MVE Fan e-mail and pictures

photo by Lorin May

A Note of Thanks from the Fish Tank
Words cannot begin to express how awed and humbled the men of the MVE were by the reaction we received from the audience Friday night. If you had asked us prior to the competition what we were hoping to achieve - never, in our wildest dreams, would we have imagined the reception we got. Your cheering, clapping and laughter before, during and after the performance - and more importantly, your kind words afterwards - only served to reinforce our belief that we have the best hobby this side of the Marianos Trench.

The men of the MVE would like to offer thanks to:

Our coaches - Jim Henry, Kevin Keller, Greg Lyne, Renee Porzell and Dwain Brobst - you push us to become ever better and tap into the potential you see in us, even when we don't see it in ourselves.

Our arrangers and lyricist - starting with the inspirational arrangements of Ed Waesche, the masterful work of Tom Gentry and the storytelling of Mike Lietke that ties it all together.

Our propmasters, set builders and costumers too numerous to name - once the initial question of "You want to do what???" was over with, you set about creating the world's largest portable fish tank - you're AWESOME!

Our Performance Team - the visionaries who dream this stuff up, put it all together and convince the rest of the riser grunts that it will actually play in Peoria.

Our director, Dr. Chris Peterson - medaling at only your second International at the helm, you were the net that kept this rambunctious school of fish focused on our primary goal - to entertain at the highest level.

Our families - you endure our absence with nary of word of complaint and offer more love and encouragement than you'll ever know.

And most importantly, our audiences - you landlubbers provide us with the energy that makes it all possible.

Congratulations to the Vocal Majority and Vocal Spectrum - your dedication to excellence is an inspiration to us all.

And congratulations to all the Land O'Lakes competitors - the Great Northern Union, Quest, Voices Only, 4th Floor and Beyond Cadence - you make us proud to call the LOL District our tank away from home.

Hope to see you all in Rochester!

Bob Fichtner
President
Midwest Vocal Express
Blue Fish Guy
 

photo by Kenlee

Wow - what an awesome week we had in Indianapolis.......I can only imagine what you guys are feeling at this point.

 

Our heartiest congratulations on your excellent performance in Indy.......it was so obvious that your set stole the hearts of the ticket buyers as well as the ears of the judges.  What an awesome complete package!

 

I sat near the front, on the floor level, with my jaw agape, I am sure.  My wife can still be brought to giggles of tears when we start to talk about the performance.

 

Our chorus sends its continued good wishes to the MVE, and we consider it an honor to have been sponsored into the BHS by your chapter, as well to know you all and consider you our friends.

 

The only problem there is, like with the army set, is that we weren't able to recognize anybody!!!!!  But, I bet there is a blessing in that: all self-consciousness must disappear when no individuals can be recognized....

 

Anyway, EXCELLENT !

 

Terryl Wolfrath

President

Fox River Valley Chapter
 

photo by Kay Bromert

Congratulations to the MVE on your TERRIFIC performance in Indianapolis. You truly did bring the house down! So glad I was there to witness this special moment. Having attended your pre-contest show in South Milwaukee (which was great) I thought I knew what to expect. I was wrong, You exceeded expectations by a bunch. It appeared that it was one of those crowning moments when everything came together. You know you've made the big time when Greg Clancy salutes your performance in front of your peers.  Way to go guys!  We're proud of you.

 

Jack K.   Oshkosh, WI

photo by Doug Miller

Indy was my 15th International. Your "Fish Tank" was definitely at the same high level as your Toy Soldier performance at Montreal. Great Entertainment!  Would love to meet the creative minds in your chapter that puts these acts together. Thanks for one of my big highlights at Indy last week!  Your act was a barn burner!!!

 

John N.  Palm Harbor, FL

photo by Doug Miller

As a 40 year fan of Barbershop and a life long resident on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay, never did I think I would see so much seafood on one stage!! And they could all sing--- together --- and in tune.  The audience around me all thought the performance itself was worth the entire cost of the competition. It has been fun back at work to try to describe what I saw, "You see there were all these men dressed as fish and 2 turtles(very slooow turtles)  Well you really had to be there" and I can't wait to see the DVD.

