This past week we celebrated our August birthday gals, worked hard on the songs for our next performance, and even made time for a little ukulele strumming. It was great seeing folks back from their summer holidays, as well as a guest, Sam, whose theatre and voice background showed as she leapt into our lead section with aplomb. Welcome, Sam, and welcome back members who have been away!
We’ve been working hard learning new music since June, and now it’s time for Na Leo Lani and our Amazing Summer Program singers to show what we can do. We hope you can join us!
When: Saturday, July 20, 2 p.m.
Where: University Avenue Baptist Church, 2305 University Avenue, Honolulu, HI 96822 (Right next to Mid-Pac school in Mānoa)
Cost: Free! (donations to help support the chorus gladly accepted).
Our performance will celebrate a cappella four part barbershop harmony, island style!
What a tremendous experience it was to return to the Region 12 Convention in Sparks, Nevada, after seven long years! Adjusting to the high elevation and chilly temperatures wasn’t easy, but we were bowled over by the beauty of the snow-capped Sierra Nevada mountains, the cameraderie and supportiveness of our sister choruses, and the sheer joy of singing with so many Sweet Adelines in one place.
As you can tell from the photos (below), we gave it our all and had a blast singing with and watching the other contestants, as well.
Congratulations to all of this year’s contest performers, including the winning quartet, Equilibrium, from Emerald Valley Chorus in Springfield, Oregon!
Log on to the SAI Region 12 website HERE to watch all of the performances via video on demand from now through May 12.
Na Leo Lani had a special treat this weekend courtesy of Sweet Adelines International: a free video coaching session with Master Director Lea Baker of Endeavor Harmony (Sydney, Australia).
Setting up a two-way call with sufficient audio and video across a 20-hour time difference was beyond our chorus’s skill set, even with post-pandemic fluency in platforms like Zoom and Google Meets. Enter Jeff LeFebvre of Sounds of Aloha chorus, who generously volunteered his video-connectivity know-how and supplied his equipment, to boot. Jeff stayed with us the whole afternoon to fix any glitches that arose. We could not have done it without him. Thank you!!! 🙏🏽 🙏🏽🙏🏽
A huge mahalo as well to NLL member Suzanne, who provided the perfect space for our coaching session with a huge screen, steady wifi, tiered seating, and even fresh-popped popcorn for a post-coaching snack!
Thanks most of all to our director, Chris, for tenaciously following through on this coaching opportunity, to SAI’s Education Department for underwriting it, and to Lea Baker for her amazing ear and helpful insights. Lea put us all through our paces, even the baris and tenors, who usually fly under the radar as long as we warble our “doo doo dooooos” at the right time. 😉 We learned a ton in two hours and had fun doing it.
Another fun night of rehearsal with ensemble -style sectionals and a debut of a new tune by Pure Nerves quartet. The theme was “Goth Night,” which made for a lot of folks in black and some heavy eyeliner. 😉
Enjoy the video snippets and pic below.
Tonight’s rehearsal was extra special thanks to the presence of visitors Sandy and Ruthanne from Heart of Michigan Chorus, SAI Region 2. They took time out of their vacation to join us for a full night of song — and they enriched our bari and tenor sections in the process!
Also returning were old hands, SWUFTH participants, and repeat visitors Yoko, Lissi, Allison, and Pamela. Thank you for joining us, ladies! Can’t wait to see you next week.
Na Leo Lani proudly celebrates our Director, Christine Wee, for her selection for a 2022 Sweet Adelines International Small and Midsize Chorus Director Scholarship. The award helped underwrite her participation this past July in the International Education Symposium in San Antonio, Texas.
Clap along with us as you watch this short video produced by SAI, in which Chris expresses her appreciation for the award.
Director’s Scholarship Impact Story featuring Christine Wee
Na Leo Lani Chorus 