Gospel ensemble to bring unique, pure blend of voices to Bayou Theater
October 1, 2018 | UHCL Staff
Sabine McCormick has lived in a house with music all her life. As an active member
of music groups in school and church choir in Augusta, Georgia, she met a young singer
named Trey McLaughlin. The two belonged to a gospel group McLaughlin created. It dispersed
in 2009, and soon after, he invited her to join a new group he was starting called
Trey McLaughlin and The Sounds of Zamar. The group, which now features 20 powerful
gospel voices, will bring their uniquely blended sound to University of Houston-Clear
Lake’s Bayou Theater on Thursday, Oct. 11 at 7:30 p.m.
“Zamar is Hebrew for ‘make music to God,’” McCormick said. “We’re very different from
other gospel groups on the radio because Trey’s creations for us are very different.
He’s very particular about the sound he wants. You don’t find choirs who are so pure
and unified.”
McCormick said that the sound McLaughlin seeks to create ensures that no one voice
stands out over any other. “Usually in a gospel choir, there’s a standout, but we
have eight or nine tenors that sound just like one single tenor. You can’t hear one
person over another—we sound like one voice.”
She added that although McLaughlin often sings solos, as do others in the group, “the
soloist doesn’t sing over everyone. And Trey’s spirit is very humble,” she said. “I
think that the audience will be surprised at the variety they’ll hear at our concert.
We also do Broadway tunes and other genres—there are not many gospel groups that do
that.”
That’s because McLaughlin, she explained, “hears something else in a song that no
one else hears. He’ll listen to a pop or an R&B song and say, ‘I was listening to
this, and here’s what I got out of it.’ And it’s something no one else hears. That’s
what makes our group so different.”
While she understands that not everyone was a fan of gospel music, everyone can enjoy
The Sounds of Zamar. “Our fan base is different,” she said. “We have touched people
from all over the world, from all cultures. We love receiving messages from people
internationally. And above all, we hope people will leave speechless and amazed,”
she said. “We want to share our spirit and sense of fun. That’s who we are.”
For more information about Trey McLaughlin and The Sounds of Zamar, and to reserve
tickets at the Bayou Theater, visit www.uhcl.edu/bayou-theater/.
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