History of the Lakeside Civic Chorus
Previously known as The Lakeside Singers, the humble chorus consisted of
only 12 people. Founding members Ann McNabb and Olivia Barstow stated,
“This is a group of people who meet for the joy of singing and to share
this joy with the community.” Under the direction of Gail Womack, their
first performance was December 20, 1984, at Eloise’s in
In 1988, The Lakeside Singers contributed donations made at a concert to
the Rockwall County Child Welfare Board. A special “Sounds of the
Season” performance by the Singers benefited the Rockwall County Helping
Hands “Christmas Stocking” assistance program, a local cause that
provided food, toys and blankets to county residents in need during the
holiday. Another significant move for the group at this time was to
initiate a vocal music scholarship fund for a
The Singers continued to perform seasonal concerts to benefit the vocal
music scholarship and the Rockwall County Helping Hands. In 1989, the
group had grown to 33 members including a branch group known as
“Accents’ that consisted of nine women. The singers consistently
participated in community causes and contributed to local organizations.
Their repertoire of music varied as they sang sacred and secular
Christmas songs during the holiday season, a variety of folk songs, and
songs with a western flare with selections such as “Paint Your Wagon,”
“Oklahoma,” and “Annie Get Your Gun’ during the spring season.
Throughout the next decade, The Lakeside Singers expanded and shared
music with the community singing favorite Broadway tunes such as “Oh
What A Beautiful Morning” from
The new decade also brought challenges for the group when in 1993 one of
their original members, Marilyn Miller, who was well known in Rockwall
for her work in local civic
and service organizations, succumbed to cancer. To honor Mrs. Miller,
The Singers designated their annual music scholarship fund as the
Lakeside Singers Marilyn Miller Memorial Scholarship Fund to be given to
a graduating senior from
Today, the Chorus continues to provide its audiences and members with
more performance opportunities. In addition to the current performance
schedule, the chorus has participated in the Hubbard Chamber Music
Series December concert along with the Hubbard Chamber ensemble, Rowlett
A Capella Choir, and Rockwall Children’s Chorus, Service of Lessons and
Carols at our Savior Lutheran Church and St. Anthony’s Catholic Church
in Wylie, and MusicFest.
In recent years, the Chorus introduced Cantare, a select four-part
(SATB) ensemble comprised of auditioned men and women members from the
chorus and VoiceMale, a male quartet (TTBB) comprised of membership from
the chorus as well. Both groups are available for performances in large
and small venues, and act as fundraising ambassadors for themselves and
the chorus.
An intriguing element of the chorus is the varied musical background and
the wide variety of ages, interests and walks of life of its members.
Formal music experience is not a prerequisite. Chorus members’ knowledge
of music ranges from previous choral experience to those who
simply have an “ear” for music. The chorus includes men and women of
various and sundry professions, including that range from doctors,
mothers, secretaries, nurses, bankers, teachers, and engineers, just to
name a few.
As the Chorus has grown and continues to scale to higher musical
heights, it is attracting members from all around the Lake Ray Hubbard
area who share the love for excellent choral music and excellence in
performance. Therefore, and in keeping with our musical
objectives, the name was changed to The Lakeside Civic Chorus.
As a non-profit organization, the chorus’ success is directly dependent
on audience and sponsor support. For more information about performance
schedules, performance requests, contribution opportunities or to
audition for the Lakeside Civic Chorus, please contact Shelba Gorham
Bell at
director@lakesidecivicchorus.org.