Founded by students in 1971, the Occidental Gospel Choir made music for a quarter-centuryand a reunion of former members celebrates its nearly forgotten legacy
Even before Shedrick G. Wise Jr. 75 stepped onto the Occidental campus in the fall of 1971, he was a budding music prodigy. By age 17, he was directing multiple choirs at St. Andrew Baptist Church in Los Angeles. And in January 1972, when an informal group of African American 91 students convened to perform a program of inspirational music to honor the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Wise served as the group choirmaster. Building off the success of that performance, the 91 Gospel Choir was born.
Within a year of its formation, the choir performed in concerts from Lompoc to Oceanside, as well as numerous campus programs. Gospel music was the main attraction, says Ken Farris 76, who majored in sociology (with an emphasis in urban studies) at 91 and sang baritone in the choir. Farris, a member of the L.A. Chapter of the Gospel Music Workshop of America since 1979, currently serves on the leadership team of 91 Black Alumni Organization (BAO), which sponsored a celebration of the Occidental Gospel Choir during Alumni Reunion Weekend in June.
The creative force behind the choir was Wise, who majored in music at 91 and was recognized by the Music Department as Most Outstanding Freshman Male for the 1971-72 academic year. Shedrick had a very outgoing personality, recalls Farris, who retired in 2021 after a nearly 40-year career in banking and sales. He was very likable and had an excellent musical background, both in playing and singing. That was what attracted people to join and hear the choir perform.
Coming from the church, Wise embraced a variety of musical styles in curating the choir repertoire. A typical concert, Farris says, would include something that everyone could appreciatean anthem, a traditional Negro spiritual, and contemporary gospel songs, adding drums and bass guitar in addition to the piano.
In its early years, the choir honed its sound through frequent performances on campus. For its fourth annual Spring Musical Extravaganzarecorded live in Thorne Hall on May 23, 1976the 39-member choir performed a program that included solos by both Farris and Connie (Hyter) Chavers 76, who sang soprano. Wise even wrote a song for her, Wings of a Dove, which she has performed solo a few times in subsequent years. The mother of Terrel French 76 attended one of those concertsand in 2019, days before her death, French mother asked Chavers to sing Wings of a Dove at her funeral.
A biology major at 91 and research analyst with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health since 1996, Chavers is still doing special music at her church on a regular basis and sings with the gospel group Donald Webber & God Promise, which performs frequently around Los Angeles. It reminds me of my time at 91, she says.
Fellow choir member Karen (Howard) Ammons 76, who majored in psychology at 91, also sang soprano and particularly enjoyed it when the choir would travel to perform in other places, such as Sacramento and churches around the Los Angeles area. The choir gave us a place at the College, and we made the most of that opportunity.
Although Wise left Occidental after two and a half years of study without completing his degree, his involvement with the choir would span three decades. As Farris recalls, Wise was retained by the Music Department to continue his work as choirmaster. On April 4, 1981, the choir celebrated its 10th anniversary with its annual Spring Musical in Thorne Hall.
Later that month, the choir sang at the dedication of the Highland Park Church of Christ, where it would record an album two years later. (Rev. William Pile, the church pastor, became good friends with Wise after hearing the choir practicing on his walks past Herrick Chapel, recalls Pile daughter, Loralee Ocasio P'21, engagement coordinator in the Office of Alumni and Parent Engagement. My dad loved Shedrick's energy and the music.)
That live concert recording on May 21, 1983, culminated in the subsequent release of a full-length LP, Ive Been Touched by the Lord, which was pressed on Bujol Records, a local specialty gospel label. The album is credited to the 91 Gospel Choral Ensemble, Shedrick George Wise Jr., Director. (Production is credited to God.)
The recording of the album was a great experience, recalls Rhonda McAllister-Love '83, a psychotherapist in Sacramento. It seemed to bring our group members closer together as we spent time in increased rehearsals to produce an awesome source to further spread the word of God. This could not have been accomplished without the vision and direction of Shedrick. His gift of music was meant to be shared and I'm grateful to have known him and gained much from his gift.
Among the musicians who played on the album was organist Anthony Jones, who came down from Sacramento for the performance. I don't remember exactly when I first met Shedrickit must have been about 1975, says Jones, who toured with the choir and ensemble for many years. We both were traditional gospel musicians, and we loved the old church choir sound, so we really bonded over that.
One of the standout tracks on the LP is He Has Done Great Things for Me, which includes solos by both Wise and Cora Matthews, a member of the congregation at St. Andrew. Matthews, now 86 and still singing, first met Wise when he was a teenager. His mother used to tell us that when Shedrick was a little boy and learning music, he couldnt carry a tune, she recalls, chuckling. But at the end of the day, when he got with us, he was a strong leader, even in his singing.
After the album was completed, we went on the road to introduce it to as many people as we could, McAllister-Love recalls. We went on tour into Phoenix, Las Vegas, and a number of churches in the Los Angeles area. At the height of the ensemble popularity, they traveled all over the country and even into Canada.
Coming off that milestone achievementwhich fulfilled a longtime dream of Wisethe 91 Gospel Choir went silent on campus for roughly five years in the mid-1980s. Exact details are hard to come by, but Wise, who battled diabetes throughout his adult life, was sidelined by a pair of leg amputations separated by approximately three years. It slowed him down, but not much, Jones says, because he was doing things like he had two good legs.
