Oh, say, can you see the Millstadt Community Choir?

After its annual July 3 patriotic concert, the Millstadt Community Choir usually shifts into off-season mode until it’s time to start rehearsing for the winter holidays.

But on a recent weeknight, the sanctuary at Zion Evangelical Church was ringing with the words “Oh, say, can you see ...”

“We’re getting ready. We’ll practice outside, too,” said choir director Patti French.

Why the move to the parking lot? Because their venue July 28 will be behind home plate at Busch Stadium, when the choir performs “The Star-Spangled Banner” before the St. Louis Cardinals take on the Cincinnati Reds at 7:15 p.m.

And while many a group has sung there, for this 40-member choir, it’s a chance to challenge themselves and give back to the community that has supported them for almost two decades.

“Very few of us can read music,” said Leon Lang, who’s been with the group since its inception in 1996. Membership is open to any singer, high school age or older, and no experience is necessary.

Joyce Herman, of Millstadt, joined a year ago.

“I came to one of the concerts and it looked like everyone was having so much fun,” she said. “I told them I couldn’t read music and they said, ‘We’ll walk you through it.’”

That’s where Patti comes in. A retired music teacher, she gets an hour once a week when they’re rehearsing to make them sound great, said Marilyn Gagliolo, another longtime member who can read music and set the stadium sing in motion.

Part of the challenge of singing at Busch, said Patti, is not just using microphones and the bounce-back of sound. Clark Ferry, their piano accompanist, won’t be performing with them.

“We’re singing a cappella and without (sheet) music,” she said.

Marilyn smiled. “We don’t usually memorize.”

On the other hand, everyone knows the song.

Still, “Sometimes there will be six, seven, eight parts going,” Patti said. “We want to make it something special.”

In order to sing at Busch, a group must buy in advance a minimum of 350 discounted tickets for the date chosen. The choir sold 450 tickets.

“The tickets are $15 and the value is $57,” Marilyn said. “We can sell them for up to the face value, but we sold them for $15.”

All their concerts are free, and any money raised goes toward some kind of community improvement, such as buying new American flags for the village.

Tuesday night, they will head to Busch well in advance of the game’s starting time to settle nerves and take in the surroundings from a new perspective: on the field.

Marilyn summed up what singing there means to many in the choir.

“It’s checking off the bucket list.”

This story was originally published July 22, 2015 at 6:59 AM with the headline "Oh, say, can you see the Millstadt Community Choir?."