It was a hot summer day in July, 1972. Nearly 100 singers, musicians, dancers and production specialists combined their talents in the parking lot of a church in a modest neighborhood in Detroit and led the hundreds in the audience in a spectacular 2-hour Freedom Celebration.

Somewhere down deep in the very soul of every participant an unquenchable spark was ignited. The idea was born that day which would spread like a wild fire, and would make an impact on the entire world.

Never in their wildest imagination could anyone in that parking lot have imagined where the idea of "taking music to our world" would lead.

Here are just a few of the highlights of 38 consecutive years of making beautiful music for tens of thousands of people:

• 3 world trips
• 1st ever performance by a Gospel group in the Kremlin in Russia
• 4 major performances at the request of the Mayor of Jerusalem to help celebrate their 3000th Anniversary
• 3 made-for-television specials now running annually during the Christmas season on several networks
• The last Christmas Celebration in the city band shell in Bethlehem
• 6 major full length musicals created, recorded and published in their entirety and released world-wide
• Festival of Praise, performing in nearly every state and Canada during a 10 year period with more than a thousand members in the cast
• Sister choirs in Oklahoma, Texas, Florida, Missouri, Illinois, New York and New Jersey
• Over 100 performances of "Alleluia" written by Bill & Gloria Gaither
• Performances on major television shows including the 700 Club
• Standing-Room-Only at their Christmas Spectacular in major venues across Michigan and Ohio each year.

Who are these people and are they not professionals or music majors or well-known recording artists? Actually, their story is even more amazing because they are just ordinary people. But, never assume they are not special.


They are the CMI Concert Choir, Rick Everitt and the Orchestra, the Thurlow Spurr Singers, The Brotherhood, The Kids, The Four Divas, The CMI Spurrlows, and The CMI GIRLZ the featured soloists and a crew of talented sound and lighting specialists, costume designers, set builders and special effects coordinators.

They make music with whatever they touch and wherever they go. They will make you an offer to buy one, two or six-dozen tickets to their show. And you can't refuse their offer 'cause somehow you just know their current show, "Repeat The Sounding Joy" will make memories for you, young and old alike. It's their 38th Anniversary Celebration and all the stops have been pulled out to make it two and a half hours of musical magic.

They are ordinary people on an extraordinary mission. They have placed their little in the Master Musician's hand. He takes such pleasure in them that He even joys over them with singing (Zephaniah 3:17).

And that is extraordinary indeed. God...participating in a sing-a-long.