Deeply Rooted in Music

We came to Paisano in 1989.  My parents George and Katy Stokes invited us out. Like them we fell instantly in love with the Paisano Experience.

For me the Paisano Experience includes that unique perspective I get under these big skies, at the base of rugged purple-red mountains.  This rough terrain beckons me to examine my struggles, my joys, my wounds, my faith.  I am so small out here–my perspective is always shored up, changed, challenged.  The rocks remind me how fleeting I am (how fleeting we all are).  The grandeur of sky, mountains, cacti and creatures silently sing to me of God’s largeness, of God’s creativity, of God’s patience, of God’s peace.  And I respond by being able to become still enough to listen, especially through those deep roots of the music of Paisano.

For me, the Paisano Experience is about the music.  Singing voices come back to me–in solos, voices in quartets, ensembles, singing in the choir with family and friends, listening to marvelous instrumentalists like Nancy, Paul, Kurt Kaiser, Herbert Colvin,  Benjy Harlan to name a few.  

My own particular experience in the Paisano choir has been under the leadership of Ed Wittner and Jim Cleveland.  These two magnificent worship leaders, not only prepared what each encampment’s choir would present throughout the days of encampments, but also Ed and Jim consistently were “magicians,” leading whoever showed up in the choir loft to holy experiences during both evening choir practice as well as during services.  Incidentally, sometimes the holy moment singing praises to our Heavenly Father came during rehearsals, with no audience at all.  In those moments in the Tabernacle, the holy hush would come down upon us because we had attempted our best, singing out with no fear of mistakes, no performance anxiety.  Simply singing to our Heavenly Father.  The tabernacle filled and the Spirit empowered us all  as both congregants and choir sang the grand hymns of the faith.

There were other music leaders that preceded Ed and Jim.  B.B. McKinney whose compositions can be found in Paisano’s hymn book, was a creative composer.  When McKinney died tragically in a car wreck, Troy Campbell led the music for eleven years.  Known to be an innovative musician, Campbell organized musical festivals on Sunday afternoons at Paisano when the encampment ended on Sunday evenings.  Dr. Euell Porter followed soon after Campbell.  Porter, conductor of choirs at Baylor, loved Paisano and felt at home here.

We do not have to limit the Paisano music to what happens at the Tabernacle.  I observe spontaneous musical moments occurring all over camp.  Praise worship in the gym, children’s voices yelling good morning sounds to God.  Guitars can be heard being strummed while family-singing floats out from cabin porches onto the cool night air.  Groups of musicians have met on the concrete slabs near the cook shed.  My husband Richard has reported to me the beautiful a cappella men’s singing during the five o’clock men’s prayer meeting.  Through the years, the bell has been rung enthusiastically from time to time–hallelujahs proclaimed from young people’s hands, even though they may have entirely different feelings when they rang the clapper.   All of these camp sounds are precious to me.

From the first musical notes of camp, to Rankin and Tomer’s lovely benediction, “God be with You ‘Til We Meet again,” the gift of connecting with the past, the gift of remembering sweet voices and fine instrumentalists, the gift of camp music unique every year–this is the Paisano Experience deeply rooted in music.

Polly Stokes Barnes