Melodia Monday benefit concert

May 15, 2014

A capella choir, Melodia Monday, will perform a benefit concert on Sunday May 25, 3 p.m. at the Grace Centre in Sydenham. The concert will feature a wide variety of exciting spirituals and wonderful harmonies. Cost is $15 per person. Tickets are available at the Rural VISIONS Centre - 4419 George Street, Sydenham, ON K0H 2T0; 613-376-6477. All net proceeds support Southern Frontenac Community Services’ Enhancement Campaign.

Melodia Monday was formed in September of 2002. The choir originally consisted of 11 singers, and they rehearsed around the kitchen table of a country home north of Gananoque. Early repertoire consisted of madrigals and some sacred music like “O Magnum Mysterium” by Victoria.

Over the years the choir has become larger and performs a wider repertoire. Concerts now feature jazz, spirituals and folk songs in addition to traditional classical choral music. Melodia Monday endeavours to feature Canadian composers and arrangers. One of the tenors in the group, David Adams, has arranged a number of pieces for the choir including the sea chanty “Spanish Ladies” and the folk song “Donkey Riding”. Melodia Monday has also performed several pieces arranged by Mark Sirett, musical director of the Cantabile Choirs of Kingston.

In its early years, Melodia Monday performed without a conductor. The number of singers was small enough that one of the members could guide the choir while singing. As numbers increased, such conducting became impractical, so in 2008 Melodia Monday recruited Carol Ramer, an experienced and talented choral director, to conduct the choir. Under Carol’s leadership membership grew again, with singers joining the choir from Brockville, Maitland and Kingston. The choir now has more than 20 members from as far west as Newburgh and as far east as Maitland.

During Carol’s tenure as conductor, Melodia Monday took part in the Kiwanis Music Festival in Kingston where the choir won the Shelagh Leach prize for SATB choirs. Melodia Monday also performed at the final concert for the Gananoque Concert Association in April of 2009.

In June 2010, Carol retired as conductor of Melodia Monday and one of the founding members of the group, Doug Routledge, took on the role.

In April, 2013, the choir performed the final concert in the Gananoque Concert Association series. The programme for that concert included “Breathe on Us”, a work commissioned by Melodia Monday from Dr. Mark Sirett, musical director of the Cantabile Choirs of Kingston.

Melodia Monday is delighted to have been asked to perform at the Grace Centre in Sydenham in a concert to benefit the Southern Frontenac Community Services. This concert will be held at 3 p.m. on Sunday, May 25. The repertoire for the concert will include a mix of classical pieces, spirituals, jazz and folk songs. The women of Melodia Monday will be featured singing “Garden Song”, a piece with music by Jennifer Bennett and lyrics by Wilma Kenny of Sydenham.