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January 2012: Powder Keg Disbands

Turn out the lights, the party's over. Yes, the sad news is true. Powder Keg has decided to call it quits. See our home page for our official farewell message.

The breakup of the group has been met by shock and horror around the world. Numerous luminaries have released statements:

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon: "We are forming a special study group to look into the idea of a blue ribbon panel that will consider assembling a committee to examine the cessation of quartet activities by Powder Keg. However, any decisions reached will not be binding. We take this very seriously."

Queen Elizabeth II: "We are not amused."

Rev. Jesse Jackson: "For the chords to ring, the girls must sing."

President Barack Obama: "We can't continue a system where the top 1% of barbershop quartets win 99% of the medals. I see an America with a level playing field where quartets of all degrees of ability are permitted to wear crowns. That is what the Founding Fathers had in mind when they established the rules of 4-part harmony."

Capt. James T. Kirk: They've quit, Bones. You take their pitch pipe. I'll take their water bottles."

Harry Caray: "I you were a hotdog, would you eat yourself? I know I would."

Nancy Grace: "Powder Keg has broken up? Well, boo-h00!"

Stephen King: "Powder Keg - they were the scariest quartet of them all!"

Vladimir Putin: "Powder Keg should get their crossbows and coming hunting for Siberian tigers with me. I, of course, will hunt shirtless."

Bill O'Reilly: "For entertaining us for two years, the girls of Powder Keg are . . . patriots."

Michael Moore: "Powder Keg was an inside job."

Jennifer Cooke: "Who?"

FRED Quartet: "I want to be sedated."

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: "The zionist entity Powder Keg has ceased to exist. They were a zionist entity, weren't they?"

Rosie O'Donnell: "See, now that's why I don't wear sequins."

Lisbeth Salander: " . . . . . . "

Chris Crocker: "Leave Britney alone!!!"

Eric Cartman: "Screw you guys. I'm goin' home."

Kyle Broflovski: "Shut up, Cartman!!"

Sheldon Cooper: "That's no reason to cry. One cries because one is sad. For example, I cry because others are stupid, and that makes me sad."

 

December 2011: Kathe Has Us In Stitches

It was a great day for commerce when Kathe Schellman decided to offer her skills as a seamstress to the community at large. Her business is called Sew and Sew Creations. She has been sewing for most of her life, and quartet and chorus members will all attest to the fabulous work she has done for them on costumes. Now everyone, from Penzance to Vladivostok, and from Rio de Janeiro to Coeur d'Alene, has a chance to avail themselves of her expert services. If you need any sewing done, please visit Kathe's website or her Facebook page. You'll be glad you did!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

October 21, 2011: Ballistic! Takes Part in Rising Star Quartet Competition

Region 23 was proud to be represented in the Young Women in Harmony's Rising Star quartet competition in Houston by the up-and-coming group known as Ballistic! The members of Ballistic! are Sarah Ma (baritone), Melody Hine (bass),Tessa Raye (lead), and Melanie Schellman (tenor). Melanie is, of course, the daughter of Powder Keg baritone Kathe Schellman, while Melody Hine is the niece of Powder Keg bass Georgia Hine. The girls had a blast in Houston and look forward to competing in the future! Below the group is pictured with Melody's dad, Clay Hine.

 

 

Ballistic! plus 1: Sara, Melody, Clay, Tessa and Melanie (How about those shoes?!)

 

October 20, 2011: TOP OF THE WORLD!!! MICHELLE & MARTINI WIN!!!

Martini, featuring Michelle Shoemaker, lead emeritus of Powder Keg, have won the 2011 Sweet Adelines International quartet competition in Houston! Can anyone think of a better storyline? In 1971, Michelle's mother Portia Little, as a member of The Brons Tones, won the International Championship. Now, exactly 40 years later, her daughter, along with the other members of Martini (Corinna Garrick, tenor; DeAnne Haugen, bass; Shannon Harris, baritone) finds herself in the rarefied atmosphere of only a few - the Queens of Harmony! She has that crown now and has the honor of wearing it forever! Just try to take it away from her! We also suspect that she gets a key to the private Queens' restroom wherever she goes, plus free drinks at all venues. But perhaps that part is just wild speculation. Whatever comes with being a Queen, Michelle deserves it! Here she poses with her proud mom, both showing off their well-earned crowns:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

September 14, 2011: Tanya Hurts Her Foot

Despite her sheer athleticism, Powder Keg terrific tenor Tanya took a titanic tumble and injured her foot. It looks as if surgery will be necessary to repair her arch. Friends have clustered round to wish her a speedy recovery.

