MUSIC Sometimes, church choirs just have to improvise

Choir members face more demands at Christmas and Easter.
SCRIPPS HOWARD
Sometimes it's not easy making the spiritually uplifting music churchgoers expect as part of their worship.
Consider Grace United Methodist Church in Fresno, Calif. Last month, as choir director Phyllis Owens and her group were beginning Christmas preparations, she had a heart attack. Retired music teacher Ralph Schroeder agreed to lead the choir, but only for a month because he was leaving on a cruise.
That leaves the pastor, the Rev. Floyd Quenzer, directing the Grace United Methodist choir during Owens' recovery and during this Christmas season, one of the busiest times of the year for Christian church choirs.
Christmas -- like Easter -- is a challenge because it's a day of special religious significance that demands more than the usual weekend worship music.
Choir directors often line up additional singers or instrumentalists to augment the volunteers who participate year-round in music ministry. Additional services and performances sometimes are added as well, sometimes straining a congregation's available musical resources.
Constant changes
Truth is, choirs go through ups and downs every year as members, choirmasters and clergy come and go, as musical tastes change and as emergencies occur. Prayer, commitment and the common purpose of enhancing worship help choir members bond, whether they're professional musicians, office-machine repairmen, kindergarten teachers or retirees.
People often go to churches where they like the music. And sometimes that brings unanticipated benefits.
Ed and Shannon Olivarez met and fell in love while they were choir members at Holy Family Catholic Church in Visalia, Calif.
"I definitely think God played a part in it," says Shannon Olivarez, a kindergarten teacher. She says she prayed for a husband with the same faith and musical interests.
Ed Olivarez, who repairs copy machines, says, "We are soul mates. God put us together."
The Olivarezes now attend St. Mary's Catholic Church to sing under the direction of their friend Wendy Culbreth, co-minister of music with her husband, Charles.
The Olivarezes had to try out for the schola choir, whose members are required to read music and perform more accomplished liturgical music at the 8:30 a.m. Sunday Mass.
Charles Culbreth tests each choir volunteer for vocal range and tone quality by asking candidates to sing a familiar song. He also plays a short piece on the piano, asking candidates to sing the melody back to him.
"There's always a little anxiety," Ed Olivarez says.
Eclectic tastes
Some choir members prefer to sing just religious music. Not the Olivarezes. Both have strong interests in 1960s folk music -- the likes of Peter, Paul and Mary, The Seekers and the Kingston Trio.
So the Olivarezes decided also to sing in St. Mary's ensemble choir, whose members are known for their folk songs, at the 10 a.m. Sunday Mass. This choir doesn't require people to read music.
The Olivarezes rehearse also in their home, particularly the more difficult parts. When Ed Olivarez is at a rehearsal, which blends the schola and ensemble choirs, he believes he's qualified to help another member whose voice might stray off-key.
"Before coming to the difficult part, I'll turn to them and ask if they have any questions," he says. "You try to make them feel comfortable."
Some churches have choirs that sing so well, parishioners sit back and listen rather than participate, says Olivarez. St. Mary's choirs aren't intended to entertain, he says, but to make parishioners feel they are part of the spiritual experience.
"I've had people tell me they felt something through the singing -- that they understood the meaning of a psalm. And that's what it's all about," says Ed Olivarez.
"If singing brings people closer to God and into a relationship with him, then that's why I sing."