Ambassadors bring magic touch to holidays
By John Sonderegger
Of the Post-Dispatch
12/15/2004

It's that time of the year again, and the Ambassadors of Harmony presented their annual Holidays In Gold performance last weekend at the new Touhill Performing Arts Center on the campus of the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

This was a double-treat for Charleytown, as it was the first time I had attended an event at the Touhill, and I was impressed. Named for former Chancellor Blanche M. Touhill, this new theater reminds me of a Broadway theater.

Really.

It has three tiers, yet it is still an intimate setting where performers and audience can interact. Touhill has two performance centers, a 300-seat theater and a 1,625-seat opera house.

If you're looking for a way to warm a cold winter's night, I'd recommend attending one of the performances after the New Year. The American classic "Porgy and Bess" is scheduled at 8 p.m. Jan. 28; "Over the Rainbow: Celebrating a Century of Harold Arlen" will be presented at 7 p.m. on Jan. 30. "Grease" is scheduled for performances at 8 p.m. on Feb. 4 and 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Feb. 5. "The Barber of Seville" is coming at 8 p.m. on Feb. 18, followed by "Bring in da Noise, Bring in da Funk" at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Feb. 19.

More performances are scheduled through May 13. Call 314-516-4949 for a complete schedule and ticket information or visit www.touhill.org.

The Ambassadors of Harmony filled the main stage Saturday night, and they magically performed such holiday classics as the "Christmas Song," a "Carol of the Bells," the "Twelve Days of Christmas," "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear," the "Little Drummer Boy," "Do You Hear What I Hear," and "Silent Night."

The Ambassadors are an a cappella barbershop chorus based in St. Charles. The chorus won first place in the international competition held in Louisville, Ky., in July. They are a performance chorus of about 160 men ranging in age from 15 to 85, and they have won district competition every year for the last 11 years. Originally named the Daniel Boone Chorus, the group was formed in 1963 by 26 men. It became affiliated with the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America. As the group grew in numbers, it was renamed the Ambassadors of Harmony in 1990.

The music director is Jim Henry, former head of choral studies at Lindenwood University, a post he now holds with UMSL. He sings bass for the Gas House Gang, a quartet that performs on its own and with the Ambassadors.

David Wright, professor and chair of the mathematics department at Washington University, is a musical adviser to the group and associate musical director. Kevin Keller, a manager with the Anheuser-Busch Packaging Group, is assistant musical director of the Ambassadors. Also performing on Saturday night were several quartets, including Vocal Spectrum, this year's international collegiate champs from Lindenwood. Quartet members are Tim Waurick (tenor), Eric Dalbey (lead), Jonny Moroni (baritone) and Chris Hallam (bass). They performed a moving rendition of "Bring Him Home" from "Les Miserables," with Dalbey singing the lead.

The Gas House Gang also performed in splendid fashion, singing "O Holy Night" and "Go Tell It On The Mountain." Kipp Buckner (tenor) started singing barbershop at the age of 14. He runs a computer business out of his home in St. Peters. Rich Knight (lead singer) has taught mechanical and architectural drafting at the high school level since 1974. He lives in Lake Saint Louis. Jim Henry, of St. Charles, sings bass, and Michael Slamka joined the group to sing baritone. The quartet lost Rob Henry, Jim's brother, on Sept. 4, 2003, when he died from cancer. He lived in St. Peters and was the group's baritone for years.

Other quartets performing Saturday night were "Cadence," the "12th Street Rag" and the humorous "Expanded Sound." The featured soloist for "The Great Amen," was St. Louis native Jermaine Smith, a baritone who majored in music at UMSL who has performed professionally since 1993 as an opera singer. His performance was spellbinding.