Celebrate World Music Day and Ardenwoods Singers director, Shirley Morrow

In celebration of World Music Day Friday, June 21, we would like to introduce Ardenwoods resident and Ardenwoods Singers director Shirley Morrow, a lifelong music learner, teacher, and enthusiast.

Shirley was born in Cleveland, Ohio, but due to the impacts of the Great Depression, her family soon moved to her father’s hometown of Knoxville, Tennessee. Shirley’s musical journey began with playing the piano in third grade. It was her mother’s idea for Shirley and her sister to start lessons.

“My mother loved music. She sang in the church choir and with a small group but couldn’t read music. She did not play an instrument either, but she wanted us to have the musical experience,” said Shirley.

At the start of high school, Shirley recalled being in study hall one day and hearing the band practicing. She immediately knew that she wanted to join, and thanks to a friend who was already involved, she met with the band director about an audition. For the next four years, Shirley played the clarinet at football games, concerts and state festivals.

As a high school senior, Shirley was invited to join the Knoxville Symphony. Shirley’s band director played the violin in the symphony, and when a position opened, recommended her to the symphony leadership. Shirley was a part of this Knoxville symphony for the next four years while attending the University of Tennessee. She practiced weekly and played regularly in concerts.

Shirley earned a Bachelor of Science in Music Education from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

“I took all the basic classes in college, and then the music classes were extra fun. But I had to learn to play all the instruments, not well, but well enough to teach them in a high school,” said Shirley.

Post graduation, she taught for one year at a high school in Knox County. Then, she continued her education at a seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, pursuing a master’s degree in church music.

“I just felt like I was called to do church music. So, I changed my interest there, got more involved with singing and voice lessons, and still stayed with the clarinet even though I was not in a band or a symphony while working on my Masters,” said Shirley.

With her second degree in hand, Shirley moved to Gadsden, Alabama where she became the music minister of First Baptist Church — directing the children, teen, and adult choirs.

“Moving to Alabama was at first a little scary. It was the first time I had been really living on my own. After I got to know some people, I had a really good time. I still have friends I met there, and at one point, I lost touch with them, and then we got back together and still see each other on occasion,” said Shirley.

Shirley soon met her husband, Joe, on a blind date. A friend of hers in the adult choir at her church got the two of them together— the rest is history.

Next in her career, Shirley became the music director of a Christian school. Shirley then became a music director at a local Presbyterian church for several years.

Shirley’s biggest challenge in these roles was being a woman in a typically male-dominated field. However, she stuck with her passion and calling for music and succeeded in her roles as music director.

After Shirley and her husband Joe moved to Birmingham, Alabama, for Joe’s business, they decided to live closer to their newlywed daughter in Black Mountain, North Carolina. So, they found a property in Waynesville and built a log home.

“We’d go back and forth to Birmingham until Joe retired. Then, we lived in Waynesville full-time, about 4,500 feet up the mountain,” said Shirley. “After some time, we realized we needed to prepare for a different environment and started exploring options like Ardenwoods. I fell in love with Ardenwoods the first time we visited here. And I still love it.”

Shirley and Joe moved to Ardenwoods in 2014 and were soon visited by the community life services director, who asked them about their interests and how they would like to be involved in the community. After a recent visit from the Fletcher Community Chorus, the director mentioned to Shirley that she wanted to start up a choir for Ardenwoods, — Shirley jumped at the chance to become the resident director and the Ardenwoods Singers were born.

The Ardenwoods Singers had their first program in December of 2014 and then started doing two programs a year, one in the summer and one for the Christmas holidays. The Ardenwoods Singers group is quite popular— the group’s membership has grown to 21.

“There are no requirements, just loving to sing,” said Shirley. “We have a line dancing class, and the line dancers always perform at the show that we have, and it depends on the show, but this time we’re doing a hootenanny. It’s kind of a combination of country and folk music and the extra people we use. The people from the audience are going to do a hee-haw kind of thing, pop up, and do something funny introducing a song.”

Shirley believes the most rewarding part of being the director for the Ardenwoods Singers is having fun together and simply enjoying singing.

“We laugh and sing a lot, so it’s just good. Kari, the current community life services director, also brings live music at different times. She has many different groups come and perform for us, and we usually have good attendance at those,” said Shirley.

Shirley has also taught a music class at Ardenwoods for two years. Her class teaches people how to read music and emphasizes how good music is for people.

“Music is good for the brain and cognitive function. And I think when people participate in music, it really does make a difference in how we think and how we feel. I like to say music it’s good for the soul,” said Shirley.

In her free time, Shirley enjoys walking and traveling with her Ardenwoods friends. She recently returned from a trip to Mackinac Island in Michigan with this crew.

Celebrate World Music Day this Friday by sharing a song with a friend or loved one, attending a live music performance, or picking up an instrument you haven’t played in years. We know Shirley would approve.