No matter what kind of day she has had, Lynn Nowak said it can always be improved by singing.

“It’s good for the soul,” Nowak said of the pastime, a favorite of hers.

Nowak is one of eight singers who meet regularly to sing in the a cappella group Wild Rose Chorale, which this weekend, is putting on a pair of concerts aiming to lift up the community with its playful approach to music making.

“We commonly hear someone say ... ‘You sure look like you are having a lot of fun’  following our concerts,” said JES Schumacher, another chorale member.

The concert, called “Seize the Day” and performed under the direction of Leslie Lewis, will take place at 7:30 p.m. June 8 and 9. Both performances are at Quimper Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 2333 San Juan Ave., Port Townsend.

UPLIFTING, UPBEAT

“Seize the Day” offers up some jazzy, fun and groovy numbers, members said.

“I have always loved the lush, tight harmonies that we’re known for, but on this program I think I’m most enjoying the songs that really move,” Nowak said.

Some of the pieces they perform, she said, are accented with vocal and body percussion like stomping, clapping and whistling.

The concert title and theme is derived from a song in the film “Newsies.”

“Now is the time to seize the day/Stare down the odds and seize the day/Minute by minute, that’s how you win it/We will find a way/But let us seize the day,” the song commands.

“It’s a wonderful message for all of us,” Nowak said. “I like singing songs that are not only fun, or beautiful, but have something important to say.”

Schumacher noted the film is about a group of young men who band together against injustice.

“(It’s) uplifting and upbeat,” she said of the song. “Surely needed given all the challenging news we hear around the world.”

Other songs on the program include “Try Everything” – a Shakira song from the kid’s film “Zootopia,” – and “Build Me Up Buttercup” by the Foundations. Both of those pieces “allow us to groove to the beat, to let loose and enjoy,” Nowak said.

Also on the program are folk songs like “Tell My Ma,” “Loch Lomond,” and some tunes from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Phantom of the Opera.”

There’s also a Beatles song, as no Wild Rose concert would be complete without one, singer Al Thompson said. That song is an eight-part arrangement of “When I’m Sixty-Four.”

“Wild Rose Chorale is always seeking good arrangements that are challenging and fun to sing, while being enjoyable to our listeners,” said director Leslie Lewis. “We commemorate serious events and themes while not forgetting our entertainment roots.”

GROUP EFFORT

A cappella means choral music performed without instrumental accompaniment, and Wild Rose Chorale is one of the only groups in the community that sings in that style.

“In a cappella music, you don’t have the safety net of a piano or other instrument,” Nowak said. “You must depend on the others around you, and they have to depend on you.”

Schumacher said it is important to be solid in her part, and spends hours practicing outside of rehearsals.

“It is a pure joy to sing with people so skilled, and it keeps me on my toes, working hard to match their level of mastery,” she said. “The goal is to surround one another in delicious musical dynamics in every direction and when we achieve that, I savor every minute of it.”

Wild Rose Chorale, founded in 1992, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization offering two concerts a year.

For more information about the group, call 360-385-1402 or visit wildrosechorale.org.

“Singing in a choir ... is the ultimate team experience,” Nowak said. “A group of people joining together to make music is pretty magical.”