Greater Falmouth Mostly All-Male Men's Chorus celebrates 25th Anniversary season.

Greater Falmouth Mostly All-Male Men’s Chorus Celebrates 25th Anniversary with Special Concert

The Greater Falmouth Mostly All-Male Men’s Chorus, under the direction of John Dulina, IV, will celebrate its 25th anniversary in June with a concert titled, “Greater Falmouth Mostly All-Male Men’s Chorus: Past, Present, and Future.”

Rehearsals begin Wednesday, March 11, 7 to 9 PM, at the First Congregational Church of Falmouth, 68 Main Street, on the Village Green. No auditions are required, and prospective members may try out the chorus by attending the first few rehearsals.

New and returning members are invited to a potluck social on Sunday, March 8, from 2 to 5 PM. For more information, call Marcy Franklin Lerner, president of the chorus, at 508-564-0054 or email her at info@falmouthmenschorus.org.

The chorus was founded in 1990 by Tom Goux and Tom Aldrich. It was intended to be a men’s chorus, but, when four or five women showed up at the first meeting, willing and able to sing tenor parts, Goux accepted them into the chorus.

Baritone Dick Mongeau, who has been a member of the chorus since that first night, recalls Goux saying, “Now we have to come up with a crazy name for this thing,” and that’s how the GFMAMMC acquired its light-hearted name.

“Our first concert was college glee club-type music,” said Mongeau, “but over the years, we have sung just about every type of music from Big Band to Walt Disney; we’ve had a steel drum band with us, as well as Irish stepdancers, bagpipes, and a string quartet.

“We have a lot of fun. It’s a great time, and we really enjoy singing,” he said.

Al Allenby, also a baritone in the chorus, attended that first concert 25 years ago and decided that he wanted to join. He has been with the chorus 24 years now. “It’s always been a source of pleasure,” he said. “It’s a great bunch of guys—and women.”

Allenby recalled some of the trips that chorus has taken. “We drove down to Washington to sing at President Clinton’s first inauguration. We performed at Mystic Seaport in Connecticut, and we have performed at nursing homes and other local places.”

“One of the highlights was singing with the Schelde River Pilots’ Chorus in Vlissingen, Holland, in 1996” said Mongeau. “The Dutch chorus had come to Boston in 1992 for Sail Boston. They came to Falmouth and we did a dual concert on the lawn of St. Barnabas Church.”

The chorus also sings at Falmouth’s annual Memorial Day and Veterans Day observances and performs two sets of concerts a year, one in the spring and one in the fall.

This spring’s 25th Anniversary concerts take place at the First Congregational Church of Falmouth on Saturday, June 5, at 7:30 PM and Sunday, June 6, at 3 PM. It will feature songs from the chorus’s past, present and future.

“We’ve looked through 24 years of musical selections and picked out some that represent who we’ve been and who we are, selections that are fun to sing and fun to listen to,” said Franklin Lerner.

Among those songs are “Aura Lee,” a classic four-part men’s harmony song, “Sh-Boom (Life Could Be a Dream),” a 1954 doo-wop song by the Crew Cuts, “Java Jive,” which showcases the women in the chorus, and “Under the Boardwalk,” a hit for the Drifters in 1964.

“Tom Goux, one of our founding fathers, will return to conduct some selections, and we will pay tribute to one of our former members, the late Marty Tulloch, with ‘Whale of a Tale,’ a song he really loved,” said Franklin Lerner.

The chorus will also sing “Stars I Shall Find,” with lyrics from a poem by Sara Teasdale, and music by Victor C. Johnson. “It’s a lyrical melody that really stays with you,” said Susan Rosenberg, a tenor in the chorus. “It is music of stillness—reflective and introspective.”

Representing the present are original compositions by local traditional musician Bill Black and chorus member Marvin Karp, as well as current hits, such as music from “Jersey Boys.”

“The future of the chorus will be revealed at the concert,” said Franklin Lerner. “The chorus was founded as a community chorus that sings in the four-part men’s harmony. Recognizing the changes in the make-up of the group, we’ll be unveiling some changes at the concert.”

Under the leadership of artistic director Dulina, the chorus has grown to 44 members. “John has infused the chorus with new energy and really understands the nature of the chorus and how to bring out the best in all our voices,” said Franklin Lerner. “We are looking forward to the next 25 years, continued growth and development.”

The chorus is accompanied by pianist Debbe Carlisle.

Franklin Lerner encourages former members of the chorus to participate in this special concert and are asked to contact her.

For more information, visit www.falmouthmenschorus.org or call Marcy Franklin Lerner, president of the chorus, at 508-564-0054.