Events and Activities in August

August has been a really fun month for Blue Sky Harmony! It started off with coaching from Kelly Shepard (pictured in the centre of the front row, below), who helped us polish our songs for upcoming performances. We worked on section unity, adding different vocal colours to our songs, and producing a consistently supported and energised sound. It was a productive night and we look forward to seeing Kelly again in September!

Next, we hosted August A Cappella – a combined choruses workshop – at our rehearsal venue. It was day of singing, learning and connecting with Sweet Adelines Australia members in our local area. We were excited to welcome around 100 singers from South-East Queensland and Northern NSW! Apart from Blue Sky Harmony, the participating chapters were: Redland Rhapsody Chorus, Headliners Chorus, Brisbane City Sounds, Hot Ginger, Coastal Charisma, Vocalescence and Chapter-At-Large.

We worked on a regional mass song together, directed by Edward Sarroff, with coaching from Julie Edwards, Cathy Gordon and Louise Brannon. Each chorus also performed a repertoire song for each other, with some handy feedback from one of the other directors, and we saw the directing debut of Jane White from Hot Ginger!

   
August A Cappella! L-R: Blue Sky Harmony leads, the participating Directors,a nd Blue Sky Harmony basses.

It was a wonderful day together and we look forward to next year's event! If you would like to see the final product, click here for the video of our rendition of Weather With You, words and music by Neil Finn and Tim Finn, arranged by Emily Maree Moriarty.

Shortly after August A Cappella, we were lucky to participate in another event featuring choirs from all over Brisbane – Brisbane Sings 2025. Brisbane Sings has been running for more than 10 years and is a celebration of choirs and community. This year, it was held at the Fortitude Music Hall, and as always, was a truly joyful event. We loved seeing the other ensembles performing – so much high-quality singing and diverse repertoire throughout the event.

  
Brisbane Sings happy snaps! L-R: Michelle F and Nat K; Riley, Rowan and Bev; Naomi and Michelle N

The massed choir performances were epic, with more than 300 singers accompanied by a stage band! We sang Corner of the Sky, Billy Joel Medley (with stacks of choreo), and The Hokey Pokey Five Ways!

We would like to send a huge thanks to Queensland Show Choir for organising Brisbane Sings. They  put in tonnes of time and effort so that we can enjoy ourselves! Everything is exceptionally well organised and we were proud to be part of the program for the second time this year. 

We performed two songs arranged specifically for us by talented Australian arrangers Glenda Lloyd and Emily Moriarty. One of the songs was also co-written by former member Kerry Beaumont! Having the opportunity to sing our style of a cappella in the Fortitude Music Hall as part of a wonderful show is something we'll remember for years to come. We're looking forward to seeing the professional photos soon!