photo by: Tandy Reussner
Dr. Jeff Sigler, the founder and owner of Sigler Pharmacy, waits for his cue at a recent rehearsal for the Medical Men’s Chorus. Sigler is set to accompany the group on his harmonica at its upcoming March 5 performance.
While the most common place to bump into your family doctor outside of the office might be somewhere like the grocery store, in Lawrence it could also be the concert stage.
That’s because there’s a local choir composed entirely of men who work in fields related to health care. It’s called the Medical Men’s Chorus, and it’s been making music for more than a decade since its founding by organist Tandy Reussner and her husband, Dr. Lee Reussner, in 2012.
The group’s next performance is set for March 5.
The Reussners came up with the idea of gathering physicians and others involved in the health care field to sing a song at one of the organ vespers concerts that Tandy had been organizing for a number of years. They enlisted their friend, Tracy Resseguie, a longtime choral director who is set to retire from his teaching job at Staley High School in the Kansas City, Missouri, metro this year. Tandy told the Journal-World earlier this month that he was “instrumental” in helping the group get organized enough to perform.
photo by: Tandy Reussner
The Medical Men’s Chorus — directed here by Tracy Resseguie, a long-time choral director at Staley High School north of Kansas City, Missouri — rehearses for a 2016 performance.
And then, the group practiced and performed for the first time 10 years ago, singing a rendition of “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch,” a song made famous by Thurl Ravenscroft in the holiday classic “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.”
“It was really fun,” Tandy said. “We’ve brought that piece back two or three times, just because it’s such a crowd pleaser. … It was just really cool to have them singing this funny song, with this serious demeanor that they usually have, that they could just cut loose.”
Since then, the group has participated in numerous performances — some of them alongside both Lawrence high schools’ choirs and the Lawrence Children’s Choir, and even a virtual one during the height of the coronavirus pandemic. All told, Tandy said the men’s choir has had about 30 men participate at some point. The choir for next weekend’s concert includes 12 members.
photo by: Tandy Reussner
The Medical Men’s Chorus rehearses for a 2016 performance.
“They enjoy being together, and they enjoy doing something that is not medicine-related,” Tandy said. “Music is such a stress reliever, just to sing it and participate in it.”
At their upcoming performance they’ll be singing a range of “Kansas classics,” accompanied by Tandy on the organ; Jeff Sigler, the owner and founder of Sigler Pharmacy, on the harmonica; and the Lawrence Bar Band, the brass and percussion ensemble composed of current and former Marching Jayhawks that shows up to play at bars geared toward University of Kansas fans.
Ticket proceeds for past concerts have always benefited a local organization such as Family Promise, LMH Health or Just Food. This time around, ticket sales are going to Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center.
That’s actually going to be a pivot, Tandy said, as the group initially wanted proceeds from this concert to go toward the Treatment and Recovery Center of Douglas County. But that facility has yet to open as negotiations continue between Bert Nash and the county about running the center.
Nevertheless, she said it’s still important to the group to do what it can to support behavioral health care, and supporting such causes has been a key impetus all along.
“This community is one of the most generous toward the marginalized that I’ve ever witnessed,” Tandy said. “I mean, people care. I think that’s what’s so cool about Lawrence. … Lawrence has its own unique, generous community.”
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There’s a core group of choir members who keep coming back, one of whom is Tandy’s husband and the group’s co-founder, Lee. Participating in the group is a pretty natural extension of his work; he’s an otolaryngologist, aka an ear, nose and throat specialist. But Lee has a particular interest in the voice, he told the Journal-World recently, and he enjoys helping singers and other folks with their vocal issues.
“It has been great camaraderie for us,” Lee said. “We get to know each other better, so it’s wonderful for us. We love it. We have fun at rehearsal, we have fun at concerts, but then we hope that the audience likes it, too.”
photo by: Tandy Reussner
The Medical Men’s Chorus shares some laughs during a 2019 concert rehearsal.
Lee said he’s always been involved with music, though not to the same degree as his wife. He played violin with KU’s orchestra, but he didn’t become a vocalist until Tandy’s church choir needed more baritones.
Singing is a nice change of pace, he said; it’s a totally different environment from where men in the group work. Rehearsals take place in the music room at the Reussners’ home, where Tandy will play the piano or a small organ. It’s a chance to see everyone in a different light, he said.
“The other thing I think that sometimes the audience likes is when you see a bunch of physicians, nurses, therapists, medical people up there singing, I think they kind of get a kick out of that, too,” Lee said. “Seeing their doctor or whoever doing something that is completely different — and sometimes silly.”
The choir’s roster has included a wide variety of professions over the years, from surgical technicians to nurse practitioners and all manner of physicians, plus folks whose spouses work in the field.
Some, like Dr. Bob Dinsdale, are even retired. Dinsdale, a fellow otolaryngologist, got involved with the group in its first year.
“It’s obviously something that I look forward to because making music together has added dimension to life with folks in the community, and these people I really respect,” Dinsdale told the Journal-World.
For Dinsdale, music was something that changed his life. He comes from a musical family, and grew up singing and playing instruments — an experience that taught him a great deal, he said, about confidence, attention to detail and overcoming the butterflies of performing.
Dinsdale said the group’s been really “starting to gel” in its last few rehearsals and adding in some choreography.
“We realize we’re there because we’re enjoying it, but it’s entertainment,” Dinsdale said. “We want people to come in and enjoy some nice music and maybe laugh a little bit and have a nice afternoon of it.”
The Medical Men’s Chorus will perform at 5 p.m. Sunday, March 5, at First United Methodist Church, 946 Vermont St. General admission tickets cost $20 and are available online, along with VIP and student admission options.
