Frances Hackley, Publicity Chair
The Robson Ranch Community Choir is still planning on presenting “That ’70s Show” on Saturday, Aug. 8, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, Aug. 9, at 4 p.m. So as my mother used to say “God willing and the creek don’t rise,” the show will be a go! This show is packed full of some of the best songs ever written. Absolute melodic masterpieces! Songs that soothe and remind us of what we were doing back in the ’70s. The audience is asked to be part of the celebration by wearing their favorite ’70s attire. A few songs you will surely remember are “Best of My Love,” “He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother,” “Lean On Me,” and Burt Bacharach’s song of love and unity “What The World Needs Now.” Songs like “You’ve Got a Friend” by Carole King and other greats from artists such as Neil Diamond, Aretha Franklin, and The Carpenters will send you back in time. The choir is anxious to get back to giving the community a much-needed bit of entertainment after this virus-imposed hiatus.
While on this long break, hopefully everyone has been exercising their voices as well as their bodies. Singing needs a pair of good healthy lungs. You also need healthy lungs to fight the nasty coronavirus. Good lung health is something we all need, especially singers, and we can work on that with little effort. The best time to work on your lung strength is while walking. Every organ depends on your lungs for good oxygenated blood. As we get older, we tend to slump. Poor posture causes our skeletal torso to cave in on our lungs, robbing them of their due space. We tend to only use the top one third of our lungs. Then, not all of the bad gases get released from the bottom of the lungs. That’s not good! A good breath fills your lungs all the way to your waist. Short shallow breaths make you feel anxious and zap your energy. Try this to get your lungs in shape. While walking, check your posture. Don’t lead with your head, lead with your chest. Shoulders and neck relaxed, now take a breath in through your nose to the count of five, fill to the bottom of your lungs, and then let it out to the same count of five. Let your diaphragm do its job and spring the air up and out of the lungs. If you are not a walker, lie on the floor on your back and do the same breathing exercise. Do it for at least ten reps. Let us all get our lungs in better shape. It just makes good sense; if you know better, then you do better. Also try singing while you walk or run. Make yourself sing all the way to the end of a phrase before taking another breath. This will force you to have to take a good breath for the next phrase. After all, we’ve established that singing keeps you healthy. Singing exercises both the heart and lungs while releasing endorphins that make you feel better. Everyone feels better when they sing!
Let’s all get ready to “sing our lungs out” in preparation for this upcoming concert. Just like our poor lungs have been confined to a chest with sad posture and tiny breaths, we too have been confined, to isolation and small spaces. Now, it is time to stand up straight, take a deep breath, and again enjoy the human connection. Let’s start with “That ’70s Show!” Advance tickets are $10; at the door $12. Watch for ticket sale dates. Come wearing your ’70s attire and celebrate the fond melodies of the ’70s! Go to our website rrmusicclub.com for all Robson Ranch Community Choir information.