When the spirit says sing, join a choir

William Morris, Des Moines Register
·7 min read
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Hello, dear readers. I'm William Morris, and you might know me as the Des Moines Register's courts reporter. What you might not know is that I'm all about that bass — or, to be more precise, that baritone.

Welcome to Off Hours, your free weekly newsletter from the Des Moines Register that showcases all things fun you can do in central Iowa. If you sign up for our newsletter, you get to see this early Thursday morning in your inbox.

It is I, your friendly neighborhood courts reporter!
It is I, your friendly neighborhood courts reporter!

The Deal

Here's the deal: As my Twitter followers will know, I like to sing, and not just in the shower. It's what first brought me to Iowa in 2007, when I enrolled at Luther College in large part for its fantastic choral program, and I've tried to find local choirs to sing with in the various places I've lived since then.

Here I am (with bonus sister!) circa 2010 in my choir robes for a Christmas at Luther concert. Yeah, I have no idea where all that extra neck went either.
Here I am (with bonus sister!) circa 2010 in my choir robes for a Christmas at Luther concert. Yeah, I have no idea where all that extra neck went either.

Here in Des Moines, that's been the Des Moines Choral Society. The nonprofit choir is about 50 singers strong and is conducted by Dr. James Rodde, director of choral activities at Iowa State University. We usually do a winter and a spring concert plus collaborations with other musical ensembles and other various events.

Joining a new choir in fall 2021 was, ah, interesting. A global respiratory pandemic and an activity that involves exhaling as forcefully as you can is a bad mix! For our first rehearsals, we were all vaccinated … and masked … and socially distanced … in a parking garage. We're indoors now, thankfully, but are still singing in masks to be safe.

This year our repertoire includes several contemporary pieces as well as a hat trick of famous German-speaking composers whose names start with B: pieces by Johannes Brahms, Johannes Sebastian Bach and (in April, with the Des Moines Symphony) Ludwig van Beethoven. Bach thankfully at least wrote his music in Latin.

Here I am after singing in the Des Moines Symphony performance of Beethoven's 9th on April 10 at the Civic Center. I clean up not half bad, if I say so myself.
Here I am after singing in the Des Moines Symphony performance of Beethoven's 9th on April 10 at the Civic Center. I clean up not half bad, if I say so myself.

(No offense to any German readers, but it's not an easy task to sing a word like "unstirbliche" without sounding like the Muppets' Swedish Chef. That's from Brahms' "Nänie," a lovely piece that opens with a refrain roughly translated as "even the beautiful must die" — a very German thing to say.)

Our spring concert is coming up fast: May 14, 7:30 p.m., at St. Ambrose Cathedral. To find out more and get tickets for $10 for students, $15 for general admission and $20 for preferred, go to dmchoral.org. We'd love to see you there!

My top three: Choral pieces you should know

You've hopefully heard famous classics like Handel's "Messiah" and Barber's "Agnus Dei," but here are a few of my favorite pieces from more contemporary composers.

1. "Sure on this Shining Night" by Morten Lauridsen: Lauridsen, who taught more than 50 years at the University of Southern California, is one of the choral greats, and this is maybe one of his greatest pieces, with lyrics from a poem by James Agee.

My delightful roommate Shuri helps me prepare for choir practice by sitting on my rehearsal folder. Shuri is exceedingly helpful.
My delightful roommate Shuri helps me prepare for choir practice by sitting on my rehearsal folder. Shuri is exceedingly helpful.

2. "Cindy" arranged by Mack Wilberg: This is an excellent choral arrangement of a popular American folk tune that I got to sing in high school. For best effect, when you get to the piano-and-clapping interlude, imagine two dozen 16-year-old boys in tuxedos coming off the risers to the front of the stage and dancing like their lives depend on it.

3. "O Love" by Elaine Hagenberg: I would have picked this one even if the composer, Des Moines' own Elaine Hagenberg, wasn't the Choral Society composer in residence. In fact, I first sang this piece with the Northern Lights Chorale in Minnesota, before moving to Iowa, and it blew my socks off.

I'm not going to tell you how quickly I ate all of this, because this is a family newsletter and some things man was not meant to know.
I'm not going to tell you how quickly I ate all of this, because this is a family newsletter and some things man was not meant to know.

Eat This, Drink That

#11 Pizza, $18.99: Between my newness in Des Moines and the pandemic, I don't know that I've definitively identified the best pizza in town yet. Of those that I've tried, though, Eatery A definitely tops the list. On my latest visit, I tried the #11, which comes topped with Italian sausage, fennel and mushrooms. Mushrooms are always one of my favorite pizza toppings, and they worked out great here.

Get it: Eatery A, 2932 Ingersoll Ave., Des Moines. Open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday to Thursday, 9 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday, and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday, with happy hour from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Check out the menu and make reservations online.

If you think you know a better pizza, let me know at wrmorris2@registermedia.com!

