As Eastern Canada experiences its first few cold fall days, the members of the ScotianAires are packing for warmer weather. The chorus is heading to Orlando FL to represent Atlantic Canada at Harmony, Incorporated’s International Convention and Contests 2018 (IC&C) from Oct. 31 to Nov. 4. The five-day event includes chorus and quartet competitions, education classes, gala shows and of course, lots of singing, as friends old and new, blend in harmony.

Having qualified for IC&C after winning the Atlantic competition in June, the ScotianAires will compete against women's barbershop choruses from across Canada and the US. Over the year the chorus has worked hard at weekly rehearsals to improve their delivery with additional workshops from internationally recognized barbershop coaches such as Rob Mance, Theresa Weatherbee and Steve Tramack.

Performance chair Jill Reid reflects on the progress the chorus has made over the last season. “With the ultimate goal of delivering a moving performance to our audience, our members have continued to grow their level of individual commitment this past year, allowing themselves to be immersed in the story of the song and opening up personal vulnerabilities to get there. I look forward to sharing the stage with these Wonder Women in Orlando!"

Weekly rehearsals also focus on improving the technical aspects of singing while paying attention to and delivering the musicality of the song arrangement. The ScotianAires are excited to bring all this preparation into one great performance on the contest stage. Director Sue Kember shares the anticipation and enthusiasm of the whole chorus. "The ScotianAires have been working hard to refine their contest songs and bring them to life. While the competition is pretty fierce this year, our goal is to put our best performance on that stage!”

The ScotianAires will also be cheering for their two competing quartets, Atlantic Champions Tonic! and relative newcomer enJOY!, when they take the stage on Thursday, Nov. 1, for the start of the quartet competition.

“Tonic! has worked hard since last IC&C on delivering an authentic performance and connecting with the audience” relates Tonic! bass Adele Merritt. “With advice from some great performance coaches such as Theresa Weatherbee, we focused less on technique and seeking perfection, and instead tried to let the music 'live'.” The quartet was thrilled with their scores in this category at the Atlantic Championships and is hoping to raise their singing and music category scores to match at this year’s IC&C. To help accomplish this, adds Merritt, “We have worked with several wonderful coaches this year, but Steve and Renee Tramack have been a guiding light in our preparation. We are immensely grateful for their friendship and inspired coaching!"

EnJOY! made their debut on the international competition stage last year, finishing impressively as 5th place medalists. Although challenged by the fact that one of their members spends a significant portion of the year away from the east coast, they try to find time to sing as much as possible in rehearsals and performances, and true to their name, truly enjoy their time together. Education was a strong theme in their preparation this year, including working with top notch coaches like Steve Armstrong and Steve Tramack. The quartet hopes to find the medalist circle again at IC&C 2018 while proudly representing their Atlantic area harmony sisters on the contest stage. As tenor Judy Robichaud explains “We feel that enJOY! possesses a combination of unique skills and experience that allow us to bring something special to each and every one of our performances on or off the contest stage; Confidence and proper preparation are key; AND we love what we do!”

If you can’t pop down to Orlando to be in the audience for the competition and gala performances, you can watch the live stream through the online subscription service, FloVoice. (Information and sign up at http://bit.ly/2OyOLwL) You can also follow the progress of the ScotianAires and their quartets on their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/scotianaires.chorus/.