Second row. The lights dim.
“Ladies and gentlemen…”
A few days before, The Boy and I had been given tickets to this concert. We knew it would be good. It was the first show we went to when we moved here, just a month after we arrived. We’d seen them later at the Jazz Fest. One year, I took my neighbour and we sat behind a pillar in the general seating venue.1 During lockdown, we bought tickets for ourselves and several other friends to watch online.
Jireh.2
Montreal Gospel Choir.3
“JOY!”
The explosion of sound booms against my heart, numb and a little closed off. It’s been a tough year and the last month has been so hard.
“JOY!”
Boom.
We aren’t feeling very joyful, but we are here and that is something. We stand with the crowd, clapping.
“Joy to the world, the Lord is come”
A crack inside. This familiar carol, reminding me of joyful Christmases past.
“And heaven and nature sing”
An unexpected tear slides down my cheek.
I know these singers are real people. With real stories, real lives. But in this moment they are as glamorous as can be, smiling, standing tall, dancing because they can’t not dance, singing. Despite it all.
“Joy to the earth, the Saviour reigns”
The director is our friend, a strong, powerful, kind woman who has been through her share of battles too.4 She directs expertly, confidently, breaking into laughter and solos of her own from time to time.
More tears.
Somewhere during the second song, the stranger beside me hands me tissues, and I whisper, “Merci”.
And then all goes quiet.
A single, low voice. It is Carol’s.5
“Precious Lord, take my hand
Lead me on, let me stand
I’m tired, I’m weak, I’m worn”
And I cry. This is a song from my own teenage years, and it was old then. No one else my age listened to the music I listened to, gospel quartets with their perfect harmonies.
We are tired.
“Through the storm, through the night
Lead me on to the light
Take my hand, precious Lord
Lead me home”
How many times had I listened to JD Sumner6 sing these words? I loved the song then. And I cry now.
The rest of the show is off the hook. We laugh, we cheer and whistle.7 We gasp at “Deliver Daniel”. We watch and applaud the skill of the band. We’re both musicians. We know stellar musicians when we hear them.
At the end, we exit quietly, navigating through the crowd. We will metro home, change our clothes, and head out again to help a friend this evening. We’re bringing dinner, and honestly, it’s not the best meal we’ve ever made, but it’ll do.
“She blew the doors off,” says My Boy.
“Seriously,” I respond. “They’ve levelled UP.”
He nods. We walk a few more steps.
“We needed that,” I say.
“No kidding,” he answers.
Still worth it.
Incredible. https://jirehgospelchoir.com
Also fantastic. https://montrealgospelchoir.com/index.html
Shout-out to Carol Bernard, woman of strength. https://jirehgospelchoir.com/en/biography/
And even as I write that, I second-guess myself. Was it Carol’s voice? Or was it one of the others? At any rate, in my memory, it was Carol’s voice. And whether it was or wasn’t Carol’s, that voice was exactly right.
Lowest bass singer in the world for a time. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._D._Sumner
Jeff whistles. I can’t whistle.