Puna Men Sing from the Heart

By Noel Morata

When friends and newcomers first attend a performance by the Puna Men’s Chorus (PMC), they are mesmerized with the surprises in every show. Part cabaret, part theater, all these beautiful voices meld together in a superbly entertaining and inspirational performance. Each show typically brings the audience to their feet, demanding multiple encores.

The Puna Men’s Chorus is an inclusive male chorus, with no barriers to ethnic background, age, economic status, sexual orientation, religious affiliation or even one’s singing ability, making it a real reflection of the entire community. The chorus, along with its director, is actively involved with the Puna community and has been participating in outreach programs to share their music.

The Puna Men’s Chorus is at a crossroads as its leadership transitions from past director and founder Daron Scarborough to Amy Horst Yamasaki, a well-established music teacher, solo performer and teacher of singing and musicianship at the University of Hawai‘i. Amy’s interest in the chorus has developed and grown since viewing one of PMC’s first programs at the Volcano Kilauea Military Camp (KMC) Theater.

“I had the opportunity to hear the group sing at their first event up at KMC’s Christmas concert,” said Yamasaki. “I couldn’t get in, the place was sold out and I had my two children clamoring for my attention. But someone let me peek in the door; and when the guys started singing, ‘In This Very Room,’ it gave me hope. It was a life-saving moment for me. I had known the song only as a Southern Baptist wedding hymn, and the chorus transformed it into a song of hope for the world. I was one of those people—standing at the door, barely able to sneak a peak, not leaving before it was over—and I stayed because the chorus gave me hope. I knew, somehow, there was a life for me beyond what I could then imagine at that moment.”

As new chorus director, Amy acknowledges the power of music to transform when she sees the reactions of the audience. She knows that they have felt the music and that maybe one song has imprinted an inspiring memory.

There are many stories behind each chorus member, which makes the group come alive. There’s more to the group than just singing. Members share a full appreciation of the chorus’ mission to spread joy to their island home through their singing.

Husband and wife team, Tracy and Jim Hedgecock, for example, are both actively involved with the chorus, Tracy as the board secretary and Jim singing second tenor. Both are inspired by the quality of the music, the friendships and the community outreach the chorus performs. Jim, who last year had serious health issues, didn’t consider stopping for a moment, even with a difficult performance season ahead.

“The fact that we had music tracks to work with made it possible for me to still practice and perform with the chorus,” Jim says, “which was something I still wanted to do despite not being able to make the rehearsals with the guys. I really wanted to try out for one of the solo parts, but since I was laid back for some time, I wasn’t able to bring out my best performance. I was happy just to be a part of the ‘ABBA’ performance, which was already a challenging program to begin with.”

Chorus members and their families are supportive of each other, and they have formed into a tight ‘ohana. Both Tracy and Jim find satisfaction in sharing a common interest, enjoying new friendships and being part of such a positive music community.

One of the most devoted and early chorus members is Garrin Fullington, who was actively singing with other choruses including the Hilo Community Chorus, the Chamber Singers and the Kanilehua Chorale. When he heard that a new men’s chorus was getting started in Puna with its charismatic director, Daron Scarborough, he auditioned with fellow singer Joaquin Gamiao. They found the new chorus and director very welcoming and supportive. “Not only was the chorus formed to be inclusive, everyone was welcomed, which was something unique,” says Garrin. “I found that celebrating our diversity really showed that creating beautiful music and harmonizing together is a universal thing that all humans share.”

It’s amazing how quickly newer chorus members grow and synchronize with the group. They start seeing life-changing benefits to performing with PMC in very short timeframes. New baritone singer Jose Basque started singing with the chorus in January and has really found his voice and recaptured his creative side again since retiring, he says. “I was a teacher down in Ka‘ū and between teaching, commuting and also taking care of my sick mother, I found that I didn’t have much time for socializing or looking for a creative outlet to take care of my soul,” says Jose. But after retiring and soon after his mother passed away, a PMC showing at the Palace Theater—and a quick glance at the playbill advertising auditions—brought Jose back quickly into singing again. “I was closed off for so long and now I feel that singing with the chorus has allowed me to be free again and brought the light back into my life,” Jose states positively. “I am thankful for being involved and want the Puna Men’s Chorus to grow and become better known throughout the state.”

Under the direction of Amy Yamasaki, the chorus has plans to take their music program to more places around the island in the near future. The current season focuses on country music. “We have a selection of music that travels the country, using the country genre of music. Some songs may feel like audience sing-along favorites; some songs will be new; and some will be lush choral arrangements of popular solo country tunes,” says Amy.  “We’ll be performing in Puna at Hawaiian Paradise Park, the Palace Theater, the Honoka’a People’s Theater, and maybe at a potential venue in Kailua-Kona in July.”  Along with their summer program, Amy is getting the chorus prepared for a major performance at a gathering of some 130 worldwide choruses performing at an international choral event called GALA Festival 2012. They are planning an ambitious program sung completely in Hawaiian, which is a completely new venture for the group. But with a strong director leading this group to their first off-island performance, they will be heading into uncharted territory with gusto, while sharing their aloha at this GALA event.

Don’t be surprised if by the end of the night at any one of PMC’s performances, they will expect their audiences to participate with a sing-a-long of their favorite country tunes. Maybe even a little two-stepping and yee-hawing to boot!

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What’s Up?

Upcoming performances of the Puna Men’s Chorus: July 16 at Hawaiian Paradise Park Community Center; July 23 at the Palace Theater; and July 30 at the Honoka‘a People’s Theater.

To find out more about the chorus and their upcoming performances, visit their website.