 

Sete de Setembro, 2011: Brazilian Independence Day!

Dia da Independência! On this day in 1822, Brazil declared its independence from Portugal.

 

 

 

August 18, 2011: Melody Makes Concert Choir

Melody continued her conquest of the world of music education by earning a spot in the UGA Concert Choir. Will she ever cease to amaze us?

 

August 15, 2011: Melody at UGA

Honorary Powder Kid Melody Hine started classes at the University of Georgia in Athens. She was über-excited!

 

August 13, 2011: Harmony Hills 40th Anniversay Show

The Harmony Hills Chorus of Birmingham celebrated its 40th Anniversary on Saturday with a fine concert in Alabaster. Under the direction of Dr. John Buttler, the chorus, a mainstay of Region 23, held a reunion of sorts. The show featured several quartets that have been associated with Harmony Hills over the years:

Surprise Package (Beth Buchholtz, Pam Cottingham, Janet Muller and Judy Freeman)

Merry Go Sound (Beverly Minton, Debbie Peeples, Mary Stipes and Cherry Bayliss)

Stacked Deck (Fred Braswell, Jim Cain, Ron Montgomery and Tom Cain)

Fiddlestix (Sherry Lewis, Portia Little, Michelle Shoemaker and Marcy Cunningham)

Michelle Shoemaker, or course, was the original lead of Powder Keg. Fiddlestix, as well as the other quartets were in fine form. Stacked Deck from Tuscaloosa made its first appearance with the Harmony Hills Chorus in 1971, and as a bookend to that, their performance Saturday was probably their last together, as one of their members is moving to California.

 

July 9, 2011: Derek Jeter Gets 3,000th Hit

In an unforgettable performance, Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees went 5-for-5 against the Tampa Bay Rays. The second of his 5 hits was a home run and the 3,000th hit of his illustrious career. The future Hall of Famer also drove in what turned out to be the winning run with his 5th hit of the night. In the post-game press conference, he thanked Powder Keg for its support. Or maybe he didn't. At any rate, it was a great evening.

 

May 28, 2011: Bom dia, Brasil!!

We'd like to send a shout out to our friends in Brazil who have visited the web site. Powder Keg can very easily see themselves singing in the great city of Rio de Janeiro! Four-part harmony at Carnevale!!

 

 

 

May 28, 2011: Melody Graduates

Melody Hine, niece of Powder Keg bass Georgia Hine and husband Brad (therefore an honorary Powder Kid) and daughter of Clay and Becki Hine, directors of the Atlanta Vocal Project and Song of Atlanta Show Chorus, respectively, graduated today from Chattahoochee High School. It seems like only yesterday that Melody was just a little girl, but we have seen her grow into an impressive and talented young lady. She has joined the barbershop world by becoming a member of Song of Atlanta, as well as competing in a quartet. She will attend the University of Georgia and aspires to be a music educator. We know she'll succeed, but the big question is whether she will continue to send out her Sunday Quotes via email. We've grown rather partial to those gems of widsom.

With her familial musical heritage, it's hard not to think of her when hearing the lyrics from "Baby Driver" by Simon and Garfunkel:

My daddy was the family bassman

My mamma was an engineer

And I was born one dark gray morning

With music coming in my ears

In my ears . . .

 

May 10, 2011: New Honor for Michelle

At Song of Atlanta's annual Awards & Installations Banquet, Michelle Shoemaker, former lead for Powder Keg, was honored as 2011 Sweet Adeline of the Year. Congratulations to Michelle!!

 

March 25, 2011: Region 23 Competition

As was expected, the contest in Chattanooga was hard fought, but fun. When the dust had settled, Powder Keg won the Third Place medals with a total of 562 points. Just ahead of them was Last Minute (Erica Kawano, Deidra Ekins, Rebecca Box and Sherida Foster) with 566 points. First Place was claimed by Dream (Jennifer Cooke, Stacy Llamazales, Robin Williams and Susan Milani) with an impressive score of 616. So congratulations to our friends in Dream and Last Minute!!

