CHORUS WOMEN AS WILLING TO LISTEN AS SING; GROUP FOSTERS SUPPORTING AIR.

Byline: Sylvia L. Oliande Daily News Staff Writer

Laughter and song echoed through the Church of the Epiphany in Newbury Park recently during a rehearsal of ONE VOICE, an all-woman ensemble that started out as a lark but has become a form of therapy for its members.

The women were brought together last year to keep busy while their regular chorale group went on hiatus for the summer.

But after six weeks of singing together and experiencing for the first time the melodious sounds created by a dozen female voices coming together as one, each of them knew they couldn't disband as they had planned.

``There's a camaraderie with women that you just don't have when there are men,'' said Terry Siegel, 52, founder and director of the group. ``And we're a group of women who like each other very much. We're a group of women that just clicked and because it clicked and we liked it so much, we continued.''

Now ONE VOICE, with members ranging in age from mid-20s to 50s, performs regularly for convalescent homes, senior centers, cerebral palsy care homes and social functions throughout Ventura County.

Their Friday night chats after rehearsal have become a therapy of sorts for the women, who have found in their fellow singers sympathetic ears rare in their fast-paced lives.

But more often than crying on each other's shoulders, the women can be found laughing at something one or the other says between songs.

``We are able to completely relax with each other, hysterically sometimes,'' said member Katie Carter, 45. ``It's almost like today's quilting bee for us, except we're far bawdier than my picture of the quilters of yore.''

For its members, ONE VOICE is not the only chorale or singing group in which they are involved, but many said the group is the most fun.

Local music enthusiasts said that attitude shows through in their performances.

It's in the way Siegel struts in front of her singers as they belt out ``Under The Sea,'' from Disney's ``The Little Mermaid,'' and the way the entire group vamps for the audience as they sing ``I Feel Pretty,'' from ``West Side Story.''

James Stemen, head of the music department at Moorpark College and director of the Los Robles Master Chorale, said the group has an excellent blend of sound and they sing well in tune.

He said he was impressed with their choices in music in their program - which included a variety of styles, from jazz to classical to spiritual. He said a range that diverse is unheard of with large, mixed-gender chorale groups.

``In terms of their program, big chorales would not mix the kinds of music as much as this group did,'' Stemen said. ``But they intentionally wanted an entertaining program with a wide variety of music and we, as an audience, understood that. They're programming to please the audience, to give the audience a colorful palette of types of chorale music and sounds.''

ONE VOICE is small enough that it practices each Friday night in the Thousand Oaks home of member Rita Sears.

A typical rehearsal begins with the ritual teasing of the member who arrives late, and ends with the group sitting around, drinking coffee and talking.

The other members of the group are Laurie Berg and Petra Rowell, also of Thousand Oaks, Virginia Fleming of Moorpark, Carol Murell of Studio City, Mary Crooks of Simi Valley, Eddie Pierce-Snyder of Newbury Park, Cynthia Perry of Westlake Village, Jan Robles of Northridge and Liz Salim of Agoura.

In the year that they've been singing together, the group has seen each other through serious illness and family travails.

``Now and then things come up and it's nice to close the circle and share it with someone you care about,'' Carter said.

But they rarely pass up a chance to throw in a quip about the passage they are singing or tease their director a bit.

During rehearsal at the Newbury Park church, director Siegel began strutting her stuff in front of the group, demonstrating what she planned to do during their performance the next day.

Wagging her index finger to the Calypso beat of ``Under the Sea,'' she threw back her head and sang along.

``You know what,'' said Rowell, who at twentysomething is the youngest of the group, ``the finger shakin' has gotta go.''

Lighthearted banter is not uncommon and feelings are rarely hurt in this group. Sometimes they will even let the audience in on the jokes.

``We'll be singing and inevitably something strikes somebody as funny,'' Siegel said. ``When we're out there, we straighten up our act and we're good, but we like to keep it spontaneous. If they feel a line coming on, they can share it with the audience.''

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Photo

PHOTO (Color in Conejo Edition only) ONE VOICE singers rehearse at Church of the Epiphany.

Joe Binoya/Special to the Daily News