Barbara Wessel – Foulkeways Resident
Seven years ago, Barbara Wessel moved to Foulkeways at Gwynedd Continuing Care Retirement Community in Gwynedd, PA. Within six months of her move-in date, Barbara was approached by the Residents Association to help develop a choral group. Word of her 35 years of experience in the New York City School System teaching violin, viola, cello and bass, and her 25 years experience with the prestigious Manhattan School of Music where she taught violin and viola, spread like wildfire. For years no singing group existed at Foulkeways, short of twelve brave souls singing four-part harmony, for their mutual pleasure on an irregular basis. In a retirement community where an appreciation for the Performing Arts is ‘a way of life’ there was a void that needed to be filled. Barbara was approached and accepted the challenge of creating a choral group where none had existed before. Accomplished and energetic, Barbara made several decisions; there would be no auditions and the repertoire would be mixed. There would also be ‘teaching’ involved at every rehearsal. Sensitive to the needs of her participants, the energetic and enthusiastic Barbara began the task of creating a musical group combining the talents of both novice singers and experienced voices. Today, after six years of weekly rehearsals, the Foulkeways Singers have grown to 45 members who give four concerts each year. Many of the members do not read music, some have never performed in front of an audience and a few are accomplished musicians, but all come together to blend their voices and enthusiasm to create an experience that has been described by some members as, “the best part of their week.” “I teach rhythm. I teach how to read music,” states Barbara. “We talk about tempo and what time signatures mean; we talk about all those little accent marks in our sheet music and what they are telling us to do. We physically exercise before we sing; we warm up our voices and our bodies. We clap and we move and we FEEL! We sing in groups and we listen to the voices around us. Oh, we just have a marvelous time. “I am so impressed with how involved each member of the group has become. We have some very experienced musicians, soloists and conductors in their own right, yet each member is helpful to the others, regardless of their level of expertise. In the Quaker/Foulkeways tradition, we are kind to one another. You know, at our age some of us need to sit, rather than stand, when we rehearse, and so we sit. We accommodate the least musically knowledgeable member, and no one is ever denied entrance to our group. It has been a wonderful experience for me. And we must keep it going.” Recently non-resident, Mark Daugherty, an accomplished professional who worked with the Orpheus Club for many years, become the choral group’s regular accompanist, following the retirement of long time resident-accompanist, Dorothy Heller. His efforts have added a new level of excitement to weekly rehearsals, and the sounds coming from the Foulkeways auditorium every Thursday afternoon at 4 p.m. are a treat to be heard. Barbara is hoping that Foulkeways staff members will think about joining the Foulkeways Singers, as well, and that her choral group will grow even larger in the next few years.
Foulkeways Singers Director,
Barbara Wessel
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