Cathleen Allison/Nevada Appeal Carson Chamber Singers members, from left, Russ and Mary Law, Elinor Bugli and Joanna Harrison play along with the singers during a rehearsal at the Brewery Arts Center on March 20.
The nine pieces director Judy Monson chose for the Carson Chamber Singers' spring concert Saturday have all had a lasting effect on her.
"I find things that speak to my heart, things that I keep coming back to - that I can't resist," she explained.
The singers, 20 women and 10 men, will present a show called "A World of Beauty, Spirit and Love" at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Brewery Arts Center Performance Hall.
The opening piece will be an African processional called "Jambo Raiki Yangu."
"That means 'Welcome, My Friend,'" explained singer Sally Mills. "There will be five percussion instruments accompanying the piece."
The show features music from a wide range of styles and eras. There will be songs by the whole chorus, some with the women only or men only, two quartets, two duets and a solo by tenor Don Bird.
Mills and Jenice Provost will sing a duet called "Barcarolle" from "The Tales of Hoffman" by Jacques Offenbach.
"Ours is a love song -it's very lilting," Mills said, making floating motions with her hands. "It's quite lovely."
Helen Coston and Jenn Hoffman will sing a challenging piece called "Duet De Torrente in Via Bibet" from "Dixit Dominus" by George Frideric Handel.
"We're working really hard on it," Coston said. "I think it will be glorious when we're finished."
It's a solemn piece with several dissonances, Hoffman said.
"That's when two notes seem to clash, but then it resolves itself again."
At 20, she is the youngest member of the group.
"I like being around people who can tell me about things I'll face in my life -people with experience," she said.
"That's just a nice way to say 'old fogies,'" said Coston with a laugh.
Coston was the youngest member when she joined the group almost 20 years ago. Her father, Paul Brown, also performs with the group. He'll do the solo in "Jambo Raiki Yangu."
The Carson Chamber Singers are sponsored by the Carson City Symphony. The group was formed when symphony director David Bugli decided it would be nice to have a choral accompaniment for a Christmas concert in the mid-1980s. Both the symphony and the singers are funded by memberships, tickets sales and grants, like one from the Nevada Arts Council.
The Carson Chamber Singers' next performance will be April 24 at the community center. Internationally renowned tap dancer Sam Weber will perform.
"His tap dancing will be like a percussion part," said Elinor Bugli. "Because he lives in San Francisco, during the rehearsals, we'll have a percussionist playing his parts on a snare drum."
Tickets for Saturday's concert are $12 general, $10 for seniors, students, BAC members and symphony association members, and free to ages 16 and younger. For details, go to www.ccsymphony.com or call 883-1976.
Contact Karl Horeis at khoreis@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1219.
