Hobby takes performance coach to some pretty interesting places

BY JOHN DECOSTE

jdecoste@kentvilleadvertiser.ca

NovaNewsNow.com

Theresa Weatherbee’s hobby continues to take her to some interesting places.

Weatherbee, a Wolfville native who now lives in Highbury near Kentville, is an international barbershop harmony performance coach, contest judge and choreographer, as well as the director of the Valley Voices women’s barbershop chorus.

Earlier this year, her expertise as a performance coach took her to New Zealand, where she spent four weeks, at the invitation of the New Zealand Barbershop Society (NZABS), “teaching and training trainers.”

The idea of the ‘Train the Trainers’ concept, she said, is “to give them the skills to continue teaching and training” and, by doing so, “leave them the means to teach themselves.”

During her time in New Zealand, Weatherbee travelled up to 400-500 kilometres on some days, teaching during the week and evaluating director’s workshops on the weekends.

She was one of three ‘experts’. One, from Upper Canada, taught director skills; another, from California and New Zealand, taught the musical and vocal skills. Weatherbee was in charge of teaching performance skills and working with the music teams.

Together, she said, “we made an amazing team. It was an education for our trainers and a real eye-opener for me.” It also served as “a growth experience. I came back all fired up” with new ideas, which she is now passing on to her own chorus.



In Russia this summer

Later this summer, Weatherbee has been invited to St. Petersburg, Russia for a 10-day barbershop harmony festival sponsored by the Russian government.

“Some of the highest quality teachers in Russia are invited,” she says. “I’ll be teaching three masters classes at the Conservatory of Music.”

She was asked to take part by Dr. Greg Lyne, one of the foremost teachers, coaches and musical arrangers on the male side of barbershop harmony, who is also a presenter.

The Megacity chorus from Toronto, which Weatherbee has been coaching and working with for the past two years, will make the trip also.

“It will be the first time a Canadian chorus will have traveled to Russia for anything like this,” she said, “and to have one of the head coaches a Canadian too is pretty special.”

Weatherbee will be “teaching basic choreography skills, and how to teach choreography, to some of the foremost music educators in Russia,” along with “using the MegaCity chorus as a demo chorus.”

Asked how busy her hobby keeps her, Weatherbee said, “I’m busy at least two weekends a month, and I could do more. Between coaching, teaching at schools and judging, I’m away every other weekend, though normally not for that long.”



‘You have to prioritize like mad’

She started in the judging program about 12 years ago “as a way of becoming better known as a coach and using my skills to help performers be the best they can be.”

As part of her education as a judge, “my skills just grew. I must have done some good work over the years, because I’m now in demand for the things I do.

“When I became a certified judge, my mentor told me there would come a day when I would have to turn away business. I laughed at the time, but it’s come true.”

Moreover, “I also have a job in there and a family, as well as directing a local chorus. It can get crazy at times and you have to prioritize like mad.

“Thankfully, my husband is totally supportive, which is great because there’s not a lot of money in this; just the satisfaction of seeing people succeed. It’s more than a hobby. It’s a lifestyle, and it’s definitely not for everyone.”

Weatherbee, who broke new ground in our region a few years ago as a female director of a male barbershop chorus (the Dukes of Kent), is looking for the day “when females will be allowed to judge in men’s competitions.

“I’m certified to do that now,” she says. “I’ve gone to all the schools, taken all the courses and graduated with top honours. Last November, I received a new name badge with the logos of both the men’s and ladies’ barbershop societies.”

In New Zealand, she worked under the auspices of the men’s barbershop society, and in her sessions, “found about half male and half female directors. It’s not uncommon these days. We work together and use each other’s resources for the betterment of both sides.”

She would like to get into motivational speaking and also teaching and coaching motivational speakers and other performers. “We use a lot of the same skills, and I’m doing it all the time anyway.”