Much about Athens—and life in general—looked very different 50 years ago. Clarke Central High School, formed from the merger of Burney-Harris High School and Athens High, had just opened its doors after the desegregation of Clarke County schools. Apollo 14 orbited the moon carrying loblolly pine seeds, one of which would be planted in downtown Athens and still stands tall today as the “Moon Tree.”
Among these events bringing humanity together physically and symbolically were five Athenians, most of whom were university professors connected to the UGA School of Music, who saw the need for a community chorus. After putting up some posters and having a surprising crowd of 75 show up for rehearsal, the Athens Choral Society performed its first concert at Mell Auditorium, in the aforementioned Athens High, on May 18, 1971.
How has this group withstood the test of time? According to Mary Hutcherson, one of two remaining charter members, it is simply a “love to sing.” The society has maintained its original vision as a non-audition, community chorus open to everyone, boasting a unique membership spanning from seniors in high school to those in their early 90s.
Director Stephen Mitchell agrees that the key to their success is “everyone there just loves to sing. When you’re in a singing community, you almost become like family. We’ve had so many best friendships develop from the choir, we even have a couple that met and married because of choral society. So, I think it’s the relationships they build, and the fact that the common goal is they’re there because they love to sing.”
The Athens Choral Society typically has three concerts a year—a fall concert, a Christmas concert and a spring concert—held in recent years at Hodgson Hall on the University of Georgia campus. More classical in nature and free to the public, these performances are usually accompanied by a full orchestra of hired UGA students. Then, there is a summer show featuring lighter, Broadway-type music that serves as a fundraiser to support the free seasonal concerts. Beginning as a penniless group of volunteers, the society is now able to afford to pay its director and accompanist, although at a reduced rate well below market value.
“We have been blessed with some wonderful accompanists. They’re so important to our group. They are the foundation walls, the director is the building on top,” says Hutcherson.
In recent years, the group has expanded their involvement with the community and created a more diverse image of the Athens Choral Society. They have partnered with Dancefx dancers, the UGA Opera Theatre singers and local bluegrass bands.
“Even though we give back to the community through music, one of the really important things for us is to give back through our summer show. In addition to charging money for a ticket, we also do a collection for an Athens-based non-profit each summer,” says Mitchell. “We have collected just over $38,000 for all those organizations since 2008. We try to keep them all in Athens so the money stays in Athens. So, we’re really proud of that.”
Unfortunately, COVID has had a profound impact on the group, including delaying their 50th anniversary plans. Unable to celebrate this past May, the society has big plans for an official anniversary concert in May of 2022. For the first time in its history, according to Hutcherson, the society had to miss performances and did not meet for a full year, from March 2020 to April 2021. However, the society received an ACAC Arts in the Community Resilience grant, which allowed Mitchell to commission a piece of music for the anniversary called “If Music Be the Food of Love,” composed by Henry Hinnant. Set from text by William Shakespeare, the piece will be performed live at the May 2022 concert. “I’m really proud of what we did with the 50th anniversary commission. It may not be sung 200 years from now, but I think it’s a very good piece,” says Hutcherson.
As COVID numbers began to go down in the spring and a majority of the society members were eligible for early vaccinations, the group came back together to rehearse outdoors. “I thought we needed to be together. So our first rehearsal in the middle of April 2021, we had over 60 people show up, which just said that they really wanted to sing,” says Mitchell. “Masks make it hard to sing. Then, it’s just really hard to blend the sound and make it real unified when you’re in a mask and you’re outside without any acoustics. So, we were basically singing to sing and be together more than we were for the final product.”
This gave them the opportunity to rehearse “If Music Be the Food of Love” and record a video of their performance while waiting to return to a live audience. Thankfully, the Athens Choral Society was able to put together an outdoor summer show for a boost of community morale.
Postponing rehearsals once again for the month of September, to wait out the COVID surge, the Athens Choral Society will soon begin preparing for a “kick-off” anniversary show on Dec. 7 at Hodgson Hall. If rehearsals continue to be pushed back due to safety, then Mitchell will assess having an abbreviated concert elsewhere. For more information and updates on upcoming performances, visit athenschoralsociety.com.
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