Out Of The Blue To Hit The Right Note In Us

Illawarra Mercury

Saturday September 23, 2006

By the Mercury's Business Editor GREG ELLIS

WOLLONGONG'S Out of the Blue Singers are off to the United States next week to join a chorus of about 140 women competing in an international Sweet Adeline Barbershop competition.

The director of the US chorus, called Pacific Empire Chorus, took the Out of The Blue Singers to a competition in Brisbane earlier this year. But Wollongong businesswoman Louise Meyrick, of Meyrick and Associates, said this would be much bigger and they expected to perform before an audience of 12,000.

Most members of the Wollongong chorus have had careers in the public sector, teaching, training and business.

Now they are using modern technology to enable them to train with the Pacific Empire Chorus.

This has involved downloading podcasts of Pacific Empire rehearsals, practising the songs hundreds of times in the gym, bathroom, while walking, driving and in their lounge rooms, and then sending solo recordings to the US by email for assessment and feedback.

Mrs Meyrick said the friendships developing with their US counterparts were wonderful.