Winding through the green landscape of Virginia, Tehillah’s 2023 tour is underway! Thanks to the churches of Island Creek Mennonite and First Baptist and their gracious southern hospitality, the sixteen of us have several days of rehearsal and our first program completed, and are ready (more or less) for the next week of programs and recording. Many thanks to the generosity of the Hillsville community! Along with spouses, children, nannies, and the bus driver and his wife, we are headed for the south.
This question was raised recently: what is it that brings Tehillah together? Each year leads to some turnover in members, and yet the core vision and culture of the group remains relatively the same. While a few suggested that perhaps it is because we are all nerds, or because of the leadership of our artistic director, Dan, I believe there is an underlying goal that carries us from year to year — a large component is a love of singing and a pursuit of musical excellence in an effort to limit distraction from worship. Our ultimate prayer is that God would be praised!
Pre-tour rehearsal normally looks like two days of practice in our base of Elnora, IN. This year, however, in an endeavor to strike out further south, we spent our first day together (Thursday) traveling in the bus to Hillsville and not singing. While travels lasted long, the lack of singing did not–the afternoon saw a nice little practice session…well, as nice as it can be in a bus! We arrived at Island Creek in time for a late supper and in anticipation of getting into our music for real the next morning.
Friday was a rich day, filled with moments of delightful progress since spring rehearsal, as well as moments of fear and trembling at the thought of The First Program, expected to be sung by memory. However, as the day unfolded, we settled into practicing with real people instead of a computer file and were able to develop good progress with our songs. Delicious meals prepared by Dan’s family from the area were appreciated by all, and we spent a beautiful evening outdoors filled with good food, good conversation, story time with Dave, and hanging out with all the spouses and kids.
On Saturday, we met for a morning of practice and then headed to the concert venue after lunch to rehearse program details and adjust to the sound of a different space. The day felt packed, and by afternoon many of us were vocally weary and ready for some rest before giving a concert. Prayers are appreciated for vocal health and the stamina to travel and perform daily throughout our tour! We made it through The First Program without too many moments of terror or calamity, trusting that despite some mistakes, the name of God was raised! Inherent to the name of our group, praise to God is at the core of our purpose as humans. As an ensemble we greatly desire to leave behind not a remembrance of ourselves, but of the goodness of God!
– Jessica Wenger
