Coby Foster first got involved in barbershop when he and three of his closest friends sang in a quartet in high school and it was this early involvement that got him hooked. It wasn't until he was studying music at Southern Oregon State College that he was introduced to the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barbershop Quartet Singing in America.
Coby and his college roommate Gabe Caretto (former director of our Eugene chorus) formed a quartet in 1989 and wanted to compete. Unfortunately, there was not a local chapter so they decided to start one. The result was the 1991 chartering of the Rogue Valley Harmonizers in Medford, Oregon. After graduation Coby and his soon to be wife Julie (a barbershop brat) moved to Eugene and became a member of Cascade Chorus.
A quartet man from the start, Coby has sung in a number of quartets including several registered quartets: The Ragged Edge of Harmony, Last Minute Edition, Roadside Attraction, The Allnighters, in which he first sang lead and then tenor, Razorburn, After Five, Brews Brothers and his current quartet Brotherhood of the Ring singing baritone.
In the fall of 1996, while the chorus was in the process of a nationwide director search, he was thrilled when he took over the directorship of the Cascade Chorus. This position continued for nine months, including one division contest. His hard work and dedication to the Cascade Chorus led to his selection as Barbershopper of the Year in 1998.
When the chorus found itself once again in the middle of a director search in February 2000, Coby stepped up and took over the helm carrying the chorus through division and District contests and their spring show. He took a brief break from directing when his first son was born in 2001. He returned to full time service with the Cascade Chorus as an assistant director and in February 2003 became our primary director. Coby again took a break from Directing in the spring of 2013.
As we started 2016, Kathy Kileen decided to retire as our director. She suggested that our music team talk with Coby about directing the Chorus. The Music Team talked with Coby, an agreement was reached and approved by the Board. Starting February 9, 2016 Coby again became the Director of the Cascade Chorus.
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