Dream will represent Region 23 ably at International next year, but rest assured that if for ANY reason, they are unable to compete and if for ANY reason Last Minute cannot take their place, then Powder Keg will be tanned, rested and ready to step in and carry the banner of Region 23 forward. This is a long shot, but we are reminded of the Dudley Moore sketch in which he was a one-legged man auditioning for the role of Tarzan. Just as he was convinced that if no two-legged actor could be found, he would be the leading candidate for the part, Powder Keg is standing by.

A highlight of Regional was that Tanya Zingleman and Kathe Schellman, together with Rita Bryant and Cheryl Partington temporarily brought their fabulous championship quartet Peach Jam back to life to the great delight of listeners. It was the first time since 2001 that the four had sung together, and it brought back so many happy memories! They raised the bar for Region 23 quartets.

 

February 26, 2011: Powder Kid Alert! Melanie's Debut

The Song of Atlanta Show Chorus held its first concert of the year Saturday, and it had special significance for two of the Powder Keg Family.

Kathe Schellman was bursting with pride to have her daughter Melanie performing for the first time as an official member of the chorus.

Looking as radiant as an Olympic figure skater, Melanie is pictured next to her happy mom. If a photo of Melanie in her showtime outfit and makeup had been placed in general circulation, there is no doubt that a vast throng of teenaged boys would have been present at the venue.

Meanwhile, Powder Keg the quartet provided part of the entertainment at the afterglow following the SOA show. Still tuning up for competition in Chattanooga!

 

February 13, 2011: On the Road Again

The Starship Powder Keg blasted off from its moorings and traveled to the lovely town of Grayson, where the quartet sang for a Valentines luncheon held at Grayson's First Baptist Church. What better occasion to sing than a celebration of love! Many thanks to the good people of Grayson!

 

The Show Must Go On!

After the big trip to Seattle, Powder Keg, in an understandable lapse of enthusiasm, procrastinated when it came to searching for a new lead. It looked as if they would not be competing at the Regional Competition in Chattanooga in March. But then, they learned that Virtuosity, the quartet that edged Powder Keg for the title in Chattanooga in 2010, would not be able to compete this year. Therefore, they asked to borrow Alexis Delaney, the talented lead of Virtuosity, on a temporary basis. All parties agreed and Powder Keg is back in business again.

Alexis has a wealth of experience and has stood in the winner's circle on a number of occasions in the past. It will be interesting to see what chemistry results when Alexis adds her voice to those of the three remaining Raging Keggers. The prognosis is good. Very good. Alexis is seen here wearing one of her not inconsiderable collection of blue ribbons from previous contests.

 

 

Michelle: Exit Stage Left

Michelle's success with Martini is already documented. With her at lead, the vocal compatibility and the personal chemistry were undeniable, resulting in a 5th place finish among quartets. So it was no surprise when Martini inivited Michelle to join them permanently! Who wouldn't take advantage of such a wonderful opportunity! We enjoyed the time we had with Michelle singing lead for Powder Keg, and we wish her and Martini the best in future competition. Judging by how they did in Seattle, great things are definitely in store for the talented foursome, and we'll be cheering them on!

That, of course, leaves Powder Keg with a vacancy. Do we become a barbershop trio . . . or do we leave no stone unturned and find a replacement for Michelle and continue on and ever upward? We can view this as a dilemma . . . or as an opportunity! Stay tuned. One of the best things about life is that we never know what will happen next.

October, 2010: Competition in Seattle

Seattle was the setting for the Sweet Adelines 2010 International Convention, and choruses and quartets from all the barbershop world gathered to compete. All four members of Powder Keg were part of the Song of Atlanta Show Chorus, which hoped to improve on its 6th place finish at the 2008 Convention in Honolulu. The top ten choruses receive medals but the top five receive BIG medals! With that in mind, SOA spent hours in final rehearsals before the contest, sneaking out during downtime to sample the sights and tastes of Seattle. In what was taken as a good omen, the sun was out all week in Seattle. Sweet Adelines were spared the usual rain.

Hard work and perseverance paid off as SOA performed its way into the top ten choruses on Thursay, October 21st. They punched their ticket into the finals held on Saturday, October 23rd. At last they would be able to perform their "Fairy Set", featuring colorful costumes, flamboyant makeup and an entertaining program of music with the themes of fairies and flying. After the fairy dust had settled on Saturday night at Key Arena, SOA had earned 4th place medals with yellow ribbons. That's 4th in the world! And if we assume there are no barbershop choruses on the other 8 planets (7 if you view Pluto as only an asteroid), that's 4th place in the solar system!! SOA's ranking in the entire Milky Way is still not clear, but undoubtedly very high.

