An Atmosphere Of Energy And Anointing

Chelsea Aldridge  
Junior @ Wheaton
Gospel Choir President


     One thing I know for sure about Gospel Choir is that we are not performers but those who desire to lead Praise and Worship, (which is why I absolute love our concerts!) We don’t just praise God when the concert starts, but moreover by the end of our sound-check we hope to set an atmosphere of energy and anointing; one that our audience will feel invited to join in the praise. There is no doubt that back stage or center stage, GC concerts are Fun from start to finish!
     Choir has become a close part of life here at Wheaton and it's not uncommon to see us doing the following: singing, dancing, stepping, rapping, jumping, leaping, shouting, crying, praying, praising, and ministering the Word of God-- truly God is with us through it all! I love the opportunity of being a part of a representation of what heaven will be like. This is  demonstrated this unique group of students who are culturally and ethnically diverse, who are all unified by their love for Jesus and music. I thank God for blessing our choir with many opportunities to travel and have concerts in multiple places both nationally and internationally. We’ve also had the privilege to build relationships with professional gospel artists such as Israel Houghton, Marvin Sapp, and Fred Hammond, who have also grown to love our choir.
     One of the great blessings in my experience with GC is knowing that during our concerts many people have come to know the Lord for the first time, or have recommitted they're life to Jesus, because they felt encouraged by our ministry. Witnessing such praise reports like this  make our concerts that much more humbling and a blessing to usher God's faithfulness!


Enjoy these clips taken from our fall concert last fall and our choir trip to the How Sweet The Sound Choir Competition earlier in the semester. We met some pretty cool people while we were there ;) 

Recap: Nation Anthem at McCully Stadium

Tiffany Egler

Wheaton Alum 11'

Assistant Choir Director

    Just a few months ago, we were given the great opportunity to sing the National Anthem at Wheaton's McCulley Stadium for a football game. As a gospel choir, we made sure to put our spin on the song as you'll hear on the video. Practicing for the National Anthem was pretty fast paced because the majority of the students already knew the words and the basic melody. My mother, Director Tanya Egler, often does rearranging in the car while running errands, so I'm pretty positive that's how she came up with the arrangement we sang. She decided to give the song a more upbeat and celebratory feel while maintaining a bit of the traditional delivery of the song with a more choral gospel feel at the end. The beat was a little different, the delivery was a little different, but the essence of the song remains the same. We ended rehearsal before the game a little bit early to give  time to walk to the field and get situated. Everyone was excited to sing and show some Wheaton Thunder pride. We had a great time singing and cheering on our team. 

      As we prepare for each semester musically, we definitely listen for the Lord's leading. We look for music that fits the style of our choir, engages our audiences, and most importantly, glorifies God. We stay updated by singing the latest music in Gospel music such as Israel Houghton's Everywhere that I Go, but we also incorporate traditional songs like Oh Happy Day by Edwin Hawkins to keep our repertoire broad and diverse just like the body of Christ. These songs proclaim God's truth and are just plain fun to sing. GC is all about glorifying the Lord, reaching out to others, and having a great time doing it. It only makes sense that the music we sing would do the same. That's what we aim for every semester. 

We're Back and Kickin' 25th Anniversary Shout-out

Ryan Tolbert
Junior @ Wheaton
Publicity Manager & Choir Member 

Hey fam,
   Sorry to leave you all hanging for the last 8 months. It's been a long semester of planing, concerts, and preparing for big events coming up on the horizon. As we changed the banner above earlier this year to indicate a new season, were excited to announce that we have existed in 25 years in God's Faithfulness. This year the Choir celebrates it's  Silver anniversary!  
   
   On that note we promise to keep you guys updated about some of the great events coming up this spring as well as some of our journey from last semester. We've recorded a Cd that will be released in March, sang the national anthem for the Wheaton football team, met some famous Gospel Musicians and experienced many ups and downs along the way! Stay tuned to hear more and tell your friends. 


