Holiday concerts will be held at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 11 at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Alpena, 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 14 at First United Methodist Church in Alpena, and 7 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 16 at New Beginnings Church of Hillman.

Besser Chorus member David Usher started singing with the group in 1987.

“I have had 35 years in the chorus,” Usher said. “Our longest term chorus member is Eldon Grabow, and I believe he has had 60-some years. He started as an 18-year-old, and he’s now 87.”

The Besser Male Chorus started with 12 Besser Company employees, directed by Ralph Michaud. Their first practice was held on March 8, 1947. Jesse Besser, a philanthropist and industrialist, and the Besser Company, a manufacturer of concrete block machinery, sponsored the Besser Male Chorus.

Courtesy Photo In this photo taken on Nov. 11, 1965, The Besser Chorus is set to perform at the State Theater in downtown Alpena.

In their first performance, the chorus sang as part of the Dixie Jubilee, a minstrel show on the stage of the Maltz Theater in downtown Alpena. When membership was opened to the community, 18 more members joined, and they performed 11 times from May to December that first year. By March of 1948, the chorus had grown to 42 members on its first anniversary.

Michaud also directed the choir for the Alpena Boys Club, and for several years, the boys choir and the Besser Male Chorus performed together on stage. Under Michaud’s direction, every concert opened with “Now the Day is Over,” and closed with “Now is the Hour.”

“During the 1950s to the 1970s, an era when live performances drew large audiences, the chorus sang at many prestigious functions,” a written statement prepared by Grabow and Usher explained. “The venues for this high-performance group were varied, as they sang at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Mackinac Bridge in 1954 and again at its dedication on June 25, 1958.”

The Besser Male Chorus traveled all over the state and country in its early years.

In 1955, they flew to Niagara Falls to perform for the Concrete Products Association.

Courtesy Photo The Besser Male Chorus on Jan. 18, 1955, waves prior to boarding chartered planes for a performance in Niagara Falls for the National Convention of the National Concrete Products Association.

“The audience at Detroit’s Cobo Hall gave the chorus a ‘rousing applause’ at the 1962 Republican State Convention,” the statement continued. “Their performance was dedicated to the gubernatorial candidate, George Romney.”

At that convention, they sang “Stouthearted Men,” and “No Man is an Island,” and closed with “Battle Hymn of the Republic.” The chorus sang those same songs at Gov. Romney’s inaugural luncheon in January of 1963 in Lansing.

In 1964, the chorus boarded a chartered plane for Washington, D.C., to sing at the Michigan Congressional Dinner.

They were a popular and highly esteemed group in those days.

“Years ago, after each of their concerts or their singing dates that they’d have, they’d go off to a bar, and they’d walk into the bar singing,” Usher said. “Everybody would just stop and start clapping.”

He said life moved at a slower pace back then, and people depended on live performances for entertainment.

“Everything was public recreation,” Usher said. “You didn’t have the entertainment on an iPhone or an iPad.”

The chorus performed at the Detroit National Republican Convention in 1980, where Ronald Reagan was nominated president. They also sang the national anthem at Detroit’s Tiger Stadium several times, and they were among 10 male singing groups from Michigan who were invited to participate in a “State Sing,” orchestrated by the Michigan Male Chorus Association.

In 1971, Michaud retired as the longest serving director of the Besser Male Chorus. After Michaud, directors include Elroy Downing from 1971 to 1973, Richard Ferguson from 1973 to 1979, Jack McMillan from 1980 to 1981 and 1997 to 2000, Jeanne Morrow from 1981 to 1997, James Arbuckle from 2000 to 2005, Berniece Lyon from 2006 to 2016, interim director Eric Lawson in 2007, and MaryAnn Hubbard from 2017 to present.

“Over the years, the chorus has made two LP recordings, sung multiple times on television, and traveled thousands of miles by car, bus and plane,” Usher and Grabow noted. “Many individuals and groups have been invited to perform at the annual concerts, and the entertainment has included pantomimes, duets, soloists, dual pianos, and other instruments.”

In addition to local performances in the spring and at Christmastime, the chorus has sung at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, and for dedications and various celebratory events throughout Michigan.

Over the years, 309 men have found a place in the Besser Chorus, which has performed 194 full concerts, and has made 570 appearances.

The current board of directors of the Besser Male Chorus are President John Knapp, Vice President Ted Rockwell, Treasurer Tom Hilberg, Eldon Grabow, Tom Grubaugh, David Usher, Scott Edgar, and Rex Swope.

The chorus is always looking for new members. Any men age 18 and up who have a love for singing are encouraged to join the fun.

“We are a screwy, fun bunch of guys who come from all walks of life,” Usher said. “Very humble, very happy … It’s a great escape to get out with guys. You might do it on a ball field, you might do it at a race course, whatever. But this happens to be music, which is a big part of our lives, and we enjoy it thoroughly.”

Usher said while the chorus is made up of men, the director and accompanists are very talented women.

“Suelyn Bartz is our accompanist, and she’s amazing,” Usher said. “The quietest, nicest gal in the world, with an incredible talent.”

Bartz plays piano, and Judy Case accompanies on flute for some of their numbers.

He added that being a part of the chorus “gets us out of the house, off our duffs, and out into the public, where we can laugh and have fun and enjoy what we do, and each other.”

The chorus meets at 7 p.m. each Wednesday at First United Methodist Church on Ripley Boulevard in Alpena. The Besser Male Chorus looks forward to many more years of providing quality live entertainment to the community.

“The Besser Male Chorus is both grateful and proud to continue its participation and entertainment of Northeast Michigan,” Usher and Grabow said in a written statement. “To all of our fans and supporters, we say ‘Thank you for 75 musical years!'”