Let All the Babes in Every Corner Sing

Picture a lady dressed all in black, practically tripping on her skirt, carrying a red cello case on her back and pushing a bundled baby in a stroller up the sidewalk towards a recital hall.

Now picture a pre-concert rehearsal for two choirs. One choir is on the stage, surrounding a grand piano in a semicircle and warming up their voices. A stroller sits behind this choir in the corner of the stage, as the baby inside quietly leans forward and looks up at the high ceiling and sparkling lights. The other choir is seated below, listening and awaiting their turn. The choir on stage runs through their last piece and eventually reaches the penultimate phrase, pausing for a moment of silence and musical suspense before the final phrase is sung. The hall is suddenly filled with the sound of a high-pitched infant squeal, and everyone turns toward the stroller with peals of laughter as one soprano covers her face in embarrassment.

That soprano was me, last night, before this concert:
And the baby was, of course, Ramona.

This is my third semester singing with a choir called The Heritage Singers, led by Danny McDavitt, a composer and DMA candidate for choral conducting. Last night we combined with his other choir--The University Chorus--for a joint concert at the familiar Smith Recital Hall.

This is Ramona's first semester with the choir, and although she attended numerous rehearsals and even sung an impressive solo at the final warm-up, she did not actually participate in this performance. Forest came and sat with her in the lobby during the concert while she took a nap in her stroller.

The cello was only necessary for about 5 minutes of the entire program, but I was happy to be able to play it on that stage again. Singing felt good, too. Congratulations to Danny for a successful concert, and much thanks to Forest and Ramona for their support of my musical adventures.