Under the Tree

Paul Hume (Music Critic of The Washington Post)

The Georgetown Chimes are far too lively to be discussed as any kind of an “Institution.” Nevertheless, they are now a respectable twelve years old, having been brought into corporate existence by Frank Jones back in 1946. During their years of singing, the Chimes have become one of the most popular facets of life around this campus, and many female campuses; they also appear with the Glee Club, whose programs they customarily brighten. The Chimes function autonomously, musically speaking. Their repertoire is chosen by the leader, the Ephus, and is prepared and sung entirely at the impulse of the members of the group. The membership changes from year to year as faces disappear after Commencement and October tryouts bring new faces and voices to their ranks. As I watch and listen to them from concert to concert I often marvel at the easy friendliness of style and the smooth way they toss off their numbers. That the obvious camaraderies of the Chimes pays dividends in the blend of their voices, the unanimity with which they take on a song and the knowledgeable manner they show on stage is a fact more college groups could study. They have found a way of selling whatever they sing to an audience by the way they sing it, and that is the secret of good choral singing any day.