The Portland Mormon Choir

When we moved to Oregon almost a year ago, I saw in our church ward bulletin an advertisement for an upcoming concert for the Portland Mormon Choir with Jenny Oaks Baker as a guest performer. I thought about how wonderful it would be to one day be apart of this choir and even considered finding a way to start back up with voice lessons. I did a little research on the choir, but at the time they weren't holding auditions.

A little over a month ago, I was reading yet again in our Ward Bulletin and saw that the PMC was holding auditions in just two days! On a whim I decided to sign up for an audition hoping to make it, but knowing that if I didn't it would be a great learning experience and I could try again after more preparation. (after all, deciding to audition just two days prior to the audition didn't leave me much time to prepare!)

Come to find out, a great friend of mine-Courtney, had signed up to audition as well! It was so great to have a friend on board & following our auditions we were invited to stay and rehearse with the 150 member choir. What a tease! It was the PMC's first rehearsal of the season in preparation for their Easter concert in April, and I have never sung with a choir of such caliber. We were able to focus on the musicality and phrasing of each piece rather than wasting time learning each of our parts. The voices surrounding me were so angelic and blended perfectly. Its been a while since I have heard such beautiful overtones. I had been asked to sing Second Soprano, which I greatly enjoyed. I have always sung First Soprano, so singing the harmony was incredibly fun but a little unfamiliar. Each rehearsal begins and ends with prayer, with a spiritual thought in the middle. The spirit was undeniably strong in the chapel & it was a tremendous spiritual and vocal experience.

Almost a week later I received an email stating that I had been accepted into the Choir and I couldn't help but spread the good news to anyone who would listen. =) Courtney also made it (no surprise there!) and we have attended rehearsals  for the past few weeks. I have loved carpooling with Courtney and it is so great having her to share this experience with. I was given the opportunity to further audition for 1st Soprano but decided to stick with 2nd and benefit from the learning experience of singing a different part. These rehearsals have lifted my spirits and I am grateful for this opportunity to worship through song and share the light of Christ with my community.

Our first concerts are April 8th & 9th at West Lynn High School & April 10th at Willamette University which is one of the best concert venues in the Portland area. Dallyn Bayles is our guest performer and I am excited to see everything continue to come together over the next few weeks.

If any of you are interested in tickets for this fabulous concert let me know!