Once I got the approval to go ahead, I began soliciting members to sing.  To my surprise, it wasn’t a difficult thing to do.  Excited men came to me wanting to be a part of it.  Maybe it was just because it was something new, but, whatever it was, the addition of a new group appealed to many people.  I also decided that we would tie in the first performance of the group with our upcoming coffee house on October 28. I knew if we began and already had a performance to prepare for, we would have a goal and something to work towards right from the beginning.

We began rehearsals on Thursday, September 7^th and had 13 men in sign up!  I had hoped we would get maybe 6-7 but never thought 13 would want to sing. And, on top of that, no one has dropped out! Everyone seems like they are having a great time.  Like all choirs, we have a mix of members with a musical background and some who have never sung in public before.  I have never had the opportunity to direct a men’s choir before, but, I am really enjoying my time so far.  My goal has been to create a fun learning environment where the men can come on a Thursday night and put whatever stress they are dealing with on hold and just enjoy the rehearsal.  I’ve always believed that if someone is giving up time with his or her family to come to a rehearsal I am directing, I know it has to be productive. I want them to leave with a sense of satisfaction and that it was time well spent.  I also want to inject humor and laughter.  I believe when someone is relaxed, they can absorb more instruction and perform better.  I want the men to want to come to the rehearsal and look forward to our time together.

Well, I am very happy with where we are right now and the progress we have made.  There has been a noticeable difference from the first rehearsal to now.  I am seeing the men show enthusiasm and excitement about singing. Singing for the Lord! We even have decided on an identity.  We are now Victory Voices.  A great name suggested by our most senior member, Sam Boddard.

If you cannot attend our coffee house on Saturday, October 28^th, we are also singing the next day in church at 10:30am.  Come out to hear us, you won’t be disappointed.

Here is the address of the church if you are interested in coming to hear Victory Voices.

Bethel Memorial Baptist Church

715 Chestnut Lane

Easton, PA 18045

You can always call me if you have any questions.  I can be reached at 908-619-4502.

We had played in July of 2016 and it was a great experience.  We had hoped to play again this season, but when I called Zach Betkowski, the Promotions and Entertainment Manager for the Iron Pigs, the schedule was already set with performers. So, we were out of luck.  But then, our luck changed.  I got a call from Zach in late August and he informed me that he had a sudden opening for the anthem on 9/1 and asked if we could cover it.  We were only too happy to oblige.  Add in the fact that they would be playing the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Rail Riders, which are the AAA affiliate of the New York Yankees and it had the makings of a great evening.

The Iron Pigs organization is a class act.  They were and have always been very professional and wonderful to work with.  The perk of playing is that they offer us free tickets to the game. You also get a chance to go down the elevator and zig-zag trough the maze of hallways leading you to the area that walks out to the field.  Having always had a love of baseball, this experience does make you feel like a kid again.  Everything is extremely structured and since the game airs on television, strict timing must be adhered to.  We walked out around 6:50pm to wait until our performance time of 7:00pm.  On cue, Lindsey, the on-field assistant, ushered us to our spot behind home plate to wait for the announcer to say his lead-in for us to play.  Standing there waiting, you get a chance to see the stadium from the players point of view. It is really awesome! There were almost 10,000 people in attendance and you certainly feel the pressure to not make any mistakes, especially when you have to play it by memory.   A few minutes later we were given the cue and it was show time. Two microphones in front of us and it was our time to honor America with the National Anthem.  As you can hear in the video, it went really well and they were very impressed by our rendition.  It was rewarding to play and I was filled with a great sense of pride.

After we were finished, Bill and Shannon decided to stay for the game so the three of us had our seats next to each other.  In the past after we played, I had never stayed for the game. So, this was a great way to experience my first game.  The in-game fan experience and in-between inning entertainment is a lot of fun. Regardless of the score of the game, the fan is treated very well and there is no wonder why the Iron Pigs are such a huge draw in the Lehigh Valley.

This was a great experience for me and I can only hope we have a chance to play again in the future.  It is now our intent to reach higher goals and see if we can get an invitation to play the National Anthem for a Philadelphia Phillies or New York Yankees major league game. I guess only time will tell.  Play Ball!!!

For well over 30 years, Ken Brader and his holiday brass have entertained audiences throughout the Lehigh Valley area.  Holiday shoppers at our various performance locations have been treated with a little extra holiday cheer as they make their way through the malls. As the member with the longest tenure in the ensemble, it has been a great pleasure to share this wonderful music with so many.  Due to the many logistical issues that arise when trying to schedule performances, the group only performs during the Christmas Season.  Because of such a limited schedule, it seems like there is always a lot of anticipation to play, but, once it arrives, is over so fast and we are left with anticipating the next year.

