Food, fun, friendship ✨
Social night left us asking, why don’t we do more social nights!? It felt pretty magical to have a relaxing night full of stories, watermelon mojitos (thanks, Emm!), and lots of laughter. When you join the VC, you join a family 💗
Here’s a great reminder of the strong bond created through Sweet Adelines of all shapes, sizes, ages, and more: How We Sang Today! If you look closely, can you find us??
You heard that right!
The girls are back, back in town! And performing for a live audience!
Recently, we had a spontaneous opportunity to sing for our very first audience since Christmas 2019! This wonderful group of women welcomed us with warm smiles, kind hearts, even applause and cheers! It was a mutually indescribable feeling for our whole group.
Last week, we had our first official performance since Covid!!! Excited is an understatement 😃 Though we may have been small, we were mighty rich in sound 🎶
Sending a huge thank you to our friends at the Bugbee Center for being such a patient, encouraging audience. We hope to be back soon! 💕
A cordial invitation dropped into our inbox recently….
Who could it be from!?
Our friends at Champlain Valley Chorus! What a great group of gals! But what could they possibly be inviting us to during a pandemic……?
“You are cordially invited to the CVC Virtual Happy Hour on Wednesday, March 17 with Guest Instructor Debra Lynn!”
We are thrilled for this opportunity to visit with fellow Region 1 friends while learning from THE Debra Lynn! Read on for more information about Debra Lynn. Stay tuned to hear more about our happy hour fun this week!
“Hi there!
I’m Debra Lynn!
My global vision is one of healing and transformation, helping others access their voice and effectively bring their own heart’s work to the world. My mission is to share both my professional skills as an accomplished professional Bel Canto performer with my strong writing ability to assist clients in achieving their personal objectives with more ease and effectiveness, lifting them to their highest potential.”
To learn more, find Debra Lynn on her website!
Ladies and gentlemen, hold your hats….we had a date with the queens!
No, no, no….not that queen. Though we do love her bling!
Yup! Those queens!
If you don’t know these wonderful ladies, meet 2018 Sweet Adelines International Quartet Champions: Lustre Quartet!
Meeting through the Harbor City Music Company Show Chorus in Region 19, Lustre was formed in 2005. Since then, they have gone on to receive many Regional and International awards and recognitions. Kate (tenor), Lori (lead), Lori (baritone), and Jenny (bass) are true Queens of Harmony, proudly representing both Sweet Adelines International and women’s barbershop.
We had the immense pleasure of sitting in on a Zoom workshop with Lustre during Region 1’s A Pile of Craft Week! We got an in depth, behind the scenes look at how an award winning quartet learns new music. To see their impressive markings on the music was a gift in and of itself – WOW! Their talent was clear during the course of the workshop, as well as their passion for music and barbershop.
We worked on the new song “It’s the Music That Brings Us Together”, written by Clay Hine at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic last year. In his words: ““It’s the Music That Brings Us Together” is something we’ve all probably thought about during the last few weeks of craziness. With that, I had an idea for an original song that I thought might capture the sentiments of all barbershoppers from all walks of life. Whatever country you call home, whatever organization you’re a member of, and whatever group of folks you like to sing tags with – we all love barbershop, and right now, we all love and miss the same things. Please enjoy this song, share it with friends, try it on for size, and hopefully, sing it one day soon with the people who “fill your heart with song”.” (http://www.clayhine.com/)
This simple, but powerful message says it all: “It’s the music that brings us together, but it’s the friendships that make us stay”. Sending a huge thank you to the Region 1 Management Team and Karen Sweeters for continuing to bring us such amazing content throughout this pandemic. Sweet Adelines Strong!
Now, for your listening pleasure…..Lustre Quartet!
Who’s ready for Spring?? Are you starting to think about your gardens? Let us help!
Drumroll please…..now introducing our 2021 Fundraiser: High Mowing Organic Seeds!
We are thrilled to have partnered with Vermont-based High Mowing Organic Seeds to offer you high quality, all organic vegetable, fruit, herb, and flower seeds! Interested in more information? Hop on over to our High Mowing Organic Seeds Fundraiser page to order yours today! Hurry – orders close on February 20, 2021. Ready, set…..grow!
We are thrilled to host Wendy Pachter this week for all things rhythmic!
Wendy is currently the director of Boston Skyline Chorus. She found Sweet Adelines Int. in 2003 and has never looked back! Recently during Region 1 Geek Week, Wendy led a class all about rhythm. This toe-tapping class introduced approaches to recognize note values, rhythm patterns, and how to internalize “pulse” in music to promote free singing. Our rehearsal will give another brief overview of the importance of rhythm while making our music!
Contact us for the Zoom link to join us Wednesday, January 27 at 6:30pm!
It’s time to sing in the new year!
Come share your voice on our virtual risers on Wednesday, January 20 at 6:30pm! We are actively seeking new voices and smiling faces to join us. Come be coached, learn about the Barbershop style, and enjoy lots of laughs! We currently rehearse weekly via Zoom with lots of creativity, but are bursting with songs at the hope of singing together in person in the new year! Whether you’ve been singing for years or just think it might be fun, we’ve got room for you!
Register for your space HERE 
Then tell us you’re coming by RSVPing to our Facebook event HERE!
The Valley Chords is a diverse group of women from all walks of life who get together for their mutual love of music, learning, and fun. We welcome any woman who likes any of these things to join us! 
The Valley Chords, a chapter of Sweet Adelines International, is a small and enthusiastic women’s four part a cappella chorus singing in the barbershop style. We are searching for a dynamic director to support us at weekly rehearsals to improve our singing and performance skills and prepare us for local performance and regional competition. We rehearse weekly on Wednesday nights from 6:15-8:30 pm in White River Junction, VT.
Duties would include helping the music team with music selection and interpretation, educating members in vocal production and group performance and helping to build membership. Experience with barbershop singing and directing would be preferred, but a director with a willingness to learn will find ample educational opportunities through Sweet Adelines International.
Send Resume and letter of interest to ValleyChords@Yahoo.com
Or call Brenda Gallup (603) 298-8629 for more information
A few of us headed down to the Boston area for our annual winter retreat. It was a blast. It’s so great to hang out together without our houses, jobs, and families for a time and just sing. It’s an educational weekend but always lots of laughs and greeting friends. The directors often have classes together. What do you suppose this one was all about?
We sang for the Dartmouth Mens Hockey game. Unfortunately we did not get a picture of ourselves all crammed in around the microphone. Those of us hockey fans stayed to enjoy the game and had a good dose of pushing and shoving as well as some excellent hockey skills.
Valley Chords Ensemble 