Heartland Men's Chorus

FABULOUSNESS is what you get when you have the Heartland Men's Chorus joined by the amazing talents of Marilyn Maye, a piano, stand up bass and a drummer. This was the spring concert put on by the boys and a legend.Marilyn Maye holds the honor of appearing on the Johnny Carson show more than any other guest, a total of 76 times. She is a young 82 years old with more piss and vinegar than contemporaries half her age. She was a mixture of strong vocals, humor and class. Much the same as the chorus themselves. It was a perfect combination and a perfect night. It's rare that there is a standing ovation at the end of the first half followed by the same at the end of the show. Both Marilyn Maye and the Heartland Men's Chorus are local treasures that only add vibrato and diversity to our already rich artistic landscape in Kansas City. Since this was probably a one time opportunity to see them together, make sure to check them both out separately if you have the chance. It was hot, red hot.......ok, Jazz Hot baby!

The Heartland Men's Chorus launched its 2014-15 season with its annual holiday concert, featuring its new artistic director, Dustin S. Cates. The Chorus has found itself a keeper: Cates is a local Kansas Citian with an impressive background in choral music direction. He led the chorus tonight in a beautiful, often moving concert that came as a musical balm after a week of ugly news about the reality of race relations in the U.S. and the horrifying effects of our apartheid criminal justice system on our fellow Americans of color. The program Cates designed was a bit more serious and spiritual than some of the recent holiday concerts, although it certainly had its moments of camp and silliness in keeping with time-honored HMC tradition! The Chorus was really put through its paces by the musical selections, which required a lot of tricky multi-part singing, switching quickly between complicated tempi and styles, and showing off their multi-lingual chops. The Concert began with a lively "Noel" in an unidentified African language that recalled the work of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, the famous South African musical ensemble. The highlights are almost too numerous to mention, but they include a very fine rendition of the somewhat overdone "Little Drummer Boy" featuring a superb snare drum line of five young performers whose unison and virtuosity was impressive, a contemplative version of the usually more upbeat Israeli song "Bashana Haba'ah" ("Next Year") which expresses the hope for peace and tranquility in the troubled Middle East, and excellent performances of three choruses from "Messiah" arranged for men's voices and a soprano soloist. The choristers sang Handel's music beautifully, and the soloist, Sarah Tannehill Anderson, another local artist, dazzled with a lovely lyric soprano and impressive technique. The second half of the program was lighter-hearted, with selections ranging from "Chanukah in Santa Monica" to a medley from "Frozen" and a concluding "Hallelujah" that's a reworking of Handel's chorus in gospel style. There were special guest appearances by local drag performers and a surprise solo in "I'll Be Home For Christmas" by Kansas City mayor Sly James, who was a lead singer in a band in a now long-ago phase of his varied career! The Mayor still sings well, in a voice that seems to have developed a bit of a rasp reminiscent of Louis Armstrong's. Overall, the Chorus sounded wonderful under Cates's direction, very rich and full, and with their already excellent diction sharpened further, making the lyrics they sang even more understandable and distinguishable -- even in Hebrew, Latin and that unidentified African language (Swahili?). The Chorus has long been one of the mainstays in the Kansas City performing arts community, and under Cates's direction it looks like it will continue as one of the city's and nation's finest male choruses!

Princes of Pop concert, March 24, 2024 was wonderful. Enjoyed every minute of it. Looking forward to the summer concert and finding out more details on the May event at the new soccer stadium

Amazing show. We attended the Sunday Christmas show and will be going back next Sunday for the final show. The show is filled with emotions and holiday spirit. We are definitely going to make this a tradition from now on. Loved meeting the Chorus guys after the show.