Bryant visit is like a vacation

When Ernie Haase and Signature Sound come to rural Bryant, they will perform three shows in a span of two days Sept. 6 and 7. But they look at their visit to Jay County as more of a getaway than a tour date.
The gospel group will spend four days on a “retreat” at Bearcreek Farms, spending quality time with family and getting to know some of its most loyal fans.
“We really, really hold that place near and dear to our heart,” said the group’s namesake, Ernie Haase. “Our most loyal fans and friends come together for one weekend in the country setting of Bearcreek Farms. We’re able to get away from everything, all the hoopla, wear our flip flops and sandals and shorts and T-shirts …”
Ernie Haase and Signature Sound, which also includes Paul Harkey, Doug Anderson and Devin McGlamery, played in front of a crowd of 22,000 at Texas Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys, last weekend. The group will play Sunday as part of the festivities surrounding NASCAR’s AdvoCare 500 in Atlanta, and it will be on stage at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Kent., on Sept. 10.
So spending four days in the quiet and calm of northeastern Jay County is a welcome escape from touring.
“It’s just a way for us to get away from all the hustle and bustle,” said Haase, “and spend some quality time.”
While the performers’ families do not generally tour with them, they will join Haase, Harkey, Anderson and McGlamery at Bearcreek Farms.
The band members, their families and their fans spend four days relaxing, drinking coffee in the mornings and having bonfires at night. They play volleyball and cornhole, and every year they watch the movie “Hoosiers.”
A love of basketball, along with a love of music, was one of the things that drew the band members together.
They first met when a band Anderson and Harkey were a part of, The LeFevre Quartet, opened for a Haase solo show. They immediately connected, and Haase promised himself that if he ever formed his own group that his two new friends would be part of it.
Two years later they got together and formed Ernie Haase and Signature Sound, with McGlamery joining in 2009 after spending five years apiece with Karen Peck & New River and Dixie Melody Boys.
The group wanted to differentiate itself on the gospel scene, so it focused on putting together a high-energy show that includes a mix of spirituals, classic gospel music, patriotic songs and inspirational tunes from Broadway. The style mirrors Haase’s non-stop personality.
“I was raised in church, but that was just one or two days week,” said Haase. “The rest of the time I was in theatre in high school. I played sports (football, baseball and basketball). I went form school to practice and then from practice straight into the drama department.”
He also participated in show choir, performed as part of a barbershop quartet and organized a ’50s revue group.
“From the time I got up to the time I got home and went to bed, it was non-stop activity,” Haase said. “I just didn’t want to create something that I had to be a different person when I got on stage. I just wanted it to be an extension of who I was.”
Ernie Haase and Signature Sound has 15 CDs, including two live albums and two that are Christmas-themed. It won the Southern Gospel Recorded Song of the Year Dove Awards for “Get Away Jordan” in 2008 and again for “Reason Enough” on their 2009 “Dream On” album.
The group performs more than 100 shows a year, having toured Australia and New Zealand in 2012.
They said they look forward to the opportunity to be with their fans at Bearcreek Farms and get to know them on a personal level, something they would not be able to do at a regular concert. They will perform shows at 7 p.m. Friday and 2 and 7 p.m. Sept. 7.
“The people love it,” Haase said. “It’s just that one on one time. The setting there is just beautiful.
“This is a chance for us to be with our most faithful loyal people and share our hearts, Share our testimony. It’s just a special time.”[[In-content Ad]]