The North Thompson Community Chorus is a combined choir consisting of the Clearwater Adult Community Choir and the Barriere Adult Community Choir. Both these choirs performed their first joint Christmas concert in December 2012 to full local audiences. Both choirs had their own songs, but also shared songs, and some of the songs were shared as well with the Barriere and Clearwater Children’s Choir.
This spring, the combined choir is singing songs that are familiar, fun, peaceful and about peace, and they are learning all the same repertoire. They will be performing these “feel good and toe tapping” songs at our Peace Concert in Clearwater on Mother’s day (at the Clearwater Ski Lodge - tba) and in Barriere on the Friday night, May 10, at the New Life Assembly Pentecostal Church at 7 p.m. They will also be performing in Kamloops the weekend after on Sunday, May 19, at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church at 3:30 p.m. The group hopes to have a guest choir joining them, either Kamloops Men’s Gospel Chorus or the Vivace Chorale with a guest violinist.
The choir will also be offering a “smattering” of their repertoire at the Clearwater Arts Festival being held in the Clearwater Secondary School on April 21, and also at the North Thompson Arts Festival in conjunction with the Celebration of Rural Living Expo and Trade Show, at the fairgrounds in Barriere on April 28 at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
Other instruments in the performance will be mandolin and guitar (Bill Fowler), cello (Petrina Crane), organ (Bonnie Grusing), djembes (Sharon Neufeld and Sandi Wilcox), violin (Lorne Wright), plus other various percussion instruments.
The children’s choir has a membership of 24 young singers from ages 7 to 14, and are hoping to sing again for this coming year’s Christmas concert. The combined adult choir has a current membership of 49 singers, and 30 of them will be singing in the Peace Concert in May.
They have a full program of 16 songs, including the men singing accapella, with guest soloist Jordene Conroy, who placed first in one of four categories in early March at the Kamloops Music Festival.
The choirs are under the directorship of Leah Jones, a vocal teacher and choir director who resides in Blackpool. Jones has been teaching, playing, performing and directing for eight years, starting her career in Nelson, expanding in Creston and Idaho, a stint in Bella Coola (where she will be running a choir workshop in June this year) and enthusiastically shares her skills and joy of music with the people of Barriere and Clearwater and their surrounding communities.
Everyone is welcome to join these community choirs, and Jones notes that no experience is necessary. She offers “teaching choirs”, and new members learn as they go. For more information contact Leah Jones at 250-957-8440.