Vista Hills has much to celebrate in 2026. Our Assistant Baritone Section Leader was promoted to Section Leader, taking the reigns with ease and elegance just six weeks to contest - because why not? Congratulations, Kelley! And from the (finally retired) previous Bari SL: THANK YOU!


Big as that is, it wasn't the only thing we cheered for this spring. In February, we celebrated 65 years of us in the most "us" way we knew how: with family, friends, and harmony! With a mocktail bar designed by our beloved Director Melanie, a timeline featuring our rich and diverse history, and the best people to share it with - all of you! - we had an absolute blast celebrating our sapphire anniversary. Thank you to all of you who showed up and checked in; we loved seeing our friends from across the region.
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We are thrilled to be sharing the contest stage with so many talented quartets and choruses, but we also miss one of our own: Debra Kerrigan is unable to join us this year due to health issues, so we want to send a little bit of love home for our healing friend. We miss you, Debra! We can't wait to share the stage with you again next year.

- Kaidee Metcalfe 

What?  The end of 2025 already?!  The Vista Hills Chorus went full holiday mode, markedly expanding our repertoire with a host of songs that celebrate a variety of winter traditions – Chanukah, Solstice, Kwanza, and Christmas.  Some numbers brought the whimsy, some the aching nostalgia, and some the powerful promise of returning light to a throbbing drum accompaniment.  

The highlight of our season was indubitably our unforgettable December 7 holiday show, for which we teamed up with Harmony, Inc. friends - the California Note Catchers from La Jolla.  The choruses and invited quartets transformed into a festive bunch of Whos right out of Dr. Suess, with hair piled high.  We’re happy to report that the Grinch, who returned to us for a second season with a heart grown three sizes, has now learned that many holiday traditions can coexist harmoniously.  As our Cindy Lou Who reminded us:  
The magic of season, of Solstice, of cheer
Lives not in the sameness, but in each voice we hear.  
With each different voice doing its part,
Harmony is born from the warmth of our hearts.  

Adding warm harmony to our show were nine fabulous quartets: Charmed, Clef Hangers, Fantastique!, Merry Mayhem, MX, Nick of Time, Offbeat, Pixie Dust, and Sonic Bloom.  Friends and family went home glowing and stuffed with homemade goodies.  

The chorus continued Jingle Bell Rockin’ right through the holiday season, spreading cheer and music around North San Diego County.  We brought twinkles to eyes in a convalescent home, some warmth to folks braving the SoCal weather at the Holiday Lights event hosted by the Antique Gas & Steam Engine Museum in Vista, and offered hearty thank-yous to the church in Encinitas that has served as our rehearsal venue for over a decade.  

At last, we kicked back and put up our feet at our end-of-year potluck and gift exchange.  I missed those crazy friends while we took a quick break, and am very excited to be back and gearing up for the chorus’s 65th anniversary celebration in February… and (of course) contest prep mode.  Here’s to the best year yet – 2026! 

- Tabitha Woolpert 

Hello from the Vista Hills Chorus! We have much to celebrate this month and we are - as ever - excited to share all of that with our friends across #R21derful!  

This month saw the launch of our Sing for the Holidays program, a six-week program inviting members of the community to get a taste of chorus life: “Come to rehearsal, learn some new music, make some friends, and sing on our holiday show”. We have had five guests in the first few weeks of the campaign, and four have stayed - which is super cool! We are thrilled to share the stage with them on December 7th for our joint holiday show with the California Note Catchers.  

In the spirit of community outreach, four of our members (Alicia, Ann, Leela, and Lola) attended MiraCosta's One Day Choir event, singing under the guidance of Dr. Arlie Langager. Ann said about the evening of SATB singing, "We (Angelo, too!) represented Vista Hills tonight at MiraCosta College singing four songs with the MiraCosta College Chamber Choir class full of a lot of great singers!" Never one to miss an opportunity, she brought their new friend Bree to rehearsal on Tuesday; she sings Tenor beautifully.  

As if that weren't enough, we also celebrated our 65th anniversary with Sweet Adelines on November 4. We are thrilled to announce that we will be hosting a gala-style event on February 22, 2026, to celebrate this landmark anniversary, and you're all invited!

