Patron of the Arts: James Collier
Choir of the Sound's 2009 holiday concert is made possible
by the generous support of James Collier. Mr. Collier's patronage has enabled
the Choir to present wonderful music such as Orff's Carmina Burana, Verdi's Requiem,
the music of Bernstein and Whitacre, and this season, the much loved Handel's Messiah.
 Jim grew up in Iowa,
with his brother and mother. After earning degrees from University
of Iowa and Drake
University, he taught high school
English for 35 years, most of those in Delano,
California. Highlights of that
career included four summers touring Europe
with groups of high school students - two of them bicycle tours. After
retirement, Mr Collier moved to Medford, Oregon, to be near the Oregon Shakespeare festival and
his immediate family, who live in Oregon and Washington.
During his time in Delano,
Jim formed life-long friendships with his church's organist and pianist, Wally
Snoddy and Mary Tabuyo. Jim credits Wally and Mary, combined with his memories
of his father, who played piano by ear, with his love of classical music.
Well into adulthood, Jim inherited from his mother Mary, who
had remarried one of the founders of Pioneer Hybrid Corn. His love of classical
music and his lifelong passion for education led him to use these funds to
encourage and support the arts in local communities across the United States.
He has been called "the piano man" for his penchant for donating Steinway and
grand pianos; he has donated ten pianos to date. He currently sponsors nearly
twenty musical organizations, including the Rogue Valley Chorale, Des Moines
Opera, the Metropolitan Opera, and Choir of the Sound. "I feel it is my calling
to spread music like Johnny Appleseed across the country," Jim said in a recent
interview. Choir of the Sound is very grateful to benefit from his generosity
and is proud to call him our Virtuoso Sponsor.
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Who we are . . . .
 Larry
Rosemeyer and his daughter Amanda Greenfield have spent the last nine years
sharing their Monday evenings at the Choir of the Sound rehearsals. Both Larry
and Amanda are always ready with a warm smile--the joy they find in singing,
family, friends and life is obvious to all those lucky enough to spend time
with them.
Judy: How long have you sung in
the Choir of the Sound?
Larry: I've been singing in
COTS for 20 years. I was in the St. Thomas More Choir and was recruited by
another member of the church choir, Bob Metzger
(founding director of COTS).
Amanda: I've been singing with
COTS for 9 years. While I was growing up, my entire family sang. After my
college internship 9 years ago, more voices were needed for a classical concert
and I joined the choir.
Judy: What is your funniest choir
memory?
Larry: Once,
as we were singing during a performance,
I realized that I was in the next dance and had forgotten to leave the stage. I
had to leave in the middle of the song and still didn't make it back before the
next song began. I came on stage in the
middle of the dance--luckily, it wasn't a partner dance!
Amanda: Seeing my dad dressed as the Snow King for
'Suzy Snowflake', playing the part of Mr. Mistoffelees; just watching him do
his thing.
Judy: What has been your most
moving choir memory?
Larry: The battle scene
when we did scenes from Les Miserables.
Amanda: Singing Eric Whitacre's 'Sleep' in Montecatini on the Italy tour in
2007.
Judy: What are your thoughts
about singing in a choir that is very time intensive?
Larry: The
end product is a result of the time invested.
Amanda: My time is
important to me and I wouldn't want to be involved if the result wasn't great.
Judy: What is your favorite part
of choir?
Larry: My
favorite part of choir has evolved over the years I've been singing. I used to really enjoy dancing and trying out
for solos. Performing was everything,
now the process is more important. I
come to rehearsals and re-energize. John
Plancich has always said that rehearsals are the joy-I'm moving in that
direction.
Amanda: My
favorite part is being exposed to music that I wouldn't necessarily come across
in my daily life. For example, I had
never heard of Morten Lauridsen before we sang his music and now O Magnum
Mysterium and O Nata Lux are two of my favorite pieces. I also love the first time we get to
sing a song mixed and you can really hear how your part fits in with the other
sections and relish those moments where there is beautiful harmony or
dissonance
Judy: What is your occupation?
Larry: I work for a company
called Auto-Chlor that provides commercial dishwashing products and machines to
restaurants. I'm in sales and customer
relations.
Amanda: I'm a CPA and work
as an accounting manager for a natural gas utility that serves rural areas of Washington State.
Judy: What are your hobbies?
Larry: I enjoy studying the
financial investment field, an occasional round of golf, cycling and have
recently started gardening.
Amanda: I read a lot and
enjoy traveling, I'd like to do more of it.
I also really like to learn new things-I'm working on Italian right
now. I can't stop myself from balancing
my checkbook-I do it often and to the penny!
Judy:
Tell
me something about yourself that most people don't know:
Larry: I'm a pilot with
commercial and instrument rating. I used
to fly my own plane.
Amanda: When
I was 15, I went to the World Youth Day in Denver with my church youth group. The Pope was there and at one point I was 10
feet from him. It was one of the most
memorable experiences in my life.
Both Larry and Amanda
had some additional thoughts -
Larry: It has been so much fun to watch Amanda grow musically. When
she decides to do something, she makes it happen. I am so proud of her.
Amanda: My dad is the whole reason I joined COTS in
the first place. I so enjoyed watching
him perform when I was younger, and I knew I wanted to be a part of the fun
when I grew up. He instilled in me a love
of all kinds of music and I'm so glad that I get to share this experience with
him. Singing in COTS together means I
get to see him a lot more than I would otherwise with our busy lives.
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