Troubadours, guest singers perform annual spring concert

Northfield’s beloved men’s chorus, The Troubadours, made a strong statement Sunday afternoon by opening their spring concert with the uplifting spiritual, “Let All Men Sing” by Keith Christopher.

The program sung by the 25-strong chorus followed up with a number of other traditional spiritual anthems, including “Down By the River Side,” “Gonna Sing When the Spirit Says Sing” and a choral blessing “And Wherever You Go.”

St. Peter’s Lutheran Church was the venue for the 3 p.m. spring concert that featured guest performers Bob and Ann Gregory-Bjorklund. During a brief intermission between Act I and Act II, the husband-wife singing duo began their set with “Side By Side” by Stephen Sondheim, before sliding into a couple numbers by Irving Berlin and followed by a Eubie Blake song. David Miller accompanied them on the piano.

Perhaps most memorably was Bob Gregory-Bjorklund’s rendition of the classic Broadway showstopper “If I Were a Rich Man” from “Fiddler on the Roof.”

The guest performers finished with a sing-along to the silly song “Lydia, the Tattooed Lady” that was performed by Groucho Marx and the MGM Studio Orchestra.

The second act included favorites from “The Rat Pack” a medley by Ryan O’Connell, “76 Trombones” from Meredith Silson’s “The Music Man,” and “Blue Moon” by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart.

The set ended with a rousing tribute to the Armed Services.

Members of the Northfield Troubadours include: Tenors Keith Homstad, Ken Lee, Russ Margulies, Stan Partin and Luther Peterson; Baritones include David Appleyard, Paul Grabowski, Randy Hachfeld, Don Niehaus, Ken Paulson and Larry Walhendorf; Lead singers include Duane Everson, Terry Gilbertson, Craig Grunzke, Jeff Latterell, Tim Morisette, Charles Skinner, Dan Underwood and Robert Williams; Bass singers include Tom Gagnon, Rich Graves, Sam Johnson, Hanard Lien, Bill Mark and Leon Tietz.

Founded in 1978, the Troubadours have been singing to audiences in and around Northfield ever since Marilyn Wing had the notion to form the chorus. Today, the Troubadours are ably directed by Gretchen Gillis, and accompanied on piano by Joanne Harris Rodland.

The Troubadours rehearse at FiftyNorth Senior Center in room 103 on Tuesday at 10 a.m. Anyone interested in singing with the group is welcome to join.