Since its inception, the membership of the ensemble has certainly grown.  In fact, over the past several years the range of members has been anywhere from 35-50.  But, with scheduling being a constant issue, it can be difficult to get everyone to play from year to year.  While everyone raves at the glorious sound created by the trumpets, flugel horns, baritone horns, trombones, and tuba, the entire show lasts only about 20 minutes.  It always leaves the audience wanting more.  After this past show schedule in December, another longtime member, Jeff Vacha, suggested to me that we create a professional recording of the group and make a CD.  We have no really good recording except those taken from a mall performance.  But, as you can expect, there is always extraneous talking and noise from the mall which gets captured on the recording.  I brought the idea to Ken and the group and it was met with a great deal of enthusiasm and excitement. We would finally be able to take this great sound into the studio and record a clean wonderful sounding CD of our music.  We settled on Saturday, July 15^th and scheduled the session in the Bethel Memorial Baptist Church in Easton, Pa.  We worked with D Freeman, engineer and owner of Sonlight Productions in Perkasie, Pa. Their website is www.sonlightproductions.net.  D is a consummate professional and was extremely great to work with.  He understood our needs and desires and made sure we were happy.  One of our members, Rachel Ewaniuk, works with D on projects and recordings so it was good to have a member who knows our music to play a key role in the recording.  It needs to be stated that the cost of the recording was generously donated by D and his studio.  We are so very thankful to D and everyone at Sonlight Productions for donating their time and service to our project.  We could not have done this without your generosity.

We were blessed with a great day and everyone was excited to be a part of such a wonderful project.  I believe you can never take life for granted.  The fact that this group has played for so many years and just now we are able to record it really is proof of how Ken and his music creation has stood the test of time.  The initial listen in the headphones really sounded awesome and I cannot wait to share the finished product with you.  The joy and camaraderie with everyone in the room was just such a blessing.  It was also a great day for Ken as he was also able to hear his music be recorded for the world to hear.  Although it took several hours, we are so happy to have a product that will last forever.

The goal of the project is not to sell the CD but to give them away.  We want to be able to share the joyful music with those who have been longtime supporters or those who are unable anymore to come out to hear our group.  Everyone in the ensemble will receive a copy and we will have copies on hand when we perform in December.  Stay tuned for more info as I will announce once the final edits have been made and the copies are ready.  A HUGE thank you to everyone who participated and sacrificed time on their Saturday to be a part of this!

Steel Stacks, Bethelehem, Pa. (www.steelstacks.org)

In the historic South Side of Bethlehem, the Steel Stacks building and Levitt Pavilion have really grown to offer a lot of choices and activities to any person or family.  By clicking EVENTS on the subheading on the home page you can see a wide variety of free and ticketed events.  Events such as Arlo Guthrie, Matthew Morrison and comedians Ben Bailey and Rob Schneider, to name a few, are slated for this summer and fall. But what is so nice about Steel Stacks is the amount of other non-musical entertainment available.  From tours, to family programming, any visitor or even local is bound to find something they will enjoy.

Sands Event Center, Bethlehem, Pa. (www.sandseventcenter.com/events/)

Located within walking distance of the Steel stacks property is the Bethlehem Sands Casino and event center. The event center has planned some eclectic and diverse entertainment this summer and is certainly worth checking out.  Or, you can go to the Molten Lounge in the Sands Casino and check out their weekly slate of free entertainment. (www.pasands.com/nightlife/molten.html)

MusikFest Bethlehem, Pa. (www.musikfest.org/lineup/)

I would be neglecting probably one of the biggest music festivals in the country if I did not mention MusikFest. With over 500 concerts in a 10-day festival, MusikFest offers a wide range of performances both free and ticketed for just about any musical taste. Click on the website and you can clearly see where and when your favorite act will be performing.

www.lehighvalleymarketplace.com/the-sounds-of-summer/

This website is a good general site which offers you a lot of choices and information for each choice and venue.  It is worth taking a look at.

www.mcall.com/entertainment/mc-summer-band-concerts-lehigh-valley-20170506-story.html

If you are into local bands of all types, there are a lot of choices for that too.  Click on the link above and you will find from Easton to Catasauqua, Bethlehem to Macungie, a large list of venues and scheduled performances.  This alone is enough to tire anyone out!

www.discoverlehighvalley.com/events/major-events-festivals/

If fairs and festivals are your thing, discover Lehigh valley has a list of 21 different events, which offer great food, music and activities for family, friends or just yourself.  This is a great resource for activity in the greater Lehigh Valley.

Mt. Airy Casino & Resort  (www.mountairycasino.com/entertainment/)

The Poconos are about 30 miles North of the Lehigh Valley and also feature a wide range of activity both indoors and out for you to take advantage of.  Perhaps my next blog will focus more on the Poconos and the treasure trove of great things the region offers. In the meantime,  Mt. Airy Casino and Resort is a hot spot with a lot of activity and entertainment nightly and including special event concerts.  If you are thinking family or doing something with friends, check out this website: www.poconomountains.com/things-to-do/adventure-bucketlist/summer/  The summer bucket list for the Pocono area gives you a list of cool activities available to you.

