Rita   (Chief Cosmo Chick)

According to my parents, I started singing at nine months and could harmonize by age two. (Really?) Now whether or not  that’s accurate, I can’t remember a time in my life when I was NOT singing. My mom, my dad (a real ham and perfect Jolson mimic) his three brothers, my sister and even my grandparents, all sang – at home, in the car, at every family get-together. The first of many songs I’ve written was composed when I was nine. Unlike many children, I begged my parents to let me take piano lessons. In sixth grade, I wrote and starred in an abbreviated version of  “H.M.S Pinafore”; in my junior high school’s production of “The Mikado”, I was one of the “Three Little Maids”; during high school, I was in Girls’ Chorus and in college, I was “Song Leader” of my sorority. Writing parodies for friends and family for special occasions became an avocation many years ago. Now, having written more than 100, I write parodies professionally. For over 20 years, I was both a third grade teacher as well as Chorus Director of as many as  60 students. I also wrote and directed  musical productions at the end of every school year. After retiring from teaching in 2005, I fantasized about starting a singing group. Gathering musical friends and forming “Rita & The Cosmos” has been a dream come true. Creating four part  arrangements and having them come to life through the voices of my treasured ensemble has been a thrill. Performing them for appreciative audiences is the icing on the cake!

 

  I started singing at the age of two and haven’t stopped since! Because my mother was a well -known opera singer in Memphis, Tennessee, I had music in my life from an early age. I loved being in the chorus of her operas, singing in the school chorus, and performing in school musicals. When I had my two sons and worked as Office Manager for my husband’s engineering firm, singing in the shower had to suffice. Later, I sang in the College of Marin chorus for a few years. After a dinner party at the home of a mutual friend, as the guests were starting to leave, Rita and I, joined by the hostess, sang a few bars of “Show Me the Way to Go Home”. It was a short time later that I was invited to be part of  “Rita & The Cosmos” which was just being formed. What a wonderful way to sing and I really enjoy being with such a fantastic group of gals. We have loads of fun practicing as well as performing!

  Toni   (Hula Honey)

My entire family was musically inclined and we sang together all the time. I had a natural ability to harmonize and so when I was in  my first school chorus in the sixth grade, I gravitated to the alto section where I have remained ever since, singing in choruses and choirs throughout my life. Working as a nurse at UCSF, I was able to combine my vocation with my avocation as we sang folk songs over the PA system to our patients in labor. That was back in the sixties and we may have been the pioneers of music therapy. It was a happy day when Rita (who had taught my children years earlier) invited me to join “Rita & The Cosmos” which has allowed me to sing on a weekly basis when we practice and even more frequently when we perform. Blending my voice with the members of this group of lively, lovely, sassy women has given me some of the most joyful moments in my many years of singing. Along the way, I have added hula dancing to my list of hobbies and interests. Music in all of its forms nurtures my body and soul!

 

  My mother told me that I could sing before I could string a sentence together. I remember standing on a chair in Grandma’s kitchen performing “My Heart Cries For You”, although my mother thinks it was “Daddy’s Little Girl” that I sang. Because I was so shy in school, I rarely participated in Chorus, but once I became an adult, I came out of my shell a bit and found friends with whom I could sing and harmonize. Having married Jim, a singer/songwriter/gardener, I always got great pleasure when he and I made music together. Shortly after I was introduced to my husband’s friend, Sam, and his wife, Bobbi, we began working on songs that Jim had written. What a wonderful time we had as Sam played guitar and Bobbi and I sang backup. When Bobbi told me that her singing group was looking for another soprano, I decided to audition. Fortunately, as they say, the rest is history. Long live “Rita & The Cosmos”!

  There was always music on in my home, especially Broadway musicals and opera. We loved to sing as a family. My mom played the piano and sang in the church choir that her dad directed. My dad was an actor and director of local theater. My two sisters and I all took piano lessons and played other instruments as well. In my youth, I pursued a career in classical ballet in both Canada and Europe. Since then, I have loved my work as a geriatric physical therapist, but found that I missed performing. Singing in church was when I realized just how much I love to sing with others. It touches a place within me that nothing else can. That realization prompted me to pursue singing lessons. By coincidence, my vocal coach played tennis with Bobbi, whose singing group was looking for another soprano. It was serendipity when I auditioned for the group. Because I am so devoted to my work with older adults, I now have the opportunity to add my voice to the other five gals when we perform for this same population as well as at other events. I found my perfect match when I joined “Rita & The Cosmos”! Whether at rehearsals, private parties or senior centers, singing with them gives me so much joy!