Submitted by Kathleen Ware on
Sweet Adelines choruses from all over the world are now in full preparation mode as this year’s international competition looms large, and Circular Keys Chorus is one of them! The 2025 International Convention and Competition will be held on 20-25 October in Columbus, Ohio, USA. CKC will be competing as a ‘wildcard’ entry, after finishing second in last year’s Region 34 (Australian) competition. Redland Rhapsody, from Queensland, will also be there as the 2024 Region 34 overall winner.
The last time CKC competed internationally was in 2018, when we performed at St Louis and achieved third place in the Harmony Classics division. Some of our most experienced members have left since then and many new members have joined, so for a lot of us it will be the first time we’ve stepped out onto the world stage together and shared that exhilarating mixture of anticipation, excitement and sheer terror. But fear not – our musical director, Vicki Dwyer, is an old hand at managing world class performances, having taken CKC to three previous Sweet Adelines internationals over the years. She also performed last year with her quartet, Alouette, at the Kansas City international competition.
So between now and October, it’s full steam ahead with regular Wednesday night rehearsals, weekend workshops with visiting coaches, and plenty of singing around the home as we perfect our parts. We’ll be performing a brand new uptune and new ballad, which has been arranged especially for the chorus.
But it’s not all about the destination, because we’re already enjoying the rewards of the journey itself: friendships forged out of a common purpose, guilty treats on Wednesday nights, and of course, the opportunity to create rich, beautiful music together. Nonetheless, there’s nothing like a hard deadline and a fixed goal to whip up the motivational winds needed to take this year’s epic adventure to its grand finale, so get ready Ohio – here we go!
