Kristina Flathers, Staff Writer

Notre Dame’s oldest and perhaps best-known choir, the Notre Dame Glee Club, entered its busiest season, holding its annual Fall Concert on Friday, November 16. Although later in the year than usual, the concert had no trouble filling the Leighton Concert Hall at the Debartolo Performing Arts Center. Included in the mingling crowd were many Glee Club alumni, who joined the current Glee Club onstage to sing the closing Alma Mater and “Notre Dame Victory March.” Scott Boyle, a 2012 alumnus, joked afterward that he should have done vocal warm-ups and changed into his tuxedo at intermission.

The Glee Club pleased its eager listeners with classical and liturgical choral music, Barbershop Quartet numbers, Irish spirituals, folk songs, and more. The performance even brought audience members to their feet whistling with a new rendition of Cathy Richardson’s “Here Come the Irish.” Many of the pieces performed were part of the Glee Club’s newest album, “Rocky Road to Dublin,” which was released in August and sold during the concert’s intermission.

Sophomore Glee Club member Paul Kuczynski praised the concert’s success.

“We were not sure exactly who would show up since our concert was so late this year, but overall, the concert went very well and we had an amazing crowd! [Our fans] rock, and they had a good time, which makes all of the hours of practice and repetition worth it,” Kuczynski said. “We had been working on the fall concert pieces since September, so it was nice to perform after all that time for other people who appreciate music.”

Luckily for Kuczynski and others like him who enjoy Glee Club music, the Fall Concert was only one in a long list of Glee Club events for this season. In the week leading up to the concert alone, the Glee Club also sang the national anthem at Baraka Bouts, for the residents of Holy Cross Village, and at a wedding in the Basilica. It even had a master class with the King’s Singers, a two-time Grammy-winning men’s a cappella group from England. Moreover, Christmas is right around the corner, which means non-stop Christmas caroling around campus for the Glee Club. It is a good thing that Kuczynski and company enjoy Glee Club’s rehearsals, which are held Monday through Thursday for about 75 minutes at a time.

Kuczynski looks forward to what the season holds and never misses a “beat” in advertising his next concert.

“Now that we’re done with the fall concert, we get to start on Christmas carols for our Christmas Concert on Saturday, December 8. It should be a rollicking good time, so if you didn’t get a chance to make it to our Fall Concert, make sure to grab a ticket to one of our Christmas concerts!” the singer commented.  “They sell out quickly, and all the proceeds go to a wonderful cause: the South Bend Food Bank!”

Come take a well-deserved study break and see the Glee Club’s Christmas Concert next Saturday. If this last one was any indicator of how good it will be, then it will be a “Glee”-ful performance indeed.

Kristina Flathers is a sophomore and can be reached at kflather@nd.edu. Needless to say, she enjoys listening to Glee Club performances.