Sibling Harmony - Greenville Chorale, Herring Chamber Ensemble Create Bond Among Siblings

Three siblings … called to song and service … set aside other obligations at least once a week to rehearse and perform with The Greenville Chorale and the Herring Chamber Ensemble.

Brothers Kevin and Kyle Batson and their younger sister, Kelley Batson Addison, were raised in Greenville, churched and schooled in Greenville, classically trained in their craft in Greenville, then ventured away to pursue their passions.

And as they moved home again, each joined The Greenville Chorale – which offers no pay, but many rewards.

“I do it for the community, to improve myself, for the love of singing, to sing different kinds of music, because of the friends I've met over the years,” says Kyle, who came back to Greenville 17 years ago and is Minister of Worship and Music at Overbrook Baptist Church.

Kevin, the Worship Pastor at Taylors First Baptist Church, returned to the area in 2008.

“Hopefully, the chorale is a blessing to the community, along with the symphony, International Ballet and other arts organizations. Not every place has a symphonic choir that has the quality of The Greenville Chorale,” he says.

Kelley, who is Development Director at International Ballet in Greenville, moved home in 2021. She says she has loves singing with her brothers and being part of “the best choir in Greenville County.”

The Greenville Chorale was founded in 1961 as the Rotary Civic Chorale and sponsored by the Rotary Club of Greenville. It became self-sustaining seven years later. The name was changed to The Greenville Chorale in 1987.

Dr. Milburn Price was the chorale’s conductor until 1981. Dr. Bingham Vick Jr. became Artistic Director and conductor in 1981. This is his 43rd season.

Vick founded the 24-member Herring Chamber Ensemble in 1997. He is also its conductor. Each of the Batsons – like others in the ensemble – was chosen by audition from among the 150-singer chorale. (Members of the ensemble receive a stipend for performances.)

The Herring Chamber Ensemble will perform its 26th Annual Winter Concert with the Chamber String Ensemble at 3 p.m. Feb. 25 at the Charles E. Daniel Chapel at Furman University.

“It's going to be fun. It's extremely varied, from Bach to Billy Joel. And my brothers and I each have a little solo,” Kelley says.

The siblings grew up at the foot of Paris Mountain – the offspring of musical parents, Don and Carolyn Batson – singing and worshipping at Sans Souci Baptist Church, a big congregation with a big music program in those days.

They had the same choral teacher, Patricia Hunt Fisher, at Travelers Rest High School. They were all part of the Singing Christmas Tree, under the late Virginia Uldrick.

“We always had music in our lives – and some help from genetics,” Kyle says.

The Batsons are overly modest, says Kathy Cottingham, Executive Director of The Greenville Chorale.

“They are the best of the best. They are talented. They are kind. They are leaders. And they do whatever they can to be a strong part of the organization,” she says. 

Kyle’s journey to his life’s work was not as straightforward as the paths his brother and sister took. A child with ADHD at a time when no such thing was recognized, he studied music at North Greenville College (now North Greenville University) but struggled with other subjects.

So, he became a barber and owned and operated a successful shop for more than 10 years. Meanwhile, he was a music associate at Berea First Baptist Church.

“That was my inroad into ministry. That was my education,” Kyle says.

A mentor told him to take the leap of faith, literally. He followed music and the church to North Carolina, Georgia, then back to South Carolina.

Kevin says he was called to the ministry at the age of 16.

He pursued a degree in church music at Furman University, and during his junior year played the organ at his home church, San Souci Baptist. The next year, he became interim Minister of Music when the previous minister left unexpectedly.

His biggest accomplishment came that holiday season.

“We planned to do the Christmas portion of Handel's ‘Messiah,’ and our Minister of Music left before rehearsals even started,” Kevin says. “I was able to pick that up and teach the choir and put that together. Dr. Vick was one of the soloists.”

Kevin married after graduation and headed to Texas, where he earned a master’s degree in conducting. Posts at churches in North Carolina, Virginia and Missouri followed before he made his way home.

Kelley’s career also kept her on the move. After graduating from Furman with a degree in Music Theory, she headed to New York to pursue singing and theater. She later worked with the New York Philharmonic and Jive Records, led music for a senior living community, and taught private lessons.

“I’ve moved up and down the East Coast, and wherever I’ve lived, I sought out singing opportunities,” she says.

If there weren’t enough points of connection between the siblings, each also has less than one degree of separation from their conductor, Dr. Vick.

Both Kevin and Kelley sang with him at Furman.

When Vick heard that Kelley was returning to Greenville, he asked her to audition for the chorale.

“It's surreal. He's known me since I was 18,” Kelley says. “At times, I feel like I'm that 20-year-old college student in front of him. I have to remind myself: I'm all grown up now.”

Kevin concurs. “That connection with him … teaching me … me doing my thing … me coming back … being able to reconnect with him … more as a colleague than as a student/professor. It’s been good.”

Cottingham sang in the chorale before becoming Executive Director.

“The tie that binds the chorale together is Bing Vick,” she explains. “He’s an educator. He fosters his former students in their careers for decades. He loves us. He keeps up with us. He is magical in that way. Everybody who has ever sung for him loves him.

“That's why Kevin and Kelley and Kyle all went out into the world … And when they came home, the first thing they did was audition to sing for Bing.”