Arts are accessible on campus and around the community
Alan Boyd joined Choral Union in 1980 because of his love for singing.
“I’ve done piles of singing in my life,” Boyd, the retired director of Ohio University’s International Student and Faculty Services, said. “I started when I was about 3 years old. My aunt used to give me a nickel to sing.”
Those in the Athens area have multiple opportunities to sing, whether that may be a church choir or with a student based group.
Boyd joined Choral Union a year after coming to Athens in 1979 and said finding a place to sing in Athens wasn’t difficult. Boyd is also a part of the First Presbyterian Church choir and a small choir called SATB — Soprano, Alto, Tenor and Bass — which is open to anyone who enjoys singing.
Rev. Rob Martin, an Athens resident and pastor at First Presbyterian Church, joined the group last year and said he already loves it.
“I think what drew me was the ability to sing with a large choir and do these kind of pieces,” Martin said. “It’s a unique group in that sense that you get a hundred singers.”
The group, Martin said, is fun, interesting and challenging, but he also appreciates how Paul Mayhew, the conductor, makes him feel welcome even though he’s not an Ohio University student or faculty.
Choral Union has a total of 130 members, Mayhew said, and added that 58 are local residents.
Mayhew, an assistant professor of music education, asks the group members to wear a nametag every week — even those who have been singing in the group for years. Almost every week, he said, he asks the members to shake hands, learn names and talk to new people.
Mayhew said he sees a few of the married couples in Choral Union interacting with the students every week.
“It’s like having an Athens set of parents or an Athens set of grandparents depending on who they are, or at least a community members who remember your name, asks how you are doing in school and is watching out for you,” Mayhew said.
Campus Orchestra and Symphony Orchestra are string ensembles in the School of Music that allow non-students to join. Members are placed into the group based on auditions and availability, Steven Huang, director of both groups, said.
“In a town like Athens, because it is a smaller town, I think it’s great we have the ability to have groups that accommodate everybody,” he said. “Not only is it good for the music making, it’s a good way for our students and the community members to make a connection.”
People don’t need to be on campus to participate in the arts. ARTS/West, a community arts facility located on West State Street, considers itself a “community gateway to the arts.”
ARTS/West is there to help anyone in the surrounding area with any art endeavors, Chelsea Peterson Morahan, the programs specialist, said. This includes everything from dance to music to visual arts, she added.
“If someone can think of it and it sounds artsy, we’re here to help,” she said.
Front and Center is a monthly event hosted by ARTS/West that targets teaching children about the arts, Trisha Lachman, the creator and organizer of the event, said.
“It’s an event that was designed to encourage children to have a wider musical awareness and experience, and to feature local adult performers who would be willing to come and share,” she said.
The event, which has been taking place for 10 years, is split into two parts. The first half is an hour-long performance from a local musician, which has included everything from folk musicians to more classical instruments, she said.
The second half of the event provides an environment where children are able to share their music in front of an audience, Lachman said. Generally, the attendees range from kindergarten to high school, but she said the bulk is elementary and middle school aged.
“In an age where there is not as much funding for the arts in schools, this then becomes an event that lots of kids can come to and have an experience they don’t have as much of in school,” she said.
@liz_backo
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