Singing in a semi-professional choir doesn't just mean that I have singing homework every week, it also means that I get to hang out with lots of cool musicians. And on Labor Day weekend, it meant that I had the chance to participate in a flash mob. (Officially, it was called a Random Act of Culture). To the people standing around in the open-air mall in downtown Miami Beach, it looked like a violintist started playing Beethoven's Ode to Joy. A string quartet soon joined in, followed by a small orchestra, and 80 chorus singers (that would be my group). One stanza later, a jazz band and gospel choir joined in, followed by Afro-Cuban drummers and dancers. The Miami Herald wrote up a bit here. I think a bit of information got leaked to the press beforehand - otherwise I don't know how all the cameras knew to be there at precisely 5:30 pm.
I'm only visible for a moment, at 1:16 in the video:
It was great fun to sing for a a surprised, appreciative audience. Most of the time when we sing, we're not supposed to smile or move very much, because classical choral singers are supposed to blend into the background. We got official permission to show that we were having fun during this performance, and I didn't need much urging.
Three choir members and I try to smile while singing the word "Freude". (Thanks to my friend Jan for the picture.)
7 comments:
Very cool!
Wish I could have been there.
That was really cool! How fun to participate in something like that.
How awesome to be part of this! Thanks for sharing!
What a fantastic idea.
On the video first I spotted your hat then you - and you looked like you were enjoying the event.
On the photo - were you standing on a box or are some of your fellow singers also of diminuitive stature?
What a fantastic idea.
On the video first I spotted your hat then you - and you looked like you were enjoying the event.
On the photo - were you standing on a box or are some of your fellow singers also of diminuitive stature?
totally awesome! Love the hat
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