Article courtesy of Town Crossings, November 24, 2005
By Gale Batsimm

The teenagers sit in a circle of folding chairs, their eyes darting up from sheet music to their conductor, Robert Barney, as he explains the meaning and dialect of the carol they will sing. The singers at this weekly evening Schola rehearsal range from almost-teens to those in their final year of high school. The Intermediates, choristers roughly 9 to 12 years of age, held their practice in the afternoon and the Youth Ensemble, comprised of children aged 7 and up, has a separate rehearsal. Together, along with the Men’s Choir, they comprise The Treble Chorus of New England, a youth choral program founded in 1975 and housed at Merrimack College.

“It’s given me great opportunities to sing in great places,” said Tessa Sammartino, an eighth grade student at North Andover Middle School. “It lets you do things you wouldn’t normally do.” Sammartino joined 60 of the 85 members of The Treble Chorus to sing at Symphony Hall in Boston on November 4. The group performed with other local youth choirs from the Greater Boston area and the Cross Border Orchestra of Ireland. With performances at Symphony Hall and New York City’s Carnegie Hall in the United States, the Cross Border Orchestra marked its tenth anniversary of bringing Protestant and Catholic youth from the border counties of Ireland together in song.

During the summer, the Treble Chorus also performed internationally. “It’s been a really great experience,” said Nicole Dancel of North Andover. “We got to spend 10 days in England. We sang at Harrod’s during the summer.”

At this point in the year, the Treble Chorus is preparing for its holiday concert at the Rogers Center for the Arts at Merrimack College on Sunday, December 18 at 4 p.m. At their rehearsal, Barney praised the group for their Symphony Hall debut as he readies them for their performance next month. “I love your animation,” he said. “You are alive, that’s what we need to do with this music, bring it to life.”

According to its mission statement, the Treble Chorus of New England strives to “teach children to sing in tune, perform great classic and contemporary music, to build confidence and stage presence, and teach music theory and skills.” The singers learn to read music and sing in various languages.

The current singers audition each May for the season to determine how their voices have developed. The Treble Chorus will audition new choristers in January. “We don’t use the auditions to exclude kids,” explained Alison Novello, business manager for the Treble Chorus and a North Andover resident. “When we have our youngest children come in, we have them audition to see where their voice is.”

She said the singers tend to naturally self-select. The weekly rehearsals, monthly Sunday retreats for the Schola members, and concerts each year require a commitment and passion for music.

“Once kids get into it, they’re usually hooked if it was their interest and not their parents’,” explained Novello, who became involved after her daughter, Sarah, now a sophomore in college, and ninth grade son, Alex, both joined the group. “It’s filled with kids who are musical, who love to sing.”

Six years ago, The Treble Chorus added its Men’s Choir for men and boys with changed or changing voices. Unlike the youth chorus, which features the treble or higher voices of sopranos and altos, the Men’s Choir includes soprano, alto, tenor, and bass.

“This has turned out to be a wonderful opportunity for middle school to high school boys who want to keep singing,” explained Novello. “Prior to having this choir, they had to leave (when their voices changed).” She said many boys continue to sing in their higher voices for a few years after their speaking voices mature. Some of the boys sing in both choruses during their transition. She noted that the Men’s Choir also seeks additional adult men.

As a not-for-profit organization, The Treble Chorus covers its operating expenses through tuition and fund-raisers. During December, and again in February and March, the choristers will sell Florida grapefruits and oranges. The monies they raise help pay outside instrumentalists, rent halls for performances and print more sheet music.

During the summer, the choristers all attend “Summer Workshop,” which serves as the foundation for the following year’s work. “That’s where we do most of our training for the season,” Novello said. “It’s a very intense week. There’s score reading, foreign language diction – our youth choir director does a tremendous amount with reading music.”

An optional part of the summer workshop is the opera workshop. The older teens and others specifically interested in opera learn a one-hour opera. Months later, in the spring, they perform the costumed, staged opera at the Rogers Center. This spring’s show, “Venus and Adonis,” a Baroque Opera by John Blow, will take place on Friday, March 10, at 10:30 a.m. The performance serves as community outreach for The Treble Chorus, and introduces schoolchildren from the area to opera. The director teaches the audience a couple of songs and allows for questions and answers.

“Music engages a different part of the brain than kids use during the school day,” said Novello. “It also promotes good concentration.”

North Andover’s Janet Jeffery, a chorus manager for The Treble Chorus, said that involvement in the group dramatically improves the confidence and abilities of the choristers. Many of the members become involved in their school plays and musicals. She believes her eighth-grade daughter, Sally, enjoys the camaraderie of the group. “She likes being part of a group that accomplishes something,” she said.

For more information about The Treble Chorus, or to purchase tickets for the December concert, visit www.treblechorus.com or call 978-837-5461.

Copyright Town Crossings/Eagle-Tribune Publishing Co. Used with permission.