Sometimes while coming over the hill into the Tri-Valley area by car the sun balances on the surrounding mountains just so and the only thing the scene lacks is a group singing a heavenly chorus in the background. You know the kind of singing I'm talking about? It's the sound of well trained voices blending into a classical com-position that makes your heart soar. Fortunately, the residents of Pleasanton don't have to travel outside the Bay Area to hear a professional quality chorus.

The Valley Choral Society (VCS) puts on three major performances a year here along with special events, including their recent performance of Braham's Requiem at Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco.

The normally tough reviewers at the "San Francisco Chronicle" gave the Society high marks after their performance at Davies. This praise was paid dearly for in the practice sessions preparing for the event and was partly due to a recent addition to the group.

Two years ago the Society hired a professional director, Edwin Flath, to help them achieve their current concert quality. Flath, also director of the California Bach society, lives and breathes music. He said, "I think there is no substitute for a live performance and that can't come close to performing it yourself."

Supplementing the group occasionally are professional soloists. For in-stance, next year in April, the VCS will perform Mozart's Great C Minor Mass with the world famous Sherry Greenawald.

The group performs various types of classical music including light and accapella. But the group isn't always serious. The VCS sang patriotic tunes from George Washington's era in a concert on the Fourth of July.

The Society gets it's funding from donations, ticket sales, a flea market and from the 30 or so members themselves.

Their biggest problem with performing in Pleasanton isn't lack of interest, but a proper place to hold a concert. Judy O'Neil, a Society member said, "We are trying to orient the group towards Pleasanton, and we can't always find a place to perform." With the proposed renovation of the Amador Valley High School auditorium currently underway finding a location should no longer be a factor.

Persons interested in joining the VCS or donating time or money can contact Judy O'Neil through this newspaper office.

To see a reproduction of the original article and edition of Pleasanton Pathways, visit: August 10, 1983 Pathways.