The Pitch Pipe - October 2008 - (Page 18) offering an adult spin on a song so often associated with adolescents. And yes, all the details were there. The sound was full, phrases were held and lifted, movements were choreographed with purpose and delivered with intent. Every little thing was present, and none of it –not one bit– showed. “Big things don’t happen because you focus on them,” Mo said. “They happen because you do all the small things with great love, and then the big things take care of themselves.” For Division AA champions Metro Nashville and Master Director Kim Wonders, it’s always been about extraordinary attention to the little stuff. Metro Nashville has become something of a fixture on the IES stage, performing its Raggedy Ann, baseball, mannequin and now spelling bee packages to enthusiastic audiences summer after summer. The chorus has grown from a little chapter with “look at that!” performances to a formidable competitor with Harmony Classic championships in the small and midsize categories. “Winning in 2006 validated that we were doing the right things,” said Kim. Long viewed as a chorus with sublime performing skills, Metro Nashville has raised its singing to match its visuals. “Vocal skills are important to the chorus,” Kim said. “Now they, the singers, don’t want to settle for anything less. We are on the same page. We insist upon it.” The results have been spectacular. In 2009, Metro Nashville will compete as a wild card at its first international contest, and right there in its hometown. “We’re thrilled to be a wild card for Nashville,” Kim said. “We said we wanted to come back to IES as a midsize chorus and we set a goal to get a wild card for international.” So far, so good. “The success we’ve had in regional contest the last couple of years, it’s been a process,” Kim said. “We want to enjoy the success, but we realize we have to keep working. But it’s good work. It’s filled with love.” So, there it is again, that filament weaving through every song and every rehearsal. Look around you now at your directors and coaches, at your team leaders and choreographers. Look at your membership chairs and the ladies who work so hard to ensure your financial stability. Watch them lug those big bags of papers out to the car after a full night on the risers. See them pull out calendars and make dates for yet another meeting. Listen in the dark for the arranger plunking notes, hearing music in her mind that has yet to be written. These are the little things, done with great love, that make this great thing possible. Something small awaits you. Something great is in your hands. 18 October 2008
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