About Us
Boston Harmony and Montpelier World Music Chorus
Join the Choir!
“Larry and Patty, both passionate about music and authenticity, manage to create among 'strangers' a strong sense of community. How do they do this? Simply by being real, by being genuine and by calling out the best in people through awesome music and relaxed fun. Their infectious joy spreads quickly, and everyone is caught up in a wonderful experience of creative and jubilant music-making.”
“I was delighted to be in the presence of leaders so knowledgeable and comfortable with sharing, that learning was effortless—even with the challenge of unfamiliar languages and diverse musical styles. This aspect of Village Harmony bears great weight in our global community, as music is surely one of the best ways to connect people of different cultures.”
We are looking for new singers of all voice parts and all ages, 12 and older, to join us for the 2008-09 singing season. Boston Harmony and the Montpelier World Music Chorus, both choirs led by the dynamic team of Patty Cuyler and Larry Gordon and both starting on their fourth year, are community choirs open to teens and adults of all singing experience.
Come stretch your musical boundaries and learn to sing an exciting, fulfilling and most likely challenging repertoire, to include dance-songs from South Africa, folk polyphony from Corsica, the Balkans & Caucasus Georgia, shape-note songs, traditional American folk arrangements, and gospel quartet, blues & bluegrass songs. Much of the teaching in these choirs is done by ear—when we read from scores we also teach by rote—so music-reading and prior singing experience, while great assets, are by no means necessary to participate. We don’t require auditions. If you want to sing with us, then WE want YOU.
Both Patty and Larry have infectious, inclusive leading styles that are demanding without being perfectionist. They are the co-directors of the larger organization Village Harmony, which sponsors singing camps and workshops throughout the world in which participants study traditional polyphonic singing styles first-hand Quite a few of the choirs’ singers have participated in one or more of these camps.
The Montpelier World Music Chorus
Montpelier World Music Choir will be happening this fall, even though Larry and Patty will be away on Northern Harmony.
We will have a 10-wk special session with a focus on American music, led by local director and musician Katie Trautz: www.myspace.com/katietrautz.
We will sing shape-note hymns, appalachian close harmony songs, gospel tunes, Franco-American tunes, and contemporary songs written by local composers.
The cost will be $70 for the full 10 weeks, and rehearsals will be at the Christ Church in Montpelier on Wednesday evenings, 7-9pm.
The session begins September 17th, and will end November 19th. We will close with a concert, and will possibly share the stage with Katie's other choir: Summit School Harmony Singing class. For more information on the Summit School of Traditional Music and Culture, please visit:
www.summit-school.org.
When Larry and Patty return, they will join the World Music Choir with music from abroad.
Boston Harmony
Boston Harmony normally rehearses one weekend a month at the Masonic Hall in Concord, MA; sometimes for two days – Saturday 2-8 PM and Sunday 10:30-3:00 – and sometimes just Saturday from 10:30-5:00. We can arrange overnight hosting for people from out of town (we often have participants joining in from New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Maine, and Larry and Patty commute from northern Vermont).
This year Patty and Larry will be on tour with Northern Harmony in October and November, so we have scheduled two incredible guest directors for those months.
- October 18/19 - Special All-Gospel weekend with special guest director, John Harrison,, a wildly popular gospel leader from Plainfield, Vermont.
- November 8 - Balkan vocal technique and songs with special quest director, Sue Robbins, Artistic Director of Libana, a fabulous women's world music ensemble from Massachusetts.
Our other rehearsal weekends are:
- September 6-7
- December 13-14
- January 24-25
- February 21
- March 14
- April 11
The season will culminate with a series of performances in April and May.
- April 25-26 - NEFFA May 10 - Mothers Day in Montpelier, a joint concert with the Montpelier World Music Choir
- May (15)-16-17 - Boston area concerts
Tuition: $225 for the year, which can be paid in installments.
If you think you might be interested in singing with Boston Harmony, save the dates and send us an email: vharmony@sover.net to let us know you plan to come to the first rehearsal weekend. You can also call Liza Carter at (978) 371-7317, or call Larry or Patty at the Village Harmony office at (802) 426-3210, for more information.
Directions to Rehearsal sites
Directions to Christ Church in Montpelier
Directions to Masonic Temple in Concord
From Route 2 Eastbound
Continue until Route 2 takes a 90 degree turn to the left at the bottom of a hill next to a Mobil station.
Go STRAIGHT at this intersection aprox 4 1/2 miles.
At the first and only stop sign (just past the Concord Museum), the road ends at an angle. Turn/bear left and continue into Concord Center - aprox. 1/2 mile.
Monument Square is a small green common with an obolisk in the middle. The Colonial Inn is directly ahead of you. Continue around Monument Square passing the turn off for Lowell Road.
The next building is the Christian Science Church and the Maonic Temple is next to the church.
Parking: On Saturdays you can park behind the Christian Science Church. On Sundays, Christian Scientists use the space and have asked that their parking lot not be used by non-members (even though it will look fairly empty). Either park on the street on in the municipal lots.
If you get lost, try Liza Carter at: 978-371-7317