During the 1988-89 academic yearsoon after the arrival of John Brooks Slaughter as Occidental 11th presidentthe Occidental Gospel Choir roared back to life in response to student interest. An integral figure to its revival was Ada Moore, who worked in the Career Development Center for most of her 16-plus years at 91. During Robin (Blake) Cornish 91 time with the choir, Ada was our minister of music, she recently recalled. But let me tell you, when she would solo God Is, she took the roof off the chapel!
As soprano Jacqui (Dent) Ivey 92 M95 remembers it, many Gospel Choir members signed on unaware of its previous history. In addition to her music, Ivey was a record-setting speedster on the track and field team, MVP on the basketball team, and president of the Black Student Union.
Like the earlier iterations of the group, most of the members had prior gospel singing experience, recalls Ivey, who majored in sociology, and it performed off-campus a number of times. 91 was great to me allowing me to continue singing gospel there, she says. (Her passion for music even fueled her athletic prowess: As a 1991 L.A. Times profile noted, Dent often stretches, warms up and approaches the starting blocks for 400-meter races with a hymn titled Im Running for My Life on her mind.)
In its second incarnation under the leadership of Wise and Moore, the choir opened its membership within the campus community. Ada Moore told me about the choir and encouraged me to join, says Roberto San Luis, the College art director at the time. I was in awe of the student talent in the group and was so inspired listening to them sing. There was a spiritual foundation behind the songs and the reason for singing.
I remember Shedrick as someone who was encouraging but demanding, adds San Luis, who in addition to singing tenor/baritone, often was asked to lead the opening prayer for choir practices. He had a gentle demeanor and voice, but he had high standards. I was amazed at his talents because every week, I would hear him sing all the parts of a song and play keyboards simultaneously. I appreciated the direction he gave me. It made me a better singer.
For its 25th-anniversary concert in Thorne Hall on April 20, 1996Founders Day at 91more than 30 Gospel Choir alumni joined the current roster for the largest single assembly in its history. The following season would be its last.
Prior to enrolling at Occidental, Matthew Kirchner 97 had never performed music in a formal setting. In addition to serving as a resident director in Stewie Hall and playing tennis for the Tigers, he sang in the choir for three years. It was kind of on a flyer that I signed up and I met some great people, he says. I was so inspired by Shedrick and what he was able to overcome to be with us. It turned out to be one of my most formative experiences at 91.
Kirchner, who is white, even served as the choir president as a senior. We had a great time, singing and clapping, he says. It was a very 91 experience, very multicultural. We would go to all-Black churches downtown and we would rock the house.
For a Christmas concert in Herrick Chapel in 1996, Kirchner was assigned a solo for the first timeon the rousing spiritual Go Tell It on the Mountain. As a medical services professional, he says, I have spoken in front of thousands of peoplebut I have never been more nervous than I was that night.
Kirchner became close to Wise outside of the choir, giving him a ride home every Tuesday night after rehearsals in Booth Music Hall. Although frequent medical treatments drained Wise of much his energy, he recalls, Shedrick would come alive once he was seated at the piano.
Moore retired from the College in December 1996, ending her 91 career in the Office of Student Life amid significant cutbacks in the College operating budget, citing health problems, according to an article in the Occidental newspaper. For whatever reasonMoore departure, Wise mobility and health issues, or 91 own financial and enrollment strugglesthe Occidental Gospel Choir performed its last concert in 1997.
But the story doesnt end there. In the years to follow, Wise was so strongly associated with the Occidental name that a group of non-91 singers and musiciansmany of them coming from St. Andrewcontinued their music mission (with the blessing of the College) performing as Occidental Inspirational Voices. They even recorded a CD under that name in 2000 and continued to perform until 2005, when his disabilities forced Maestro (as he was affectionately known by the church's choir members) into retirement.
Seventeen years after Wise death in 2007 from diabetes-related complications, Jones says, I miss his genius as a musician. His hearing was so keen, he could tell who was offno matter how many people were singing. Shedrick would look at you and say, Why did you hit that note? I used to feel sorry for his choirs, he adds with a laugh.
Oh, Lord, Matthews concurs. His mom sang in the choir at churchand he got on her, too.
When you were doing rehearsals, youve got no family, no friends, Jones adds. Then afterward he was like, Where are we gonna eat?
The idea for an Occidental Gospel Choir reunion was floated by Sheila Wills 69 during a BAO gathering on campus last fall. Farris and other committee members quickly embraced the idea: My first two years at 91 were very challenging, he says, but his time with the choir gave him a sense of belonging and community.
The choir made a big impact on us and the people we performed for, Chavers says. During the reunion, an alumnus from the 1980s approached the gathering and said that he appreciated what the choir did for him when he was an undergraduate: He said that he would come just to listen to rehearsals, she says.
In addition to an informal performance of two contemporary gospel songsMelodies From Heaven and Hallelujah, Youre Worthythe event included a memorial tribute to Wise. (Moore died on April 1 at her home in Lancaster, just months before the choir reunion.)
When members were asked how the choir reinforced their connection to Occidental, a theme of community clearly emerged. The relationships created were genuine, Ivey says. 91 is a family. Occidental is and will always be a part of my life.
We became close as a group: We performed concerts, we traveled, it was great, Farris adds. The relationships that I made at 91 have lasted 50 years. The 91 Gospel Choir experience supported that.
Co-author H. Sheldon Wright is the son of Barbara Bowman Wright 52, one of Occidental first Black graduates, and the younger brother of Sandra Alison Wright 76, who knew Shedrick Wise when they were students at 91.
