Sigma Alpha Iota

PAN PIPES sPRIng 2014 saI-natIOnal.ORg 6 By Karen shade Y ou'll never see her slouch. Even at ease, Barbara McAlister sits erect, correct, and as if she aced posture in finishing school. A dramatic mezzo-soprano spends a lifetime learning to master her cra, and that includes lessons on carriage to support the diaphragm muscle. "Learning to sing properly is not easy, and anyone who graduates from college and thinks they can sing, give them a few more years," says McAlister. "… You have to build up the muscle power. You have to build up the vocal chords so that they're able to sustain hours of singing. Operas are not short." e Muskogee native [and SAI alumnae] should know. She's performed in opera houses all over the world and packs a repertoire ranging from the infamous vixen of Bizet's Carmen to the Cherokee corn spirit Selu in "e Trail of Tears Drama" in Tahlequah. Plus, she's met one the most powerful and famous diaphragm muscles of all – the one belonging to super tenor Placido Domingo. "I ran right into him and bounced off, because these muscles are very strong," she says, gesturing at her core. "… And I looked up and said, 'You're Placido Domingo,' and he said, 'Oh, yes.'" Yes, operas are not short. Aer four decades onstage, McAlister has earned the right to sit at the edge of her seat, back perfectly straight, even if it makes the people seated opposite aware of their own vertebral shortcomings. e Muskogee native was inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in October. Along with McAlister, the inductees are Jimmy Webb, Mason Williams, Sandi Patty, Norma Jean, the late Bob Dunn, and the Mabee Center. Neal Schon, founding member of the band Journey, is also a member of the 2013 class, but he was formally inducted in August. Roger Davis was honored with the OMHF Governor's Award, while Muskogee's Swon Brothers will be recognized with the Rising Star Award. McAlister sang at the ceremony, exhibiting those credentials that have taken her to Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, and the National Museum of the American Indian. By the way she talks about her hometown, however, you'd believe that Muskogee is her favorite place in the world. Seated in the parlor of friend Sue Gaston's historic 1905 home, McAlister remembers the places of her childhood. She and Gaston have known each other for a long time. McAlister's parents built the house next door to the Gastons, and the families became fast friends. Both fans of opera, her parents listened to classical recordings on the RCA Victor. e McAlisters frequently invited friends and neighbors to their home to listen, too, and to sing at the piano. ese gatherings made an impression on the little Barbara, who rarely spoke and never sang in front of anyone. At the age of three she had a breakthrough – beneath the piano. "I think I sat under the piano so as not to be noticed, then I wouldn't have to leave the room (at bedtime)," McAlister says. "And then one time, I remember, I discovered my voice and started screaming. I was sent to my room." By the time she was 13, McAlister had reached a crossroads. She wanted to sing just like her idol of the time, SAI Honorary Member Patrice Munsel, the coloratura soprano famous as the youngest singer to star with the Metropolitan Opera Company in New York City. She also discovered popular music on the radio and wanted to become a country singer playing guitar on horseback between opportunities to barrel race. Opera won, of course, and the quiet girl prepared for a life of singing with her first vocal teacher, a soprano in Muskogee's First Presbyterian Church choir named Jeanne Parker. "I think I really did go up to her and say, 'I want to sing as beautifully as you do. How do you do it?' " McAlister says. McAlister first attended the University of Tulsa, but transferred aer two years to finish her studies at Oklahoma City University. It was there she was initiated into the Alpha Zeta Chapter. Semester breaks were taken up with summer stock gigs with regional musical theater and opera companies. Aer graduation, she moved around from New York to North Carolina (where she worked with TV and film actor Clu Gulager, another Muskogee native) and back to Muskogee before heading to Los Angeles, where she met her master voice teacher Lee Sweetland. With Sweetland (and later with his son, Steve Sweetland), she made her greatest strides. "One day this huge voice came out," she says. "It never le me from that time." Sweetland's training and encouragement led McAlister to acceptance into the competitive Los Angeles Civic Light Opera Music eatre Program. She also won the prestigious National Vocal Competition for Young Opera Singers in New York and Los Angeles sponsored by the saIs In the news Alpha Zeta Initiate Named to Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame Alpha Zeta initiate Barbara McAlister at her home. Karen Shade is article first appeared in the Sept. 27, 2013, edition of the Native American Times. Used with permission. MCALISTER continued on page 8

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