The Ballard High School Madrigal Singers, under the direction of Noel Weaver, will perform their “Olde Madrigal Feaste” at the Cox Building Ballroom on Friday, Dec. 14.
The Madrigal Dinner, which is a reenactment of an old English Christmas feast, is a tradition for the group from Ballard High School in Louisville that is in its 38th year. Weaver is now in his 24th year as choral director at Ballard.
For Weaver, coming to Maysville and Mason County to perform has been a career-long dream.
“Mason County has had an impact on my career and my “musical values” that is immeasurable. Melissa and I love this community and so many people that have been so good to us. To be able to share our passion and our life’s work with those that gave us our start is a precious gift,” Weaver said.
Weaver’s story with the Maysville community is long and has many chapters. From his beginnings as a church choir director to his life-long friendships with Michael Bolden and his marriage to Melissa Turner, Maysville and Mason County have been present through every chapter.
As a freshman at Morehead State University, Weaver was approached after a music theory class by Betty Wood, who was also a student in the class. Betty asked if Weaver would be interested in directing her church choir. The 19-year-old Weaver said “I am afraid I am not ready for that!”However, after some encouragement, Weaver did apply for the job and, for the next four years, drove to Maysville every Wednesday and Sunday for church at First Presbyterian Church.
First Presbyterian was a place that allowed Weaver to grow as a musician and choir director.
“There were so many wonderful, positive people at that church. People like the pastor, Ralph Middleton, and members Betty Wood, Zoe Chamness, Johnny McNeil, Helen Greim and so many more. They put up with my youthful inexperience while constantly encouraging me. They showed me what it meant to be gracious and hospitable,” Weaver said.
Weaver believes the greatest influences in his professional career and as a person have been James Ross Beane, director of Choral Activities at Morehead State University, Coralie Runyon Jones, director of Choirs at Mason County High School, where Weaver student taught, and Dr. Bob and Noma Blake, who gave Weaver a place to live while he was student teaching.
“The relationships that Mr. Beane had with the Blakes and with Coralie Runyon made my student teaching semester possible,” he said.
Weaver spent a semester student teaching with Coralie Runyon Jones while living at with the Blakes and continuing to work at First Presbyterian Church.
“I really felt a part of the community,” he said.
The things that were learned from Jones and the “can do” attitudes that were shared by so many of the folks that they worked with in Maysville and Mason County have served both of the Weavers throughout their teaching careers.
Weaver said, “One of the things that Coralie used to say was “fear no music!” If you can teach it, they can sing it.” So there has never been any trepidation with regard to music or any of it’s complexities, only with regard to appropriateness.”
After graduating from MSU, Weaver moved to Zanesville, Ohio to teach. But this was not until he had asked Melissa Turner to be his bride.
“Melissa is the finest person I have ever known” he said of his wife of 38 years. The couple began to see each other while they were cast members in the Stephen Foster Story in Bardstown.
After moving back to Morehead and teaching in Rowan County, Weaver received a call from Ray Throckmorton to come to Trinity United Methodist Church to serve as minister of music and youth. It was at Trinity that Weaver taught the senior high Sunday school class with Mary V. Clarke and directed the choirs with organist Jim Clarke.
“We had the time of our lives at Trinity,” he said. “Every Sunday we would go to across the river for lunch after services. After lunch we would go back to church, blow up air mattresses and nap in the youth room before handbells, youth group and Sunday night worship. We fell in love with folks at Trinity United Methodist. Melissa and I had four very young children (four babies in five years) and the folks at Trinity embraced us without reservation. At Trinity we had some great times. They also helped us through some tough times and for all of it we will always be grateful.”
Maysville is home to one of the finest choral music traditions in the region. Coralie Runyon Jones remains one of the major forces in music education in Kentucky. She was and is a relentless inspirer of excellence and music mastery.
“And so, we wish to thank those who have brought us this far,” Weaver said. “We hope that the Mason County and Maysville community will come out to our dinner. It is a lot of fun. It will be such an honor to be able to give back to the community that has meant so much to me all these years.”
The five-course feast will include wassail, harvest bounty soup, bird and rice, and bread pudding. For the boars head to the queen to the court jester, the madrigal singers dressed in Elizabethan costumes will be serving guest and performing more than 23 acapella songs. Ticket prices for the evening are $40 per person.
The sponsors of this evening benefiting The Russell Theatre are: Meadowview Regional Medical Center, Dr. Don and Debbie Wilson, Dr. Randall and Bedouin Dennison, Maysville Family Chiropractic/Bluegrass Medical Aesthetics, Clarke and Clarke, Real Estate Asset Counseling, Inc, Marion Russell, Betty Wood, David Cartmell, Bill and Sallie McNeill and John and Fran Denham.
To sample this gorgeous singing visit Youtube.com ”The Ballard Madrigal Singers on Lunchtime Classics.” For tickets call the Russell Theatre at 606-564-4875 and leave your name, telephone number and number of tickets needed or purchase tickets at the Russell Theatre every Saturday until the performance from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. There is limited seating. Ticket orders must be in before Dec. 10.
