Emotional Trip To New York For Marin Choir

Just to hear a concert at Carnegie Hall is a special treat, but to perform before a packed house on the famed New York stage is a once in a lifetime experience.

SingersMarin founder Jan Pedersen Schiff has skewed the curve a little bit. She was at Carnegie Hall in 2006 as a guest conductor, but this time she gladly handed over the baton to one of her modern idols.

Pedersen Schiff and the SingersMarin choir recently returned home after a Nov. 27 performance at Carnegie Hall with conductor John Rutter, who composed the song This is the Day, which was performed at the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Katherine Middleton.

"It's another wonderful experience. I sang as a soprano with the choir. I don't get that chance often as a conductor," Pedersen Schiff said. "I had the chance to witness an amazing musician bring the best out of these talented singers. I loved watching him."

SingersMarin will include selections from the New York performance during their Dec. 18 concert at the Marin Center Veterans' Memorial Auditorium.

"It was fabulous. Jan really prepared us well for this experience to sing before a full house. It was really exciting," Greenbrae resident Maureen Sweeney said. "It was a bucket-list experience to me. I never thought I'd be doing this. It was thrilling."

Sweeney even had Rutter autograph a copy of This is the Day, "For Maureen, very best wishes, John Rutter."

"To sing in Carnegie hall and to be behind the stage, it's an experience that is so wonderful, so moving," Sweeney said. "I wasn't nervous at all. We had rehearsed quite a bit. It was more a joyous experience, with holiday music. Jan prepared us very well. People in Marin who enjoy the joy of singing ought to look at SingersMarin."

Sweeney took in all of New York during her trip, including a Broadway performance of How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying and a visit to the 9/11 Memorial.

"To be able to go to the site is wonderful. It's such a solemn experience, such an intimate experience," Sweeney said.

Sweeney searched through all the names engraved in the memorial and found one that she recognized: Lauren Catuzzi Grandcolas and her unborn child.

Grandcolas was on her way home to San Rafael on Sept. 11, 2001 after her grandmother's funeral in New Jersey. Grandcolas was a passenger on board United Airlines Flight 93 during the attacks. The 38-year-old called her husband Jack, reporting a problem before the hijacked plane crashed.

"I was touched to see Lauren's name along with her unborn child," Sweeney said.

SingersMarin has a busy holiday season coming up, including a performance in Tiburon on Friday. Just Voices, the a cappella ensemble, will sing holiday favorites at Max's of Corte Madera on Dec. 9.