Charles City Singers to present ‘Birds, Beasts and Bugs’ on Sunday

By James Grob, jgrob@charlescitypress.com

After a couple of years off because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Charles City Singers and director Scott Blakenbaker are back to business as usual.

“There are some people who understandably aren’t ready yet, but we’ve been able to resume and start making music again,” Blakenbaker said.

He said about three-fourths of the Singers returned this season — the 47th for the group — and they will follow up last December’s concert with “Birds, Beasts and Bugs,” a choral concert celebrating creatures, on Sunday starting at 7 p.m.

The concert will be at St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church. Tickets are $10, free for students in grades K-12. Tickets are available at First Citizens, First Security, the Charles City Arts Center or from any Charles City Singer.

The theme of Sunday’s live performance was chosen as a nod to Earth Day, which is Friday.

“I thought it would be fun to do something with an Earth Day theme,” Blakenbaker said. “I found a few pieces that revolved around animals and birds and things.”

The Singers will present an eclectic variety of songs, including a motet from the late 1500s that explores the animals present at the birth of Christ, a song from an Italian opera and a medieval chant.

“We also have some goofier things — some folk song arrangements, some songs designed for kids,” Blakenbaker said. “We have a bunch of different styles.”

One song examines the history of music to the tune of “Mary Had A Little Lamb.”

Blakenbaker, who started directing the Singers in 2016, said the concert will be about an hour long and will include an audience singalong.

“We also have four high school students singing with us this season,” he said. “They’ve been a fun addition. It’s good to have a little crossover between us and the high school music department.”

Blankenbaker lives in Charles City and works in Austin as a music instructor at Riverland Community College, where he is head of the music department and teaches performing groups, voice lessons and music theory.

The community vocal music group typically performs two shows each year, one before Christmas and one in the spring. The group took a break during the pandemic, but returned last fall and in December presented the first concert since 2019, with a live performance entitled “Strife, Hope, Light, Life.”