DATE: Friday, August 1, 1997                TAG: 9707300164

SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER      PAGE: 08   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY ERIC FEBER, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   88 lines

JAMBOREE GOSPEL CONVENTION MAKES FOR WEEK-LONG FESTIVAL

THAT WEEKEND-LONG bout of joyful noise is returning to Chesapeake for its 32nd year.

The Virginia Annual Gospel Singing Convention will be held Aug. 8-10 in Chesapeake.

Event manager and organizer Ken Channell, also founding member and music director of the beloved Galileans singing group, said this year's singing jamboree should expect to see more than 45 groups from all over the state as well as from North Carolina, Maryland, South Carolina, Georgia, Ohio and Pennsylvania, among others.

He said all groups participating in the event are amateur singing ensembles ranging from duos to full-blown choirs. All participating singers pay their own way and expenses to participate in this well-attended singing festival.

``They're only amateur in the fact that they don't get paid for performing or earn a living singing,'' Channell said. ``But as far as talent and performing ability goes, these groups are every bit as good as the professional ones. You'd be surprised as to how good all of these groups are.''

Channell said word of the event spreads throughout the U.S. by the participating groups when they return to their home bases and through a network of over 30 gospel radio stations across the country.

The festival's musical flavor is traditional southern gospel, a four-part vocal harmony style that has its roots in the black gospel singing tradition. Most participating groups will offer this style along with some contemporary gospel, he said.

The three-day event will feature three parts: the Friday quartet showcase featuring invited gospel quartets; the Saturday and Sunday competitions featuring an array of groups competing for trophies; and the Saturday and Sunday free style sing, which will feature any and all of the participating groups in a continuous flow of vocal talent.

``On Friday night we expect 20 to 25 invited quartets to sing,'' said Channell, whose group The Galileans will close out Friday's concert. ``These are groups that have performed in the past, have been past winners or have been around long enough to have developed good performing reputations.''

Then on Saturday and Sunday, many other groups will roll up their sleeves and sing for the glory of the Lord and the chance to prove they're the best in their age and size category.

And in between the stiff singing competitions, a continuous flow of gospel talent will grace the Indian River High School stage.

``During the free style, there's no competition whatsoever,'' Channell said. ``This is just a way for us to show off all of the different singers, groups and vocal styles that annually participate in our gospel convention. We'll have one group after another on stage, there'll be no lag time between singers, just continuous singing.''

The groups and singers are backed by their own musical combos, by keyboard players or by pre-recorded backing music tracks.

And for music lovers who want to take a bit of the festival home with them, each participating group will also bring in their own tapes, compact discs and Tt-shirts for sale.

Channell said the Sheriff's Honor Guard from Chesapeake Sheriff John Newhart's office will present the colors during the event's Saturday evening patriotic hour at 7 p.m. And Chesapeake councilman W. Joe Newman will be on hand to offer official Chesapeake greetings to the assembled singers and gospel fans.

And making a joyful noise isn't the only thing that will benefit the city. Chesapeake will also hear the joyful noise of cash registers ringing up sales.

``There's a huge economic benefit to the city,'' Channell said. ``The festival brings in hundreds of singers from all over along with their fans, family and supporters. I know for a fact of two families from Maryland who come every year just to watch the performances for all three days. And all of these people who come have to stay somewhere, eat and gas up their cars, vans or buses. They also go to the stores and go shopping all over the Greenbrier area. That all brings in quite a bit of revenue to the city.''

The entire event is free to spectators but a love offering will be collected at the door to help pay for the convention's expenses. But since no tickets are needed, Channell said spectators can come and go at will.

``You can spend as much time as you want,'' he said. ``You can go and return whenever you feel like it. We've heard from people who come every year that our convention is one of the nicest ones on the East Coast. Many other gospel conventions are held outdoors but ours is indoors, held in air conditioning and comfortable seats.''

Channell said many people show up to rekindle old friendships.

``For many it's a reunion of sorts,'' he said. ``It's just a good weekend of fellowship and some of the best music you'll hear this side of heaven.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo by LAURA SOLOMON

The Galileans, from left, Ken Channell, Randy Radford, Rick Lawrence

and Kevin Mizell, will be among the

20-25 quartets invited to sing on Friday night. They will close out

that night's concert.

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