Rock Me Amadeus
The Athens Choral Society Celebrates The 250th Anniversary of Mozart's Birth
originally published November 8, 2006
Out of fashion and debt-ridden, Mozart’s body was wrapped in sack-cloth and pitched into a communal grave in early December, 1791. But down in a basement room of Athens First United Methodist Church, a group of spirited voices is joining this year’s global effort to resurrect the world’s most beloved composer 250 years on from his birth.
An authoritative voice says, “In the third bar in the middle of two, every part is doing something different. A different rhythm, a different pattern.”
A woman in the soprano section looks towards the conductor with a troubled glare and says, “Oh dear.”
But minutes later, the grand sonic mesh of the Athens Choral Society (ACS) has drawn itself tighter and Mozart, his body lost without a headstone, strides forward.
For 35 years, the ACS has built moments like this into lively performances of all kinds, recreating some of the greatest choral works from past masters for local audiences. And it’s all done completely through volunteers, and completely without an audition.
“Anyone can sing," says ACS director Stephen Mitchell. "If you can talk, you can sing. It’s the only non-audition chorus in town, which means you can come in and you can start singing without interviewing with me or without singing for me. Anyone who has an interest in singing can join. That benefits our group, because everyone here has a real vested interest in singing. They’re here because that’s what they love to do.”
Mitchell says those words with a completely confident smile as he sits behind his desk. Since January of 2005, he’s been piloting the ACS as its Choral Director. Since then, the group's number has more than doubled. The ballooning ranks have allowed the ensemble to pull off serious pieces which require more voices, pieces like Haydn’s "Creation."
The ACS does three concerts a year, beginning its calendar year with rehearsals in September. This year’s winter performance, focusing on the Austrian prodigy, is being held a bit earlier than usual.
Mitchell, originally from Pensacola, FL, spent four years after his time at Birmingham Southern College as a choral scholar at England’s Wells Cathedral. He returned to Alabama to be a director of music at his church for another five years before arriving in Athens, where he’s been the Director of Music Ministries at Athens First United Methodist since 2001.
Choral society members help keep the organization running by paying dues of $25 each semester, and Mitchell says that there is now a sponsorship program where people can sponsor the ACS and receive preferred seating at events and other benefits.
“We don’t have any grants at this point, just those donations and the members' dues. But we try and keep the cost of the music somewhere in the $25 [range], so they’re just basically paying for their music.”
Apart from the summer show, which takes place at Seney-Stovall Chapel, all ACS performances are free, including Mozart show at Beech Haven Baptist Church. Included in the pieces the group will be showcasing are the maestro’s “Ave Verum Corpus,” “Laudate Dominum,” and the beautiful "Missa Brevis" in B-flat (K.275). Mozart wrote the "Missa Brevis" just before he set out on an extended job-hunting tour of Europe with his mother. Some scholars think of it as a votive piece, which the religious Mozart composed as a means of improving his destiny. Mozart’s mother, unfortunately, never returned from their journey and the composer did not land the prestigious post he sought on the continent.
When the ACS takes up these pieces, it will be comprised of nearly 90 singers. But Mitchell is sure that the group will eclipse triple digits in the coming year. And considering the newfound popularity surrounding choral music among younger people and students, he may be right.
“I think young people are maybe coming back to some of these roots and traditions," he says. "They remember singing in church choirs or high school choirs growing up and it’s just a place where you can build community. I think it’s the stability that’s drawing them back. Plus, choral singing is so unique. It’s so individual. You’re voice is all you have and you can’t change that. And then to have to make it blend with everyone else is the group is a real challenge. I think people are energized by that.”
Original ACS member Martha Nan Meyer remembers the ensemble from its early days. “We were a new group and it was just a lot of fun," she says. "It was a very good experience, and while [our numbers] have gone up and down during the years, this is one of our high spots. I’ve met so many people that I would have never met and I’ve learned a lot, even at my age. I’ve always called it my therapy. I can be bogged down with stuff, and I come to practice, have fun, and when I go home, I just feel so good. It’s been a most rewarding thing in my life. I love it.”
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