​- Kaidee Metcalfe 

​Vista Hills is "fall"ing into harmony and loving every note! September was a month packed with music, milestones, and a little bit of mischief - just how we like it at VHC!

We kicked things off, still glowing from SoloVoce's sixth annual Music on the Porch Day, which (as usual!) was a smashing success. There's nothing better than singing under the sun for the best audience around - our barbershop friends and family from across the southwest region! VHC was well-represented, repping not one but two organizations (SAI and BHS), three choruses (VHC (obviously!) plus San Diego and Pacific Coast Harmony), and three quartets (Charmed A Cappella, Clef Hanger, and Fantastique! Quartet). Who says a chorus of 25 can't make a big splash?  

Speaking of that magic number - NEWBIE ALERT! Please join us in welcoming the lovely Catherine to the VHC family! She sings Lead and also performs with San Diego Chorus, bringing even more sparkle (and skill) to our risers. Her addition officially puts us at 25 members - for the first time in about 20 years! That's right, folks: We're growing, and we even had to haul out the fourth row of risers!  

September reminded us how lucky we are to make music together. Whether it's singing on the porch, rehearsing on Tuesday nights, or dreaming up next year's performance goals, we're doing it with heart, humor, and harmony. Here's to more harmony, more laughter, and more reasons to sing!  

With love, sass, and perfectly tuned chords,
- Liz Kost

August was a month of significant progress for the Vista Hills Chorus as we balanced preparing for our big performance with steady internal improvements. The heat was on, but so were our voices!

We were honored to host the talented Charmed at our weekly practice on August 19.  They flexed their coaching muscles and we performed for each other. Their infectious energy and consistent progress over the past year serves as great inspiration for our chorus.

This month, we focused on refining our craft by introducing a new regimen of warm-ups designed to improve physical presence, tuning, intonation, and sustained energy. We also unveiled our cool new chorus banner which highlights our goals for 2026 and serves as a fun reminder of our commitment to continuous improvement!  

On August 30th, we performed at SoloVoice’s annual Music on the Porch Day event, a performance that truly showcased our hard work. Our director, Melanie Jewel, quite literally jumped with enthusiasm to kick off our premiere of "I Can’t Give You Anything But Love" and our audience loved our lively, sassy rendition of "If I Were You I'd Fall In Love With Me," which had them laughing and smiling along with us. It's always a special experience to perform for such a supportive crowd and cheer on our fellow performers!

Lastly, we've had a few big updates this month: We've transitioned from Groupanizer to ChoirGenius with a little help from our friends and we are "officially" located in Encinitas, CA!  Looking ahead, we're eager to dive into our holiday program.  Last year, our "Holiday in Harmony" performance saw the Grinch himself join us in song. We can't wait to see what this year’s season brings! 🎄

- Connie Adams

Hi from a very busy VHC!  This June marked an extra-special one-year anniversary for our spunky and fearless leader, Melanie Jewell!  Yes, we’re going to shout her out again; our newly-minted director led our chorus to a strong “Most Improved” award at contest, earning our endless gratitude and support.  As thanks, we promise to try to stop singing “chew”!  

The VHC delegation in Queen Creek, AZ, reports that the sessions were quite informative, especially those on marking music, retention, and quartet development; they really got the creative juices flowing.  We debuted a double quartet, Sneeze the Day, in a parody of “San Diego Bay Blues”, our more localized version of “San Francisco Bay Blues”.  If you were there, you might have witnessed some bedhead, explosive sneezing, copious amounts of Lyzol, absurdly long hankies, and a few chuckles.  Double quartet members celebrated the display of teamwork, saluting the coaches who really pushed the group’s creative boundaries by swapping some vocal parts and experimenting with some new techniques while still remaining true to our chorus culture.  

At the end of July - a month in which we very enthusiastically welcomed a new Bari named Carol - we kicked off the year with a night of fun and reflection.  Survey says Family Feud was the perfect way to address successes, areas of improvement, expectations, and personal goals.  The chorus came away more bonded and motivated to keep busting through perceived boundaries.  

