A little history of the Aurora Chapter....
First Chartered in 1946, Aurora came to be primarily
as a result of its' founder, Bill Henderson. Having visited the barbershop
chapter in Geneva, Il. He enjoyed himself so much, he thought it would
a great idea for Aurora as well. Boy was he right!
With support from Geneva barbershoppers and others, the
Aurora chapter of the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of
Barbershop Quartet Singing in America was formed, with Bill Henderson
as its' first President. It's still going strong after more than 60 years.
There have been many chapter presidents, officers and music directors over the years, as well as hundreds of members who have come and gone. Many of our members have been with us for over 30 years. As you can see, this hobby can be enjoyed from your teens to your senior years.
We have had several different meeting places during our
50 years. It all started in the old post office in Aurora, as well as
Plum Landing (a retirement home), the Elks club, the Luxemburg club, and
our current location in Boulder Hill.
Why "Lamplighters"?
The Aurora chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society was chartered on May 4th, 1946, but it wasn't until November of 1971 that we proclaimed 'Lamplighters' as our name for the chorus.
As reported by Marv Maurer, 41 year member....
"In the early to mid '60's the Lamplighter chorus started competing, but they were a nameless group. It was decided that there would be a contest to pick a name for the chorus. The names were to have some historical meaning or significance and the winner would get a steak dinner."
"Over several months names were submitted for review. Three different people had suggested 'Lamplighter.' Aurora was known as the City of Lights since it was one of the first cities west of the Appalachians to have working street lights. So the name seemed to fit the group, and from that day forward the Aurora chapter became known as the Lamplighter Chorus."
Our director...
Although Nicole has only been with Lamplighter's Chorus since July 2010, Nicole has been directing the Sweet Adelines' Riverside Chorus since September of 2008. Nicole has been a member of Sweet Adelines International since 1996. She was a part of the Division A Harmony Classic Chorus Champions of 2000 and 2003, Prairie Echoes Chorus. She is also an associate member of the Barbershop Harmony Society.
Nicole began singing as a child, regularly getting in a bit of trouble for not keeping the songs to herself. Today Nicole sings in the Rock Valley Concert Choir while attending Rock Valley College. She has studied voice under Kathy Herdemann, Merrit Kuhn and is currently studying under Paul Laprade.
Under Nicole's leadership Lamplighters Chorus continues to grow musically and looks forward to attaining great success!
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