Most of our time has been involved with the Chorus of the Chesapeake and I thought Fred King could come of with some great ideas!!

Congatulations on a Creative and Thoroughly entertaining performance!!

Betty D.

photo by Lorin May

What a great way to end a fabulous chorus competition. You had us on the edge of our seats and in the palm of your hand...well fin. Best of luck in Denver!

 

Jamie Sharp

Lead - Heart Of Texas Chorus

Lead - Exclamation!

photo by Jamie Sharp

Congratulations to the Midwest Vocal Express on a wonderful hit at Indy! The members of the Alliance are so proud of your accomplishments. Your set may not of won the gold, but you won the audience and that’s what we strive for more than a judges score. People will remember your set long after who won what becomes a faded memory. As Cindy Hansen told us about our Civil War set, “Judges can be wrong, but the audience is always right”. 

We will always remember the great comments and ovations we received from the members of MVE after we earned our first medal in Montreal and consider each and every one of you our brothers. Please enjoy your accomplishments and we look forward to seeing you next year in Denver.

Jerry Deuschle, Chorus Manager
The Alliance of Greater Central Ohio
P.S. After your set, one of our members said, “If we would happen to get a medal and these guys don’t then I’m giving them mine”.


photo by Kenlee

Your performance was truly one of the most creative sets I’ve ever seen.  I only regret I missed the first song because I didn’t get through the door on time! (I had gone out for a quick pit stop)  I had to sneak around to the handicap ramp which was unguarded to get back in for the remainder of your second song!  I remarked to several people that the “wild and crazy zany” torch has been passed from Big Chicken to MVE!

You truly inspired the audience, and absolutely deserve the medalist finish you received! Anytime you get a standing “O” when you walk back into the convention center, (Not to mention having your own fish and turtle cam!) means you really connected with the audience.

Congratulations to everyone involved for a job well done!!!!

Nick Alexander
Vocal Majority MC
27 year member, 9 gold medals


What a contest! No doubt you've dissected Fridays scores and saw what the rest of us already knew.  Your performance set a new standard for our craft.  It was artistry in voice and motion.  You already know about originality, flawless timing, execution, and the art of performing, but what I experienced was a shift in barbershop view.

You charged the audience, other choruses, the judges, and the TV crew.  When was the last time a chorus got a standing ovation when they returned to the hall?  Who else held that ovation for the ENTIRE CHORUS? Who else had to perform AFTER THE SHOW?  And who else so moved the producers that they produced a "Fish Cam" and "Turtle Cam?"

This is my fourth International in person, with a webcast of last years.  I never saw anything like this contest, and you were the best part.  The barbershop world with thank you for years to come.  I, however, will thank you now.  You've recharged my barbershopping batteries.  Thanks for making our hobby fun again.

David Marsters
Tenor/Lead
Louisville Thoroughbreds
Richmond Virginians

You and the rest of your "school" deserve all the accolades that have been bestowed upon you. I was there and I shall never forget how awe-inspiring your performance was.  It was truly a masterpiece of creativity.  I can hardly wait until my DVD arrives so that I can share a miniature version of it with my family and fellow chorus members.  I just can't stop raving about it.

Keep up the great work and best of luck on your future endeavors.

Yours in harmony,

Dodge M. Palm Harbor, FL



photo by Richard Strunk
(the characters in the picture are Gene Leroy [VM bari], Mary Temme [my mom], myself, our catch of the day!, Ken Lambert [VM lead, HDSQ tenor], Charlee Strunk [my daugher] and Pam Strunk [my wife])
 

First, let me join in the long line of people who who were totally "wowed!" by the  performance and package the MVE gave us in Indy!  The creativity of your team and work to put together the medley of songs in the message were great, and as Greg Clancy said Saturday night, MVE won the hearts and applause of the audience.

Above is a picture that was taken Sat night that has one of your members along with myself and family, along with a couple of other friends in the Vocal Majority.  I also sing in the quartet HDSQ, and if you saw the Harmonizer from spring (2006) there was a picture of us in the VM Christmas show in attire inspired by your Green Army Men set from Montreal!  The MVE has much to be proud of, not just in performance improvement but creativity.