Here's a Forward from our Tour Coordinators: Nikki and Koko

Praise the Lord!  GC has reached its 25th Anniversary!  We are so excited for what is in store for this years celebration.  We have already completed recording our latest CD titled LEGACY which will be coming out in March.  The CD features songs written by GC's director Tanya Egler and her family, old favorites and originals written by alumni.  It will be debuted during our Release Party also in March. We will be giving God the glory for His faithfulness of 25 years at our Spring Concert on April 28th, 2012, which will be held in Wheaton College's Edman Chapel.  GC alumni from the past 25 years are invited to join us as well as family members, supporters, and anyone who wants to sing praises with us.  We are also very excited to be hosting our Legacy Ball which will follow the Concert.  Special Anniversary packages are available for purchase on the Wheaton Bookstore Website some of which include: tickets to the Concert and Ball, LEGACY CD, Documentary, and more! Thank you so much for supporting and look forward to celebrating with you.

Stay Tuned!

25th Anniversary And Up Coming Events!

 

Its been a long time since our last post and theres a lot we want to tell you about. Stay tuned for more information. We plan to resume posts soon.  

For Now Check out whats next on the forefront...

25th Annual Fall Concert

Friday November 18 2011

Coray Auditorium

421 Chase St, Wheaton IL, 60187

7:30pm 

Mark Your Calendars...

Wheaton College Gospel Choir

25th Anniversary Celebration

Saturday April 28th 2012

Edman Chapel

4pm 

*Tickets Available on campus in the College Box Office next to the bookstore

Contact us

Questions?

Email or Call us... 

Gospel.Choir@wheaton.edu

630.752.5251 

I'm Walkin': Gospel Choir's 24th Annual Concert

Ryan Tolbert
Sophomore @ Wheaton
Publicity Manager & Choir Member 

Yup Yup! Praise with us Next Saturday, bring your friends and family!  

First Baptist Church of Fort Lauderdale Footage

Ryan T. - Southfield, MI 
Sophomore @ Wheaton 
Publicity Manager & Choir Member 


March 13th we sung at First Baptist Church of Fort Lauderdale during the end of our spring break tour. This is a video of our performance on youtube... make sure to check it out! :D 


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlxPZFrbUSE 

Psalm 150

Great times with friends and family

Haley H. - Williamsport, PA

Sophomore @ Wheaton 

Things ended up not working out with our second host families, so Grace, Mimi, Michelle & I stayed with Jocelyn Cox and her family. This little mix-up was the perfect testimony to the control that God has on our lives and the way he works seemingly stressful situations into absolute blessings.  Because things did not work out the way I had planned, I was able to spend precious time with amazing ladies from the Gospel Choir, getting to know them better and hearing how God has worked through their lives.  On top of that, the hospitality that was shown through Byron and Stacy Cox was incredible, and they made me feel so comfortable and welcome.  One night after a long day of leading others in worship with the rest of GC, all of us girls were sitting around the Cox's kitchen table with Mrs. Cox, and she shared her unbelieveable testimony with us- talk about amazing.  Later on in our stay I was so blessed by Mimi as we shared our life stories with each other around the Cox's pool after devouring plates of Jamaican chicken, macaroni and cheese, and mashed potatoes, compliments of the wonderful women at Rhema Church.  On top of all of this, I was so incredibly blessed by Jenna and Jocelyn's musical talent as they played songs on the piano and guitar and sang beautiful harmonies together. I was also blessed with a night of laughter as Mr. Cox shared all of his stories of the chapel pranks he and the rest of the Wheaton swim team used to try to pull off (unfortunately none of them were ever very successful). Everything about our short stay with Cox family was a gift from God.  If I learned anything from this experience it was that God truly is in control of every situation of our lives, and He works everything out for the good of those who love Him.  


Hallelujah- God is so good! 

One last picture of the whole choir and band outside of First Baptist Church of Fort Lauderdale before we headed
the airport.

(Left to Right) Haley H,  Mimi G, Grace A.