Born to Sing; The Ditchfield Family Singers

In the Ditchfield family, musical talent seems to be hardwired in their DNA. They began their career by singing Christmas carols at an outdoor church pageant. People loved what they heard, and their singing engagements grew. Before long, they were officially The Ditchfield Family Singers. Over the years, they’ve entertained thousands at their annual “Christmas Celebration” concert at the Sarasota Opera House and at performances nationwide. On special occasions, three generations of Ditchfields sing on stage. We recently spoke to Stephen Ditchfield about how they got so far. Evidently, it all started with “The Sound of Music.”

How did the Ditchfield family become the Ditchfield Family Singers?

"You don’t sit down one day and say, “Let’s form a family singing group.” It grows out of who you are. My wife, Bernice, and I both had musical upbringings. We naturally gravitated to making other people happy with our singing. My dad took us all to see “The Sound of Music” in 1965. I saw this family who loved each other, sang together and made beautiful harmony in their music. I remember thinking how awesome it would be to do that as a family. I think that’s when the dream was born in my heart."

Did that translate to a desire to sing professionally?

"Not immediately. But my dad always brought home records from traveling Broadway shows and we’d all sing along. Eventually, something clicked in me. By the time I got to high school, I was an aspiring singer and actor with dreams of a Broadway career, and I had a band. Then I met Bernice, and we got engaged 11 days later. Before long, Bernice, my younger sister and I became a trio. We traveled for a few years doing contemporary Christian music. Today, we’d call it “golden oldies.” Then Bernice and I started a family."

That got in the way of the music?

"No. Our home was always filled with music—that’s something my dad had passed on to our family. We’d play records and sing along. We all loved music, and our home was filled with it. In the 1990s, our church, the Tabernacle was doing its annual outdoor nativity pageant. The Wallenda family also attended, and they supplied flying angels and camels. The pageant had three acts a night. So, the folks coming in for the next act had nothing to do but wait. Somebody suggested, “Why not dress the Ditchfields in Victorian costumes and have them sing old Christmas carols a cappella?” So that’s what we did. We actually had a four-part harmony. Our young daughters, Christin and Stephanie, sang the melody; Bernice was an alto; I sang bass. Folks from around the community loved it, and we did too."

How’d you get from there to the Opera House?

"I wound up singing at a restaurant called Homestyle Harmony. Another singer asked if the Ditchfields would consider doing a concert at a mobile home community. I said absolutely, and we booked a date. Back home, I gathered the family. I said, 'We got an offer to do a show. There’s only one problem — it’s in July, and we can’t do Christmas songs.'”

Jaws dropped, I assume?

"No; we jumped right into it. We put some stuff together from “The Sound of Music” and songs that I’d been doing in the restaurant, and we did our first show in 1996. From that, our popularity began to grow. In 2000, we rented the Opera House and did our first annual Christmas show for the whole community. This year will be our 17th."

Did your Christmas show remain a cappella?

"As the family grew, our arrangements grew more complicated. Now we’re doing full eight-part vocal arrangements and a wide variety of music. We continue to do some a cappella music. But we also picked up a sound system and sometimes use instrumental tracks. Our show’s grown too — it’s a full production, with a variety of sets and drops and effects."

Does the spectacle ever overpower the singers?

"No, and Bernice and I make sure of that. We’re a singing group, but everybody’s individual talent always shines through. About half of our family singers are accomplished soloists; the other half prefers to sing harmony in the background. So, we feature all the different individual talents of the family. All of our four grandsons grew up to be really good singers, so they get involved, too. And all of our sons’ wives have wonderful voices."

What’s your touring schedule like?

"We do about 75 to 100 concerts every year. Obviously, we can’t always do the same thing, so we’ve developed different themes. We’ve done a “Best of Broadway” concert, a patriotic “Americana” concert and “The Music of Your Life,” which featured all that great music from the Frank Sinatra / Tony Bennett era. But we started with Christmas, and it’s always been one of our favorite things."

You’re following in the footsteps of the Trapp Family in “The Sound of Music.”

"Well, not everybody’s on the road. We’d hoped to do the show full-time, but that proved impractical when gas went over $4 a gallon. Now, most of the kids are working and can’t always get away. Bernice and I do tour full-time, and I do solo concerts. So, no, our family’s not all on a never-ending tour together. But we do sing together a great deal of time. On special occasions, there's nine adults and our four grandchildren. It’s not exactly “The Sound of Music.” But our lives come very, very close. Music binds us together and gives us joy — and it’s a joy we can share with others. Bernice and I feel truly blessed."