I am hoping that sometime soon I get the opportunity to visit my brother in Chicago and can make an excuse to visit Milwaukee.  Again, what a tremendous package and sound MVE put on!  Congratulations!!

Richard Strunk
Bari - VM
Lead - HDSQ


I have looked forward to seeing the Big Chicken or the Swedish choruses that do very entertaining sets, but your set at International this year *clearly* topped them all. As the curtain raised, I couldn't figure out what we were looking at. Especially with the blue lighting that just absolutely topped off your outfits. It took about 5-10 seconds before it all registered.

 

The sight was just ingenious! The parodies were wonderful. But what amazed me the most was that you were able to maintain as high a level of singing as you did while moving all about. The fact that you were able to get all those guys to move their hands back and forth at such a pace *not* with the beat and maintain the quality of singing that you did is just amazing.

 

I don't know if you can truly grasp just how special that performance was for the audience. I felt like I was a little kid again seeing an amusement park for the first time.

 

I don't know if you asked to be last in the competition or if that was pure luck, but it was just the absolute best spot for you. To have experienced your amazing performance and not have to sit through others afterwards was a fantastic release for the end of a long day. The audience was able to ride your wave and just bask in it for a great while afterwards. We couldn't have asked for a better ending to a great contest.

 

Hats off to the person that came up with the concept.

Kudos to the people that listened to and approved going with the idea.

Thank you to all the people that worked on the idea, costumes, and everything that went into the production.
 

Congratulations to the chorus for taking the vision and making it work, singing well, and being rewarded with a medal.

 

John Rentz

Tenor - Makin' Waves

Tenor - Vocal Majority
 

I had to write and congratulate you on a fantastic performance last week in Indy.  I am sure you have received a million congratulations and emails by now but your performance was so wonderful that I could not let it go by without adding my name to your list of fans.  The creativity and risk in doing such a package deserves all the recognitions and honours that you get.  Thanks again for such an amazing moment!

Regards,

Rob Arnold

EVP ONT district

Certifiec Judge, CA
 

I have been attending International contests since 1984 and I can honestly say that the MVE performance in Indy was the most captivating and awesome performance I have ever witnessed!  You are to be complimented for the efforts that you put into this package and I'm sure that you could tell that you certainly captured the audience also!  I'm not sure that I fully understand the fourth wall concept, but to me you guys really demonstrated a classic example of that as described by Connie Kiel in the Harmonizer a few issues ago!

 

From the judging area, I have seen all of your really good packages like the soldier set in Montreal and the baby set in Louisville and this one far exceeded those and they were excellent.  I urge and implore you to keep up these types of performances and you will continue to be rewarded with higher medals!

 

Again, my thanks to the entire MVE for a wonderful performance!

 

Dwain Chambers

Category Specialist, Contest Administrator

2005-6 DIXIE District President

 

(There is a poster on the Harmonet who wrote a number of haiku in Indy while waiting for the next contestant or the results.  Here's the one he wrote about the MVE:)
 

    Creativity,
    Finding Nemo contest set,
    Greendale steals the show!

As a member of the Kokomo Men of Note Chorus, and a fortunate member of the International competition audience, I want to add my congratulations to your chorus.  The Fish story will go down in Barbershopping History, and I am so glad that I was there.

A quick story about that night:
Another Kokomo member and I had been helping Indianapolis host the convention, and by Friday night we were both exhausted.  We were both so sore and tired that we had both left our seats, only three choruses before yours, and had gone to the lobby to stretch and get a snack.  If had found each other we would have looked at each other through our tired eyes, and we would have both agreed to leave Conseco (Fieldhouse) and make our way back to Kokomo.  What we didn't know, was that we were only about 50 feet apart in the lobby, and only the curvature on the hallway kept us from seeing each other.  Since we didn't run into each other, we returned to our seats to "finish off the contest"…………….. And then the Midwest Vocal Express appeared, and our Barbershopping lives were changed forever!!

What an amazing, imaginative, refreshing and memorable performance you all gave to the whole world!!! It ...was a... performance that every man, woman and child who has ever performed on a stage, will want to see!!

All the best to you and your amazing chorus!!!!

Colin C.  Kokomo, Indiana

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