Grammy-Winning Oakland Interfaith Choir on PortFest 2003 Mainstage at 1:50

The sound of the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir has been described as the personification of love. Under the direction of Terrance Kelley, this multiracial, interfaith group of 55 vocalists can bring an audience to its feet with its gospel message of hope, joy, and unity. The Choir has performed on three Grammy Award-winning albums: Linda Ronstadt’s Cry Like a Rainstorm, Howl Like the Wind; Hammer’s Too Legit To Quit; and Tramaine Hawkins’ Tramaine—Live. Bay Crossings spoke with Kathleen Enright, spokesperson for the Oakland Interfaith Choir.

The people of the City of Oakland have given us a rich gospel music heritage, and it is important to us to honor that legacy. In addition to regularly performing at benefits supporting local nonprofit organizations, we take our role as unofficial good will ambassadors of Oakland very seriously. We’ll be appearing May 25 at the California Music Awards taking place in Frank Ogawa Plaza. That event will be a free concert intended to shine a positive light on the City of Oakland in the national media, as well as to foster inspiration to the community in the form of teamwork, discipline, and art.

Our Annual Christmas Concert at the Paramount Theatre seems to have become an Oakland tradition, and we always provide tickets to local nonprofit organizations. We also donate a portion of the proceeds to Oakland Pot Luck and we support Project Open Hand’s activities in Oakland.

There are many outlets available to inexperienced singers. I would say that if you want to sing, you probably can. You just need to place yourself in the right environment. Chorus singing is a good way to start because you’re not alone, and with the right director, you’ll actually be receiving singing lessons as you go along. A new national study, commissioned by Chorus America, finds that choral singing is the top choice for participation in the performing arts by adults and children, with an estimated 28.5 million regularly performing in a chorus. The study also estimates the number of choruses in the U.S. to be 250,000—considerable opportunity to get started singing.