiscal Notes.
I've never been one to hide my love for choral music. When I started my job at the Minnesota Senate in 2013, my new coworkers quickly learned I was a singer when I took advantage of the Capitol's high ceilings and resonant marble acoustics while on my way from one meeting to the next.
By the end of our first session, three other staffers and I realized that we filled out all of the voice parts needed to complete a barbershop quartet. After our first, half-joking rehearsal went well, we decided to name ourselves the Fiscal Notes (after the documents legislators use to determine the financial cost of legislation), and plotted that initial surprise show in front of the Senate Chamber.
Upon public assurances that we weren't terrible, the group endured a summer of frantic rehearsals to learn more music for future performances. We taught ourselves a wide array of musical numbers, including everything from standards like "Coney Island Baby" to a barbershop version of "Jessie's Girl." We even added the Norwegian national anthem to our repertoire, a performance of which was later described by an audience member as "one of the most Minnesotan things that has ever happened."
Since that first appearance, the Fiscal Notes have been asked to sing for memorial services, staff functions, podcasts, and even the state's AFL-CIO convention. Clearly, we have found a market with needs that had previously gone unmet.
In such a politically-charged environment, music has proved to be a bipartisan experience, showing us a side of legislators we don't usually get to see. Senator Ron Latz (DFL-St. Louis Park) performed in his own barbershop quartet in law school and still knows the bass line of "Lida Rose" by heart. Senator Carla Nelson (R-Rochester) sang for years before trading late-night rehearsals for late-night floor sessions. Once when our baritone was stuck in a committee hearing, Senator Kevin Dahle (DFL-Northfield) jumped in at the last minute to fill his part, surprising his colleagues and prompting Senator Roger Reinert (DFL-Duluth) to ask if he could join us next time we were short a singer.
One of my former choir directors believes that most of the problems with partisan politics in this country could be solved if those in Congress sang in a choir together. I'm not sure that's entirely true, but I do know that sharing our music has helped to soothe some of the frustration and cynicism felt by senators and staff during a painstaking and exhausting legislative session.
The Fiscal Notes' highlight-to-date captures that concept perfectly. At the end of the 2015 legislative session, and only a year after our first rehearsal, we were honored with a rare request to perform on the floor of the Senate. Shortly after a rancorous midnight adjournment, the Fiscal Notes sang the Minnesota Hymn to commemorate the end of not only the year's legislative session, but the closing of the Senate chamber for major renovations.
Looking across the Senate floor, it was clear that party lines melted away for those few moments. The reverent song served as a reminder to everyone that despite differences in opinion, all those gathered around the chamber were giving their best to make our home a better place to live. It also reminded the four of us in the front exactly why we continue to make music throughout our busy lives. The Fiscal Notes are not about to resolve controversy over the state's transportation funding by ourselves, but hopefully bringing music to the Capitol can help set the stage for a little more harmony.
Bryan Wells is a media relations specialist at the Minnesota Senate and a tenor in the the Fiscal Notes. He also performs in the Twin Cities with Magnum Chorum and the Academy of Voices.
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