November 2001
Boys choir singers are 'coming up taller'
As a ninth grader in 1995, James Davis
joined a new singing group in Tallahassee.
Today, he's an FSU marketing student, and he'll travel this month with the now internationally known Tallahassee Boys' Choir to entertain and inspire patriotism in Washington, D.C.
"It means quite a lot," Davis said, "not only to spread the good news down here, but wherever we go."
The eight- to 18-year-old boys in the choir have traveled all over the world to compete, entertain and represent Tallahassee and Florida at various events, among them the millennium celebration in Italy sponsored by Pope John Paul.
The boys' choir began when Dianne Harrison Montgomery, who was dean of the FSU School of Social Work (now she's associate vice president of Academic Affairs), and Professor Emeritus Gerald O'Conner (then professor of social work) asked Earle Lee, a social work professor in South Carolina, to bring to FSU his idea of inspiring under-achieving black males through music.
Lee, who has a bachelor's degree in music education from the University of South Carolina and a master's in clinical social work from Florida State, agreed to come to Tallahassee to build a choir of youths, regardless of their ability to sing.
"There are no auditions," Lee said. "It's more than just about singing. Singing is just a tool I use to get them in."
Once a boy joins the choir, he meets three times a week from 2 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. for study hall. He then goes to choir practice until 8:30 p.m.
He also receives counseling and learns about social skills, working relationships, reading skills and ways to resist pressure from peers.
At the onset, success became evident. At the beginning of the school year, fewer boys could boast of success in school than failure. But by the end of the school year, 80 percent to 85 percent were on the academic honor roll.
Their performances achieved incomparable acclaim. Within eight months, the choir took top honors in an international competition.
Today, the choir performs a broad range of songs, from the 29-page Latin rendition of "Gloria" by Randol Alan Bass to show tunes and R&B.
Now the choir is slated to perform at the White House and receive $10,000 for the 2001 Coming Up Taller award from President George W. Bush.
But there are hurdles to leap before the event is certain.
First, the choir needs $45,000 for 105 boys to make the trip.
They're performing for donations and selling T-shirts and CDs.
And they're prepared for the news that they may not perform in front of the President at the White House because of the battle against terrorism.
Nevertheless, the boys will perform, and Davis is excited about a song new to their repertoire: "The Star-Spangled Banner."
"It's a song that makes you feel good because of what the words mean," he said. -Dana Peck
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