Looking into August, our excitement is mounting for the 6th annual Music on the Porch Day in Escondido, hosted by our friends in Solo Voce.  We’re working to polish one or two of our songs, and maybe even share a new one!  So excited for the next year!  

​- Tabitha Woolpert 

You never know what to expect with Vista Hills – and we promise to keep it that way!

This month has been a real adventure of Seussical proportions, and we have enjoyed every minute of it. I mean, where would we be without our Grinch-Turned-Cat-in-the-Hat (Kathy W) installing our incoming officers? And what is a Cat in the Hat without their loyal Thing 1 and Thing 2? You know Connie M and Lisa B wouldn’t miss that opportunity, though we’re not sure exactly who was who (only that I somehow wound up being Thing 1.5?). These mischievous characters created a story unique to our new Team, sharing a little bit of their sparkle with our incoming Team and Marketing Coordinator (that’s me… twice…), fancy new Logistics Coordinator Kelley, Financial Coordinator Alicia, Secretary Lola, Member at Large Tabitha, and – of course – Director Melanie, since we’ve decided to keep her around for a while. 

Composed of mostly new (or newish) blood, our Team stepped right into their roles and arranged a guest night for June 3rd – less than a month after taking office! If that’s not a bang-up start to the new year, we’re not sure what is.

- Kaidee Metcalfe 

This year has definitely been an adventure for the Vista Hills Chorus!  We have seen some serious growth this year, what with the new director, new chorus leaders, new competition songs, new members, and all-new (and shiny) ribbons as of just a few weeks ago.  We can officially call ourselves a multi-award-winning chorus - and we're pretty excited for that!  We are putting all the enthusiasm and energy into talking scores and learning several new songs post-contest.  There's even a rumor of a double quartet debuting in Queen Creek, AZ, in just a few weeks!  

Of course, 'tis the season for change, too.  We are incredibly grateful to our outgoing Management Team; Team Coordinator Gloria ("Gramma" to me), Secretary Jennifer, and Member at Large Nikki have all served very successful terms and it is through their leadership that we've been so successful this year.  Returning to the Team are Alicia as Financial Coordinator and Lola as Secretary, while we add Kelley as Logistics Coordinator, Tabitha as Member at Large, and yours truly as Team Coordinator.  We are excited to be stepping into these roles and look forward to furthering the chorus's many successes.  

- Kaidee Metcalfe ​

Wow! What a wild and wonderful ride the past few weeks have been for the Vista Hills Chorus!  A few days after we submitted our last article, I got a text from our darling Director that was literally just a photo.  No context, no explanation, just the photo.  A photo of what, you may ask?  Her certificate of achievement announcing that she had passed the Directors Certification Program and attained the status of Certified Director.  Melanie is a regular reminder of what it means to lead and inspire. She has been with us a little under a full year, but we are quite proud to call her our own! We've decided to keep her for a while if she'll have us.  

And that was only the first exciting thing to have happened this month, in and amongst various rehearsals and discussions and slicktexts.  The second and fifth exciting things came in the form of contest weekend.  Most of us went to the very early morning mic testing chorus on Friday and stayed for as many quartets as we could before heading off to rehearsal; we even got back in time to cheer for our new regional quartet champions, including our friends in SoloVoce.  

Some of us may have stayed up a little late on Friday night, but Saturday morning came early and we were absolutely in the moment.  Taking the stage for the first time under Melanie's direction and with four brand new singers on stage was... intense? nerve-wracking? exciting?  Definitely emotional.  And being the first person in line, I had zero warning before Connie called my name as I walked on stage; if that didn't just about make my performance, I'm not sure what did.  There is something just downright thrillifying knowing you have friends in the audience as you walk on stage.  The energy and enthusiasm that greeted us carried us into one of our most successful competitions, a performance that earned us our first and long-coveted Most Improved medal with an incredible 101 point jump.  Breaking into the 500s, 2nd place in the A Division, and 5th overall left us a teensie bit starry-eyed.  Personally? I can't wait to see what happens next year. 

- Kaidee Metcalfe ​