One Jefferson County Ciderworks Lemon Lavender Cider, coming right up!
One Jefferson County Ciderworks Lemon Lavender Cider, coming right up!

Lemon Lavender Cider, $6: Most types of alcohol for me fail the Sprite test — that is, would I ever choose this over just ordering a Sprite? But I found one drink I like in 2010, and I'm sticking to it: hard ciders. This week I tried a lemon lavender cider from Jefferson County Ciderworks that had a nice sour bite to it.

Get it: Confluence Brewing Co., 1235 Thomas Beck Road, Des Moines. Open 4 to 10 p.m. Monday to Wednesday, noon to 10 p.m. Thursday, noon to 11 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday. A full list of currently available brews can be found online.

48 Hours Off

Evelyn (Michelle Yeoh, left), her daughter Joy (Stephanie Hsu) and husband Waymond (Ke Huy Quan) star in "Everything Everywhere All at Once." If you've ever wondered to yourself, "how would Michelle Yeoh do kung fu if her fingers were literal giant uncooked hotdogs" (and who among us hasn't wondered that), this movie has answers for you.
Evelyn (Michelle Yeoh, left), her daughter Joy (Stephanie Hsu) and husband Waymond (Ke Huy Quan) star in "Everything Everywhere All at Once." If you've ever wondered to yourself, "how would Michelle Yeoh do kung fu if her fingers were literal giant uncooked hotdogs" (and who among us hasn't wondered that), this movie has answers for you.

Friday night: Catch a movie! At the risk of losing my nerd cred, I have to admit I've fallen behind on Marvel movies, but the new "Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" is out this week and showing in theaters all over town. If that's not to your taste, I also highly recommend "Everything Everywhere All at Once," which now that I think about it is also about multidimensional hijinks. Guess I have a type.

"Dr. Strange" is showing at most local theaters, including for $9.35 at Copper Creek 9 in Pleasant Hill.

The Lola's Fine Hot Sauce display at last year's Downtown Farmers' Market.
The Lola's Fine Hot Sauce display at last year's Downtown Farmers' Market.

Saturday morning: This was an easy one: it's opening day for the Downtown Farmers' Market! From 7 a.m. to noon, Court Avenue will be brimming with food, art, music and more, definitely worth a leisurely stroll. At the top of my to-do list will be stocking up on baked goods.

Sunday midday: Let me be clear: I am not, generally speaking, an antique show guy. But it's never too early to get a head start on Christmas shopping, and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., the monthly Iowa State Fair Flea Market will be open at the state fairgrounds for all your browsing needs. Admission is free.

From the Kitchen of William Morris

Singing is one of my hobbies. Another is baking. In particular, I make a mean pie.

I was born in Kentucky, and although we lived there only a few years, perhaps it's my native blood calling out to me that makes me so fond of derby pie. Or maybe it's just the ingredients — this pie, long associated with the famous Kentucky Derby, is basically a chocolate chip cookie in a pie crust.

I joke that I only have one party trick, but that trick is bringing pies to parties, so it's a pretty darned good one.
I joke that I only have one party trick, but that trick is bringing pies to parties, so it's a pretty darned good one.

Here's the recipe, as passed down by my dad (also a prolific baker):

Derby Pie

  • 1 cup sugar

  • 2 eggs, slightly beaten

  • ½ cup flour

  • 1 stick (½ cup) butter, melted and cooled slightly

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

  • 1 cup chocolate chips

  • 1 cup chopped pecans.

  • 1 pie shell (I use the Better Homes & Gardens recipe)

Mix together in basically that order, pour and spread into the pie crust, and bake 45 minutes at 350 degrees.

My deepest apologies to any cardiologists who read this newsletter.
My deepest apologies to any cardiologists who read this newsletter.

Around Town

My Day Job

My dream job might sound a lot like your worst nightmare: a giant pile of legal documents and a 90-minute deadline to read, digest and write about them.

I've been fascinated by the court system for more than a decade, ever since I stumbled into the extremely nerdy world of First Amendment legal bloggers. People probably think of my job as all about murders and other horrible crimes, and unfortunately there's plenty of that, but also keep in mind that any kind of disagreement can eventually wind up in court. I've reported on copyright disputes between architects, a tax evader who ordered the bailiff to arrest the judge for treason, unlawful use of a "favicon," a scammer who lost all the proceeds of his scamming to other scams, and plenty of other off-the-wall disputes.

The courts reporter in his natural habitat: beneath the rotunda at the Polk County Historic Courthouse.
The courts reporter in his natural habitat: beneath the rotunda at the Polk County Historic Courthouse.

I've been in Des Moines a little more than 18 months, but between work and the pandemic I still have plenty of exploring to do. Give me a shout sometime at wrmorris2@registermedia.com, or on Twitter @DMRMorris.

Thanks for reading! Next week, Valerie Van Horn of River City Art & Music showcases some of the upcoming arts festivals heading to Des Moines.

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This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: When the spirit says sing, join a choir!