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<\/p>\nThere\u2019s something powerful and profound about the sound of multiple human voices raised together in song. From the church sanctuary to the opera house, a chorus commands a room in a way that a single voice, a duo or even an octet just can\u2019t match.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the sound of unity, and community, of a large group acting as one \u2013 strength in numbers \u2013 and the effect can be exhilarating.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s the master plan behind One City Chorus, the 75-member-strong, all-volunteer singing group celebrating its 10th anniversary this year.<\/p>\n
One City Chorus\u2019 annual concert, titled Metamorphosis, takes place Sunday (Feb. 22) in the Palladium Theater\u2019s Hough Hall. The program begins at 4 p.m.<\/p>\n
It\u2019ll be the first One City concert under the leadership of Artistic Director Chris Romeo, who took over last spring from the chorus\u2019 founders Jon Arterton and James Mack, who moved out of town.<\/p>\n
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Romeo, who has Bachelor\u2019s and Master\u2019s degrees in Vocal Performance from the University of South Florida, is a familiar face (and tenor voice) with the St. Petersburg Opera Company. He is also an adjunct professor at St. Leo College and Hillsborough Community College Ybor.<\/p>\n
And he directs Diversity \u2013 The Voices of Sarasota, a community chorus that specializes in LGBTQ and politically-charged music.<\/p>\n
One City Chorus\u2019 message is always peace, unity and healing. Every time. Every tune<\/p>\n
Another passion of Romeo\u2019s is Music Therapy \u2013 he works with special needs individuals, as well as Parkinson\u2019s and Alzheimer\u2019s patients. Before pursuing music as a career, he was a Pre-Med student at USF.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was always interested in the medical field, but I loved music,\u201d he said. \u201cAs a young person, it was hard to envision a life in music. And your father\u2019s always saying \u2018You\u2019ve gotta have options. Be practical.\u2019 Things like that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Music Therapy was the answer. \u201cI felt like it was a nice merge of the two.\u201d<\/p>\n
Romeo said he thinks of One City as a \u201chealing thing,\u201d and his choice of songs for Sunday\u2019s concert, from Sam Cooke\u2019s \u201cA Change is Gonna Come\u201d and John Lennon\u2019s \u201cImagine,\u201d to Matisyahu\u2019s \u201cOne Day,\u201d Lady Gaga\u2019s \u201cBorn this Way\u201d and the Disney tune \u201cColors of the Wind,\u201d reflect that.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith the climate of the country right now,\u201d Romeo explained, \u201cI feel like it\u2019s just a great message to talk about \u2013 we need to come together. To stand together. I loved the message from the Super Bowl that love is stronger than hate. I just want to continue that message.\u201d<\/p>\n
To that point, One City Chorus is open to all, regardless of singing experience. \u201cI do understand that people learn differently,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd so we want to make sure we have a lot of different tools for different people to learn the songs however they need to learn the songs.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause some people, even though they don\u2019t sing \u2026 they do sing. They just don\u2019t know how to read music. So we can give them just the track to listen to \u2013 the way you did your whole life, just listening to pop songs. And you can memorize your lines, because we have tracks that isolate parts, so you can memorize just yours.\u201d<\/p>\n
The group rehearses Monday nights at St. Petersburg\u2019s Allendale United Methodist Church. It\u2019s just one of many pins in a very large map for Romeo, who resides in North Tampa.<\/p>\n
Then there\u2019s his four-member singing group, Klassika, which performs at weddings, private functions, corporate events and more. Lately he\u2019s been running lights and sound for St. Pete Opera events at the group\u2019s headquarters building, and will be part of the next SPO production, La Boheme, in June.<\/p>\n
One City Chorus, and Sunday\u2019s Metamorphosis concert, are the only things on his mind right now. He likes to think of the group as \u201ca collective mindset. I think everyone feels safe and comfortable here.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople come together, experience something they don\u2019t get to experience other places \u2026 and we don\u2019t want to push anyone away. Even if they don\u2019t think they could be part of a choir, we encourage them to join us and try.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes it brings things out of people they didn\u2019t know they had.\u201d<\/p>\n
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