Community chorale brings singing to Brandon

BRANDON

For Andrea LoPresti, the week brings its share of laundry, shopping, cleaning and caring for her 11-year-old son and husband.

But Tuesday nights are hers.

It's when her song book opens and her voice soars, dancing in the upper octaves above the altos, tenors and bass that fill a small church practice room.

Every week, the first soprano joins about two dozen other music aficionados here, in a room on the campus of the First Baptist Church of Brandon. The singers come here for rehearsal as part of the second year of the Brandon Repertoire Chorale.

One of the only adult community chorales in Brandon, the group attracts residents like LoPresti, longtime singers in church choirs and school music programs. It gives them a chance to sing everything from the sacred to the folkloric.

LoPresti treasures the experience so much, that when she turned 51 on a recent rehearsal night, there was no question how she would spend her birthday.

"My husband said 'What do you want to do?' I said, 'I want to go to practice!' " the Riverview woman said.

Director Debbie Woodfin started the chorale to give local residents another musical outlet. A past member of the Master Chorale of Tampa Bay, the principal chorus of the Florida Orchestra, she knows the difficulty of commuting to rehearsals in Tampa.

Also, Woodfin, who retired last year as chorus director at Burns Middle School after 26 years working in Florida schools, said she enjoys leading adults for a change.

"The nice thing about adults, No. 1, is the discipline," she said with a laugh. The second big difference is the level of musical understanding, she added.

"A lot of them had music training. They pick up on it quickly," she said. "I feel I can go so much further."

The ages of chorale members range from 16 to 70-plus.

For computer consultant Ben Cripe, 52, of Valrico, the chorale is a chance for him to meet new people. He traces his singing days back to his high school chorus. He's joined church choirs ever since.

Next to him sits fellow bass Jeff Bogue, 25, of Lithia. Bogue teaches chorus at Newsome High School and commutes to a chorale in Orlando. He jumped at the chance to participate in one closer to home. He gets to relax and take off his teaching hat, too.

"It's nice not to have to worry about anything. You just show up and enjoy it," said Bogue. "If nothing else, it's a rejuvenation."

For Libby Smith, 23, and her mother, Mary Baldwin, 53, it's a chance to bond over their shared love of music — even though Smith, a second soprano, sits across the room from her mom, an alto.

On a recent Tuesday night, Woodfin started rehearsal with a prayer, and then warmed up the singers with some shoulder and throat exercises and scales. She cheerfully greeted a few straggling members as they slipped in, and then launched into My Love is Like a Red, Red Rose.

"Everything is round," she advised the singers on the pronunciation of o's. "The corners of the mouth are in."

Bouncing on her toes, Woodfin gestured and marked time before the group, accompanied by a pianist. At times, she broke the pieces down, tinkering with the pitch, smoothing out enunciation.

Never one to miss a chance to educate, Woodfin quizzed them on the difference between staccato and accent marks.

She led them through a jazzy version of Who'll Be a Witness For My Lord, the Mother Goose Madrigals and a sight reading of a cantata that the chorale is premiering and recording.

"You are all doing really well!" she told the group after the 90-minute rehearsal drew to a close.

At the end of the evening, LoPresti beamed. Her birthday couldn't have ended on a more special note.

Saundra Amrhein can be reached at amrhein@sptimes.com or (813) 661-2441.