Nevada City, CA December 15, 2023 – Get into the spirit of the season at the final 2023 event for The Foundry Sings! taking place Thursday, December 21 at Miners Foundry in Nevada City. Join your friends, family and neighbors in this unique take on a group singalong. 

This popular event is open to anyone with an interest in singing and having fun, but unlike previous renditions, no lessons in harmony will be offered, said Nevada Union High School Chorus instructor and The Foundry Sings! Musical Director, Rod Baggett. “This time The Foundry Sings is primarily for singing holiday carols. We don’t make a video or work on harmony parts. It’s purely a carol singing session and we’ll sing through probably close to two dozen songs.”

Baggett has been leading singers of all levels at The Foundry Sings! events since 2018 when then Miners Foundry board member, Pamela Meek, encouraged the organization to pursue an event to bring the community together.  He has lost track of the number of songs they have offered since kicking off the program.  “I’m not sure,” he said when pressed.  “At least 30, I think.”  Videos of many of those evenings can be found on YouTube.

The Foundry Sings! is modeled after the popular Choir! Choir! Choir! a weekly drop-in singing event based in Toronto, Canada, which has attracted professional musicians such Patti Smith, David Byrne, and Rufus Wainwright to sing with the group. 

Historically, under the direction of Baggett, with the musical assistance of Jonathan Meredith, Tim Yamauchi, and others, participants would be split into groups based on vocal range, taught the harmonies of a popular song, and then brought back together to be recorded for posterity. 

On the 21st, the arrangement will be much less formal, with a focus on singing the songs of the season.  When attendees arrive, they’ll receive a sheet of lyrics to many popular holiday songs.

Attendees do not need to know how to sing to participate, another aspect that drew Baggett to the project, “I also like the concept of inviting anybody, especially people who used to sing, maybe never sang but always wanted to. I have had people say this is the only choir they have ever really been in in their whole life. I want people who think it would be fun. I want them to try it.  We aren’t trying to get it perfect. It’s going to be sloppy and messy and that’s okay.”  

The popular program is funded, in part, from a Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital, Dignity Health grant, which largely covers event production costs. “We really believe this is uniting the community and bringing folks together and the power of art and music is all very positive and really lines up from a mission perspective,” said William Hodges, Director of External Communications for Dignity Health Northern California Division Organizers.

The organizers hope to build community participation, so they will not need to rely on the grant in future years. 

Baggett is a believer in the power of music, he concluded, “There is not anything like the positive energy and the connection and bonding that people experience when they are singing together.  It’s a feel-good time.”  Baggett concluded. 

Spend an evening feeling good while catching some holiday spirit at Miners Foundry, Thursday, December 21 beginning at 6:00 p.m.

For more information about coming events:  www.minersfoundry.org.


KNOW AND GO:

WHO:  The Foundry Sings! Holiday Carols

WHERE:  Miners Foundry, 325 Spring Street, Nevada City, CA 95959

WHEN:  Thursday, December 21, 2023, Doors 5:30pm, Show 6pm

HOW:  $10 suggested donations.  No one turned away for lack of funds.

TICKETS: Available online or in person at the Miners Foundry Box Office:
325 Spring Street, Nevada City, CA 95959
Tuesday – Friday | 9:00am – 4:00pm  

The Miners Foundry Cultural Center is a living historic treasure serving Nevada County as a cultural art and community events center. More than a venue, the nonprofit’s mission is to preserve, enhance and utilize the historic Miners Foundry for cultural, educational, and social activities in Nevada County. It is a symbol of California’s rich historical heritage, providing an educational and social bridge from our past to the present and future.