Musical talent runs deep with Mandarins’ solo vocalist

The centerpiece of Mandarins’ 2022 production was hidden right under its nose for four years.

In 2017, when Charles Henderson III first joined the Sacramento corps as a tuba player, it was relatively unknown to his corps’ staff that he had other musical talents. It remained that way well into his lengthy drum corps career.

Finally, though, in 2021, the best-kept secret came out.

Charles Henderson’s got pipes.

“Oh, you’ve got to hear Charles sing,’” Mandarins brass arranger Key Poulan recalled being told on a rehearsal day in the summer of 2021.

Mandarins’ 2021 production, which the corps performed on DCI’s non-competitive “Celebration Tour,” featured Cynthia Erivo’s rousing and passionate anthem, “Stand Up,” as featured in the 2019 film “Harriet.”

 

At one point that summer, during a popsicle break on a hot rehearsal day, it was mentioned in passing to Poulan that he may just have a star singer in his midst.

So, Poulan, curiosity piqued, followed up on the recommendation. Shortly, Henderson was singing along with his corps’ rendition of “Stand Up.”

Poulan was floored.

“I'm going, ‘That's awesome,’” Poulan said. “He had that soulful approach.”

At that point, he knew there was more potential in Henderson’s abilities that was waiting to be tapped by Mandarins.

Initially, that potential materialized into a memorable encore performance of “Stand Up,” with Henderson as a featured singer, at the DCI Celebration in Indianapolis.

“That was my first time ever singing with the corps or even in public like this,” Henderson said. “And then, I guess they liked me, and they threw in the show for this year.”

But from there, preparations began for Mandarins’ 2022 campaign, in drum corps’ first full, competitive tour since 2019. Knowing the vocal talent they had in Henderson, Poulan and Mandarins’ design team decided it was time to center him directly in the spotlight.

“We sat there and said, ‘Okay, this is one of our strengths,’” Poulan said. “‘We've got to do something with it.’”

Music is in Henderson’s blood; according to Poulan, Henderson’s family owns a recording studio, and he grew up frequently singing publicly with his two sisters in a church setting.

“I grew up in an African American church, and that's where I learned how to sing,” he said. I'm a triplet, so my sisters and I sang three-part harmony since we were young. That was my upbringing musically, until I hit middle school, where I ran into a tuba and fell in love with it.”

With newfound knowledge of Henderson’s singing abilities, months of discussions among Mandarins’ designers brought about the corps’ 2022 production, “The Otherside.”

As both Poulan and Henderson described, the show takes audience members on a journey from one dimension to another. The program opens with performers existing in a digitized and militaristic landscape, before later crossing through a barrier — represented by Mandarins’ large, light blue prop — to a new space of freedom and individual expression.

The show’s ballad movement is the crux of the crossover, and is where Henderson is most prominently featured, singing along with the corps’ rendition of Avi Kaplan’s “Otherside.”

“We're trying to get away from this militaristic thing, go through the wall, and suddenly we have freedom,” Poulan said. “He's the catalyst of that moment.”

Mandarins entering new territory, enjoying early steps of '22 tour

The original work carries a somber tone and largely features acoustic guitar; Mandarins’ arrangement captures that same feeling, before emerging into a broader, more triumphant and grooving energy, emblematic of the style of 2021’s “Stand Up” presentation.

Henderson wasn’t shy in describing the corps’ ballad movement — he loves it.

“I love the musicality of it, how they set me up for success, and how they feature not only me, but how they feature all the other different horns, while still allowing it to flow,” Henderson said. “It's very expressive.”

 

Later on, Henderson returns to his featured vocalist role in the show’s closing moments, singing reprised lyrics of “Otherside” over top of resounding brass chords that push toward the production’s finish line.

“Having Charles as that top layer on that is really fun,” Poulan said. “He hits that note, and then the full brass section enters in; it's such an emotional release for the performers and for the audience.”

Singing has been a part of Henderson for most of his life, and — both inside and outside of drum corps — still is today.

Henderson, a student at Sacramento State University, is in school for music education and receives focused vocal training as part of his studies. One of his professors at Sacramento State, Chris Langton, has a master’s degree in vocal performances, is a Mandarins alum, and has worked on staff with Mandarins to both support and instruct Henderson and work with the corps’ baritone and euphonium players.

“He came on board this year to (teach) the baritones and euphoniums, but also to be my vocal coach,” Henderson said. “I've never really had a professional vocal coach to myself, so it's very exciting.”

There’s plenty of time left for the 2022 DCI Tour’s competitive landscape to evolve and change; Mandarins have found plenty of success to date, but are continuing to remain focused on steady improvement and development.

But at this point, Poulan feels confident — featuring Henderson’s vocals was a pretty good call.

“I just think we hit a homerun (with him),” he said. “We seem to be a favorite corps at every show we've attended so far. We'll see if that holds up for the rest of the year.”

View Mandarins' 2022 Tour Schedule