Whidbey Community Chorus
The Whidbey Community Chorus has two seasons; a Fall Season with two concerts in December and a Spring Season with two concerts in May. The 100-member chorus is comprised of people of all ages who share a love of singing. The songs are accompanied by a variety of local musicians, including piano, flute, violin, drums, and specialty instruments such as banjo. An audience of 350 – 400 community members enjoys the free concert each performance.
Choral Director
Raised in Salem, OR. Darren McCoy graduated Magna Cum Laude from Willamette University in 2006 and earned his Masters Degree in 2008 with Honors from University of Oregon. Since graduation, he has spent the past 1 years as choral director at Oak Harbor High School and the last 8 years as director for the Whidbey Community Chorus. During his time as the WCC Director, the group has performed works such as Faure’s Requiem and Christopher Tin’s “Baba Yetu” and has worked to create an orchestral component in the concerts.
At the Whidbey Playhouse, Darren has played roles such as Jamie Wellerstein from “The Last Five Years,” Dylan Thomas in “A Child’s Christmas in Wales,” and has been Music Director for shows such as “Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.” Because of his numerous community involvement strategies, which include working with retirement homes, church choirs and bell choirs, and other schools, the Whidbey News Times named Darren, “Best Teacher in Whidbey 2011, 2015, 2016, and 2017”. His choirs have been featured on King 5 News, Fox News Q13, and KIRO Radio as examples of positive growth in arts programs. In 2012, KCTS 9 awarded Darren McCoy the “Golden Apple Award” for outstanding teachers in Washington. He was a Finalist for a Grammy Award for Teaching in 2018.
Accompanist
Sharon Burge was born when she was very young in a land far, far away by the sea (Coupeville/Patmore). After 3 different instruments, she settled on the piano and started accompanying as a freshman in high school. She received her Bachelor of Music in applied piano from WSU (goal—rehearsal accompanist). Then passed through WWU, Univ. of Oregon (Germany) and back to WSU for a teaching certificate. With K-12 music education certificate in hand, Sharon was an elementary music specialist in Washougal, Bellingham, Burlington and OH Christian School. Her marriage to Lynn brought her back to the Island where they save the world one pair of spectacles at a time or literally “clearing up a cloudy situation”. Sharon served as church pianist/organist at Whidbey Presbyterian Church pushing 30 years and during her free time also played for numerous musicals at Whidbey Playhouse with her favorite and most challenging being “Last Five Years” (1st with Darren McCoy and 2nd with Heather Good). Two days a week she adopts 180 high school choir students as accompanist for the OHHS Choir program.
Section Leaders
- Rain Davidson, Soprano
- Sarah Lyngra, Alto
- Jordan Kingma, Tenor
- Les Boon, Bass
Board
- Sarah Lyngra, President
- Thomas Piper, Vice President
- Peggy Shekem, Secretary
- Peggy Connell, Treasurer
- George Marin
- Scott Palmer
- David Ridle
- Karina Andrew
- Dana Carnes
- Mary K Hallen