Every Concert Tour concluded with a Home Concert which was held on campus in the Theatre-Auditorium. In 1970, the Artist-in-Residence in the Department of Music was acclaimed soprano Carrol Anne Curry. She is pictured here singing “Lida Rose” from The Music Man along with members of the choir’s Quartet. The boater hats they are wearing came from The Father’s Moustache pub in Montreal. Montreal was the last stop of the tour, and choristers enjoyed some time at the pub before boarding the bus, late at night, for the long ride back to Waterloo.

Train station, Valparaiso, Indiana, 1970. Above, the boxes (also jokingly referred to as “the coffins” ) used to transport the choir gowns. The choir did all its own loading and unloading of equipment.

Standing on top of the church sign in Pittsburg during the Concert Tour of 1972.

Carmen 1972

"The choirs… were excited to be asked to be part of this two-performance gig, but were crestfallen to discover that the opening night reception for artists (including orchestra members) and patrons was not open to the 80 or so in the student choir. We channeled our disenchantment with such seeming elitism into planning our own party to follow the next evening's performance. Most of us jammed into a small house on the rim of WLU and were having a fine time when the doorbell rang and there [with Walter Kemp and Raffi Armenian] was the star, Maureen Forrester! She was dressed in a silver lamé pantsuit and wore a mink coat; and, as these party-crashers entered to cheers, one of the choristers hollered, "Hey, Carmen, how about a beer!" She accepted immediately and joined in the fun. I suspect our WLU prof and another prof, Victor Martens (who, several inches shorter than Ms. Forrester, had sung with her the love scenes as Don Jose) issued the invitation, but I'm sure she didn't need much persuading – and my memory of this grand lady, seated with several others in the stairwell, hoisting a beer and visiting with the gang, will always remain vivid."

From an article by Carolyn McBean in the Globe and Mail, June 25, 2010.

It was my party at my house – 19 Bricker Street. It was 1972 and I was in first year. I stood in my kitchen and shared an open bottle of wine with Maureen, Raffi and Walter. I didn't know any better – I invited everyone – and they all came!

Rob Asselstine

Carmen rehearsal photo credit: Rob Asselstine. Photo features the University Choir with the KW Symphony Orchestra and Maureen Forrester.

In September of 2002, I became aware that former choir members from my era, and a bit later, were getting together to reminisce about our experiences back then and do some singing together to see if we were still good enough for public consumption. Having lost my husband to cancer in July of that year, I was looking for feel-good connections and old friends, so I travelled to Waterloo to see who else would show up. And here we are in 2021, still together, making music and doing some good things for the university we love at the same time.

As is true for the others, choir was a big part of my extracurricular life at WLU, and a great source of friends and fun. My favourite memory from that time was singing in the marvellous Marie Reine du Monde cathedral in Montreal during our Centennial Tour in 1967 ... as a token of friendship ... what a magnificent experience!

Eileen Mercier (BA '68, Hon LLD '13)

Since its inception, the WLU Alumni Choir has shown itself to be a 5-star asset in the "treasury" of the WLU Faculty of Music. Not only has it provided direct financial assistance to a host of deserving singers, it has contributed significantly to the current building project [Making Space for Music], which will enhance the lives of all music students. I'm proud to be a founding member of this intentional and ever-expanding community of singing alumni!

Daniel Lichti, Associate Professor Emeritus, Faculty of Music, Laurier

Click here to listen to a recording by the WLU Alumni Choir from the mid-2000s.