There is so much more I could list here. The greater Lehigh Valley and even a little further out, it is just filled with so many options of things to do.  If you ever say, “there is nothing to do tonight”, you probably aren’t looking because with just a little amount of searching, you can really open up a ton of possibilities. Plus, this is without mentioning any of the many shopping areas, food choices and parks.  Phew, I am tired just thinking of all these possibilities!

Best of luck in finding what you are looking for this summer!!

A highly rewarding community initiative

For many college students, the month of May is a great time of year.  The smell of spring is in the air and you can finally begin to enjoy outdoor recreation without the worry of it being too cold.  May also means the end of another year.  Before that happens though, there are plenty of semester end projects, papers and of course, final exams.  When you get to your senior year, you really see the end of the road and look forward to beginning your career and the next chapter of your life.

When the final day is here, you are excited to go home and begin your summer.  However, when packing to go home, you realize that over the course of the year, you have accumulated way more items than you had when you arrived in September.  Regardless if you live close to school or are from out of town, it is not always possible to take everything home that you brought for the fall semester. Those students who have to fly to their college can only really take the items that fit in their suitcase and a carry on.  Because of these issues, college students across the country throw out tons of good items every year.  Very good furniture, household items, appliances, and clothing to name a few end up in dumpsters and off to a landfill.  It is sad to see such a waste across America.

One such institution realized this and knew that something had to be done.  Almost ten years ago, Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa. forged ahead with a plan to organize, through their student affairs department, a campus wide collection of unwanted items.  Anything from clothing, to DVD’s, kitchen items, TV’s, furniture and so much more were on the list.  Once everything was gathered, they held a community wide sale to raise money for needy organizations.  They aptly named it “The Greater South Side Sale”!

I began attending this sale many years ago after seeing a little advertisement for it.   It is held on E. Fourth St. in Bethlehem in a parking lot.  My first time there they had a decent crowd and a 40ft. tent with all the goods underneath.  I was able to get several items all at a fraction of the cost if I had purchased them new.  It was a neat event and I was happy all the money went to a good cause.

Well, this event proved to be a great success for Lehigh and the South Side. Each year it has grown larger and larger.  In fact, the sale, which is held on the first Saturday of June at 10am. is so well attended that lines begin forming at least 2 hours ahead to get in.  This year, I arrived around 8:30am and there were ALREADY at least 100 people in front of me! The tent is now 100ft. long and they still have a large section outside of the tent with items for sale. It is HUGE!  The sale is a great event for the community. Student affairs organized almost 60 volunteers for various jobs including set up, organizing, and most importantly, sorting through the nearly 20 tons of items every year.  There is clearly a lot of behind the scenes work happening to make this gigantic yard sale a great achievement for all.  It was reported that in 2016, the sale profited around $20,000 which helped fund projects for Southside youths.  They included helping with field trips, homework clubs and other youth oriented programs.

Whoever thought of this probably couldn’t have ever imagined just how large it would be.  An idea that initially began to help avoid throwing away usable items has morphed into a community-wide initiative that benefits local kids, as well as offering these items to the community at affordable prices.  A big high five is due to everyone who has a hand in making this the smashing success that it has become for South Bethlehem.  BRAVO to ALL!!

Maria is considered one of the most in demand jazz composers of our time and is regarded as an innovator with her creative harmonic ideas and rhythmic structure unlike what you will ever hear. Her music is sometimes called avant-garde with flares of contemporary and classical styles peppered in.  The mixture of the varied styles is probably what makes her music as unique as it is.

Originally from Minnesota and now based out of New York City, Maria has managed to establish herself as the premier composer in an arena that has predominantly been dominated by men for the past 60 years.  She was named Best Composer, best Arranger and Best Big Band in Down Beat magazine from 2006-2012 and again in 2016.  In 2007 she won the Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition, “Cerulean Skies“, and Best Classical Vocal Solo Winter Morning Walks.  In 2016, her album The Thompson Fields won the Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble.  Needless to say, her accomplishments have not gone unnoticed.  Her music is now considered standard jazz literature for many top notch college jazz programs and she is very much in demand as a clinician and composer for many institutions.

If you talk to many jazz artists, you might hear that Maria is considered the top and most popular arranger on the East Coast and Gordon Goodwin the most sought after composer and arranger on the West Coast  The fact that we had someone of such high stature was a great experience for everyone involved.  Having the chance to hear exactly how a piece is supposed to played from the person who actually wrote it was a surreal experience.  She was very kind to work with yet had a way of demanding the best from everyone not accepting less than your best.

For everyone who was a part of her 3 days in the Lehigh Valley, there was definitely something to learn.  The concert was awesome and a great experience for the students.  Some of them may not yet realize the impact of someone like Maria being a part of their musical development. But, one day they will look back and realize that they had a chance to play under the direction of a legend!