On Wednesday the 20th and Friday the 21st, individual quartets competed. Powder Keg's Michelle was singing lead for Martini. They advanced to the finals with a wonderful performance on Wednesday, and on Friday they sang their way to a 5th place finish! Once again that's 5th place in the world!! By the end of Saturday night, Michelle was so laden with medals she could hardly move.

 

September 7, 2010:  Powder Kid Flash!

Melanie Schellman, daughter of Powder Keg baritone Kathe, sat in on this week's Song of Atlanta Show Chorus rehearsal, edging closer to becoming a practitioner of "the hobby" herself. The Schellman musical dynasty lives on!

In a related development, Powder Kid Kelso Hine, son of bass Georgia, recently played trumpet, albeit a toy trumpet, with the Roswell High School Marching Band. The 2-going-on-3 wunderkind plays several toy instruments when he is not totally absorbed by his large collection of toy animals. His musical acumen, together with his barbershop parents, would lead the casual observer to expect that it won't be long until he himself will break into song. If you are a Facebook friend of Georgia, you can see a video of the young prodigy performing with the RHS band.

 

August - September 2010:  Tanya Visits "The CH"

Our own Tanya Zingleman took a long-anticipated and well-deserved trip to Confœderatio Helvetica. That's right - Switzerland! After brushing up on her Rumantsch (a national language of Switzerland that is a cross between Italian and Klingon), the Powder Keg tenor and friend Rita Bryant, a renowned barbershopper in her own right, headed for the land of fondue and precision optics, where they were guests of Cheryl and John Partington. Their peregrinations took them to places such as Zug, Zürich and Lugano where they partook of the sights, sounds and tastes of the "North Georgia of Europe". In their wake they left cathedrals, truffles, cheeses, Swarovski crystal, enchanting lakes, sidewalk cafes, alpenhorns and even a pantomime cow.

 

August 14, 2010:  Powder Kid Makes Good!

Powder Kid Kingsley Broughton, daughter of Kathe Schellman, has earned a Master of Medical Science degree as an Anesthesia Physician's Assistant from the Emory University School of Medicine. We're not worthy, Kingsley! May we borrow just a few brain cells?

 

July 2010:  Michelle Is Summoned!!

The talented Region 26 Champions, Martini, found themselves with a small problem. Lisa Myers, their excellent lead, is scheduled to give birth to her first child in mid-October, just about the time of the International Convention in Seattle, and she decided that it would be best to play it safe and take a leave of absence from the quartet. Therefore, the group launched a search for a lead to take her place for the competition. We are proud to say that they have invited !!Michelle Shoemaker!! of Powder Keg to sing with them. She joins Sandy Robinson Marron, Shannon Harris and DeAnne Haugen for the Big Dance. So we'll be rooting for Martini as well as Region 23's Virtuosity in Seattle. You go, Michelle!

 

April 24th, 2010

Powder Keg performed at the spring concert of the Song of Atlanta Show Chorus.

 

March 27, 2010

Powder Keg was featured at the Atlanta Vocal Project's Cabaret Show.

 

March 19, 2010

Powder Keg hit the road on March 19th for the annual Sweet Adelines Region 23 competition, held in Chattanooga, Tennessee. As usual, the contest took place at the venerable Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Auditorium on McCallie Avenue, which first opened in 1924.

Powder Keg's competition slot was last that evening, which gave them the opportunity to represent Sweet Adelines quartets on local television. They appeared on WTVC Channel 9's "This N That", hosted by Don Welch weekdays at 12:30 p.m. The quartet sang "You Turned the Tables On Me" and "Love Me". The girls wish to thank Channel 9 and Don Welch for the chance to ring a few chords over the airwaves.

 

Competition

Competition was a mixture and fun and anxiety, as always. "You Turned the Tables On Me" and "Each Time I Fall In Love" were the numbers chosen to wow the judges. When all was said and done, Powder Keg had sung their way to a second-place finish out of 14 quartets, behind the formidable foursome known as Virtuosity. It was a great start to their competitive career and a cause for celebration! The top five quartets were: