Because: A Spring Concert
Aldersgate United Methodist Church, Sunday, April 30th at 3:00pm.
All the details are also available on Facebook. See you there!
Greetings! Our friends at St. John’s Episcopal Church asked the Mining City Choral Union to share the information below regarding a Composer and Choral Conference being hosted in Melrose/Butte. This is an opportunity for community singers to come together and perform brand new compositions from folks well-known to the Butte and Anaconda music communities.
* Note that this event isn’t affiliated with the Mining City Choral Union, but is an educational opportunity for members of our choir as well as the community.
COMPOSERS, ASPIRING COMPOSERS, SINGERS, AND MUSICIANS!!
All singers and musicians are invited to join us at a special church service on Sunday, September 25 th at St. John's
Episcopal Church in Butte for a wonderful celebration in conjunction with the Composer’s/Choral Conference detailed
below. All who love to sing are welcome! So far, there are participants from Presbyterian churches, Methodist
Churches, and Episcopal Churches from around southwest Montana and Idaho who will be attending the
Composer’s/Choral Conference, and original arrangements by these composers will be presented for the first time at
this joyous service!
All rehearsals for singers will be held at St. John’s Episcopal Church, 15 N. Idaho St., Butte, on the southwest
corner of Broadway and Idaho, due west of the Public Library. Please enter the red church door at the corner.
Friday, September 23 at 2:00pm – organ demonstration by Joel Bejot of Idaho, followed by an optional rehearsal with
Dick Brown and Joel at St. John’s Episcopal Church, Butte. All singers, whether they read music or not, whether they
have sung in choirs or not, are invited to participate. This is an optional rehearsal for singers who would like to get an
early start on this brand new, original music.
Sunday, September 25, St. John’s Episcopal Church – the glorious celebration of original compositions, anthems,
fraction anthems, descants, and harmonies, and the culmination of the Melrose Composer’s/Choral Conference.
9:15am – Rehearsal (required)
10:45am – Service
Things to bring: Joy! Pencils, your parish choir vestments (extras will be available for those who don’t have them)
Thank you! Hope that you can join us!
COMPOSERS, ASPIRING COMPOSERS, SINGERS, AND MUSICIANS are invited to attend the Melrose Composers/Choral
Conference which runs Wednesday, Sept 21 through Sunday, Sept 25. Most sessions will be held at Cabin #10 of the
Sportsman Lodge in Melrose, https://sportsmanlodgemt.com 406-835-2141; info@SportsmanLodgeMT.com There
are cabins and motel units, some with kitchenettes, an RV Park, and camping spaces available. Please make your
reservations ASAP if you would like to stay overnight.
The pandemic had a profound effect on all churches. Many church choirs went from 25-30 members down to 1-2, or
disbanded altogether. Services were cancelled or only available online, and many church members and choir members
have still not returned to in-person attendance. Smaller churches were particularly hard hit. This conference came
about because of discussions by musicians, choirmasters, and others about how to “get things going again” now that
fears of the pandemic have subsided somewhat. Future Composer’s/Choral Conferences are envisioned around the
state to spread the reassurance that “You are not alone; we will all get through this together.”
There will be sessions on choral anthems, choral technique, sequence hymns, grants available for organ repair and
maintenance, acoustics, opportunities for composing, discussions and demonstrations of settings, choral and physical,
including instrumentation in services.
Things to bring if you can: — ’82 Hymnal, BCP, Good Attitude, pencils, staff paper. It is Montana so be ready for any type
of weather. Please be FLEXIBLE to schedule changes.
Administrator: Dick Brown, retired Music Director, St. Peter’s Cathedral, Helena
Organist, Choirmaster, St. Thomas Church, Sun Valley, Idaho: Joel Bejot
Trumpet Soloist, and Band Director, Capitol High School, Helena: Duane Zehr
If you would like to participate in any part of this event, please contact:
Dick Brown, 406-202-8028 bndbrown@gmail.com
The Mining City Choral Union will be holding auditions Tuesday, August 23rd, 7:00pm at Aldersgate United Methodist Church. Anyone who wishes to sing with us is welcome to audition! During the audition, you’ll be required to sing several warm-ups to find your range and to echo pitches played on a piano. We’d also like to know about any past singing experience you may have (be that in the shower, choir, or otherwise). If accepted, our Director will assign you to an appropriate section within the Choral Union.
Mining City Choral Union members pay $35 in dues each season (twice annually). This covers membership dues as well as the purchase of music for the Choral Union. If you can’t cover this fee, scholarships are available for existing and prospective members.
We hope you can join us August 23rd! For prospective members who cannot attend on August 23rd, you may alternatively audition on August 30th following our first regular rehearsal. Come to Aldersgate United Methodist Church at 7:00pm on August 30th and speak with Fred Crase.
A Facebook event for auditions has been created here:
The Mining City Choral Union and the Montana Tech Copper Hill Choir present their spring concert, Is This Our First or Second Nature? at 3:00pm on Sunday, May 1st at Aldersgate United Methodist Church, 1621 Thornton Ave. Both choirs are conducted by Fred Crase and the concert will feature several of Fred’s own musical arrangements. Piano accompaniment will be performed by Janet Shuttlesworth. This is the inaugural Spring Season concert for the Mining City Choral Union, a 501(c)(3) community choir made up of 30 local singers. Tickets cost $10 for Adults, $5 for Students and Seniors at the door.
This concert will also be streamed online if you cannot attend in person! To stream, visit https://youtu.be/kUZnyAXZ0D8.
Find the event on Facebook at https://fb.me/e/qhXTaePkz.
Happy New Year! With a new year comes a new season for the Mining City Choral Union. We’ll be holding auditions Tuesday, January 11th, 7:00pm at Aldersgate United Methodist Church (1621 Thornton Avenue, Butte, MT). Anyone who wishes to sing with us is welcome to audition! During the audition, you’ll be required to sing several warm-ups to find your range and to echo pitches played on a piano. We’d also like to know about any past singing experience you may have (be that in the shower, choir, or otherwise). If accepted, our Director will assign you to an appropriate section within the Choral Union.
Mining City Choral Union members pay $35 in dues each season (twice annually). This covers membership dues as well as the purchase of music for the Choral Union. If you can’t cover this fee, scholarships are available for existing and prospective members.
We hope you can join us!
A Facebook event has been created for these auditions here: https://fb.me/e/1yZKHtEhv.
Sunday, December 5th, 3:00pm
Aldersgate United Methodist Church
1621 Thornton Ave, Butte, MT 59701
Masks required to attend in-person.
To watch from home, visit the Mining City Choral Union on YouTube (https://youtu.be/qmrsj52CTNE).
Adults: $10
Students: $5
Children 5 and under: Free
Watch from home (via YouTube): Free (donations welcome)
Donations can be made to the Mining City Choral Union via our website (https://MiningCityCU.org/donate)
or by texting MCCU to 44321.
The Mining City Choral Union will begin rehearsals tonight, August 23rd, 2021 at 7:00pm. Rehearsals will be held at Aldersgate United Methodist Church. New members will be required to audition. If a new member is accepted, they’ll be placed into the appropriate section following their audition.
Membership dues are being waived for the Fall Season, so normal $25 dues will not be collected.
Rehearsal will take place at:
1621 Thornton Ave, Butte, MT 59701