​Ah Tempo!, has been entertaining audiences since 2009 with their intricate harmonies, engaging programming, unstoppable wit, and enthusiastic talent. Together with their fearless leader and devoted pianist, Betty Mayer, they volunteer their time to rehearse and perform at community events, special occasions, and private parties – all to benefit the SCS.

Equally comfortable singing a capella or accompanied selections, their growing list of repertoire began with This Little Light of Mine at the SCS’s 2009 Member Recital and now spans every genre of vocal music from show tunes to heartwarming ballads. They have performed several full-length concerts and have appeared as cameo guests in SCS concerts. 

Ah Tempo! Is available to sing for your events! Contact us to inquire about availability.

Personnel: Gene Foote, Dave Lyman, John Mayer, Jim Smerdon, Dave Stine, Matt Zielke
Director and Pianist: Betty Mayer 

On Saturday, December 17, 2022, at First Presbyterian Church, Ah Tempo! Saginaw Choral Society’s men’s sextet highlights a blend of holiday favorites in their farewell concert, Christmas with Ah Tempo! This farewell performance will include a collection of Christmas favorites the group has performed over the past fourteen years. 

Ah Tempo! was established in 2009 from seven singers in the Saginaw Choral Society-six men and a woman willing to play the piano and keep the men in line.  Nearly fourteen years, scores of songs, and infinite laughter later, Ah Tempo! is preparing what will likely be their ensemble’s farewell concert to the Saginaw community.  

During their fourteen-year run, they have appeared at Saginaw Choral Society concerts, concerts at the Saginaw Zoo, Friday Night Live concerts, Jazz on Jefferson, Art Lewis’ show, Saginaw Chamber of Commerce Percolator Breakfasts, and too many birthdays, weddings, and service club events to count. The ensemble is composed of John Mayer, Jim Smerdon, Dave Stine, David Lyman, Matt Zielke, Gene Foote, and their leader and pianist, Betty Mayer, who all have professional careers, but still make time to rehearse weekly throughout the year, taking only occasional weeks off during the summer.  Whether in tuxes or t-shirts, after dark or the crack of dawn, Ah Tempo! elicits laughter with their wonderful singing and promotion of the Saginaw Choral Society.  Thank you, Ah Tempo! for an amazing fourteen year run.  

​Tickets for Christmas with Ah Tempo! are $20 general admission

​Bios

John Mayer
Tenor
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Singing is second only to spending time with Betty, John’s wife of 33 years. Together they have two sons and daughters-in-law, and one granddaughter, Nora, who “lights up my world,” John says. John is a Sales Representative for Mid-States Bolt and Screw, one of our major sponsors for Kiss the Blarney Stone. John’s first major role was in the 8th grade as the lead character Billy Bigelow in the musical Carousel. He was hooked. In high school, he fell in love with Old Irish Blessing, his favorite on tonight’s program. Declaring that the friendships, harmonies, and laughter that come from Ah Tempo! have been the best, John also quips that “What happens in Ah Tempo! stays in Ah Tempo!” when asked about a favorite story. Hmmm!

Jim Smerdon​
​Tenor
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im rarely gets nervous singing in public, except for that day 27 years ago when his bride-to-be, Laura, made him sing a solo “at my own wedding.” Jim loves wandering through the woods with a camera doing nature photography. He and Gene even made a nature trip together to Yellowstone, where visitors mistook them for brothers. Jim is a Technical Service Rep for Customized Engineering Services, which keeps him on the road quite often.The most fun moments in Ah Tempo! cannot be printed, he says, agreeing with John on this point. His favorite tune tonight is Song For The Mira, which reminds him of Michigan rivers.

Dave Lyman
Tenor
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Dave laughingly recalls singing O Canada at a Spirit game when the lights were suddenly turned off and they hadn’t memorized the words. You can bet they know them now! Dave is an Organizational Psychologist who teaches at the DeVos School at Northwood. His local celebrity status is that he is married to “the Zoo lady,” Nancy Parker. He has two grown children and two teenage grandchildren. Dave started singing in kindergarten and never thought he’d still be doing concerts this many years later and loving it still. His favorite piece on tonight’s program is Song For The Mira. It reminds him of Michigan and his lovely place on the Huron Breeze Golf Course where he and Nancy enjoy walks together with their two dogs.

Dave Stein
​Tenor
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Dave remembers singing for a wedding when he was just fourteen years old. He must have put stars in the couple’s eyes and love in their hearts because they are still married today. Dave and Jeanie, his loving wife of 50 years, have two grown children, Marc and Laurin, five grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren. Dave is the proud owner of Stine Company Lawn Care and Snow Removal and he is a Certified Pesticide Applicator for his son’s company, Stine Turf and Snow in Durand. His favorite piece is Star of the County Down, telling the story of a dazzling young woman who is the “gem of Ireland’s crown.” He imagines the harmonies are as lush as the hillsides of Ireland.

Matt Zielke
Baritone
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Matt toured for several years with Up With People. He remembers a show in Topeka, KS, where the stage was a trailer, and when the cast began dancing, the vibrations bounced the drummer and the drum set right off the stage. He also remembers the year Ah Tempo! offered Singing Valentines for people to “send” to a loved one. One of the young recipients would not accept their call until her husband called her with reassurance the guys weren’t solicitors….kind of spoiling the surprise. When not spending time with family, Matt enjoys fly fishing on the Au Sable.

Gene Foot
​Bass
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Gene can often be seen biking long distances on Michigan biking trails or flying one of his radio controlled model airplanes. That’s why he loves his part-time work at Rogers Hobby Center. He claims to have been ‘scared to death’ by his first major solo in “The Seven Last Words of Christ,” but that didn’t stop him from continuing. Recalling a slight wardrobe malfunction at an At Tempo! concert, Gene tells of being unable to straighten one antler on his reindeer hat when it kept falling over. He and his wife Renee have two children and, as he says, “two wonderful grandchildren.”

Betty Mayer
Pianist and director
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Betty teaches middle school music and feels right at home with the Ah Tempo! gents, likening them to her students in “dealing with young, adolescent behavior and humor.” Betty is married to tenor, John Mayer, and they are eagerly awaiting the birth of their second granddaughter this spring. Equally gifted at singing as at the keyboard, she recalls singing John Denver’s “Country Roads” in the third grade. By middle school, she found she preferred accompanying the choir to singing solos. Her favorite memory, from Ah Tempo!’s very first rehearsal, was Dave Stine suddenly exclaiming, “It’s 10:15? I told Jeanie I’d be home by 8:00!” Having raised two sons, Betty thinks of the Ah Tempo! guys as having six more boys in her family.