Fans of four-part harmony won’t want to miss Como Chorus Cascade, a 125-voice mass choir concert Tuesday, Aug. 20, hosted by St. Paul’s North Star Chorus at Como Park Pavilion.
The 25-member North Star ensemble will be joined by other regional choruses, including the Minneapolis Commodores, the Lakelanders (Faribault), the Croix Chordsmen (Stillwater), the River Blenders (Mankato) and the Singing Saints (St. Cloud).
The groups, which follow in the grand, all-American tradition of barbershop quartet singing, each will perform three numbers before a grand finale featuring all the choruses.
“We get together to sing ‘Battle Hymn of the Republic’ and ‘God Bless America,’ and people leave with a smile on their faces,” said bass Steve Zorn, North Star Chorus’ membership vice president.
That’s the goal of the chorus, which is under the umbrella of the Barbershop Harmony Society, which had its roots in the Depression era.
“You can tell when people are hooked on what you’re singing about,” Zorn said. “I’m the emcee [at the concerts], and I’m scanning the audience at all times. Whenever I see a face that looks like it’s longing to sing barbershop, I find them afterward.
“It’s such a joy. It’s a way of lifting people’s spirits, our own and others’.”
Zorn, 72, is one of the “youngsters” of the group, which he joined in 2004. He had finished a doctorate in public administration at 51 and was “coming up for air” when he attended a North Star Chorus concert.
“My wife asked me why I had such a big smile on my face,” he recalled. “I said, ‘I want to do this, to be up on that stage.’ I got super-duper hooked. The next year I was not just on that stage, but in a quartet.”
Zorn also is a member of one of the chorus’ quartets, Note’orious.
The North Star repertoire is what might be called classic.
“We tend to choose music that’s not contemporary,” Zorn said.
He acknowledged that many people think of barbershop as “four straw hats and the same old songs.” But he hints that this view is simplistic; these are accomplished singers who rehearse weekly and keep themselves sharp at such events as “harmony university,” or choral retreats.
He mentioned the jazz standard “Bye Bye Blues” and excerpts from the musical South Pacific as representative numbers. Concertgoers also just might get a chance for audience participation with the Neil Diamond favorite “Sweet Caroline.”
Zorn advises attendees at the Aug. 20 concert to arrive early. The concert and parking are free, and the organizers expect a big crowd — including faithful followers of the various groups and others who just like good singing.
“We’re challenged because we’re not bringing in younger generations” to barbershop-style singing, Zorn said. “But we continue on, and the joy we get when we get a chance to sing for a small group of people in a nursing home or 500 at Como Pavilion lifts our spirits. It makes all the difference in the world.”
Event details
What: Como Chorus Cascade
Where: Como Park Pavilion, 1360 Lexington Pkwy. N., St. Paul
When: 7 p.m. Aug. 20
Tickets: Free
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