On Saturday night, Larry Pfantz will lead his final show as the director of the Marshalltown Men’s Chorus and close the book on one of the longest and most rewarding chapters in his life. As he explained recently, there isn’t any pressing reason he’s decided to hang it up now. He still loves music, the way a piece comes together and the reception the group receives in the community whether they’re performing at a church, a holiday celebration or a spring concert like the one coming up at the Marshalltown Performing Arts Center (MHS Auditorium) this weekend.

“I kind of picked an age and I said ‘If I make it that far, that’s probably the time that I need to go,'” he said. “There really isn’t anything that’s pulling me away from the group other than, you just get that feeling it’s time to move on and let somebody else take over. Like I said, I really enjoy it, and I’m gonna miss it.”

Pfantz, who grew up around State Center and graduated from high school in Colo before enrolling at UNI, being drafted to serve in the Army and starting his career as a teacher, moved to Marshalltown in 1979 and got involved with the choir at Elim Lutheran Church, where the MMC still practices today. He worked in the Marshalltown Community School District (MCSD) business office and later spent a decade in the business office at the Iowa Valley Community College District (IVCCD) and retired from there.

In the early 1980s, he took on the task of leading the Elim choir because, in his words, he could count 1-2-3-4 and get a song started, and a few years later, members of the Men’s Chorus reached out to him about auditioning to become their director.

CONTRIBUTED GRAPHIC — Pfantz’s final show is aptly titled “The Director’s Cut” and will feature a potpourri of selected favorite songs from throughout his nearly four-decade tenure.

“They just called and I did it. I don’t know why, just kind of on a lark,” he said.

Although his background was in accounting and he lacked formal training, Pfantz sang in the choir in high school and said he always loved music. He’s also been lucky enough to work with two exceptional accompanists, Marilyn Spafford and Monica Kruse, the latter of whom has held that title for the last 15 years.

“Larry’s very polite and accommodating to his accompanists. He appreciates his accompanists. Marilyn Spafford was the accompanist before me for many, many years, and I had big shoes to fill for following Marilyn. And Larry made the transition very easy and comfortable,” Kruse said.

It was the love of the group and the music, she added, that propelled Pfantz forward for so long and made the chorus more than just a second job — it was like a mission.

“It’s a service to the community. The Marshalltown Men’s Chorus has been almost a goodwill ambassador for the city of Marshalltown, and then with all our members that have joined from outside of the city proper, it’s kind of an icon for the surrounding communities as well,” she said.

Carrying on the legacy of the MMC, which dates back to its formation in 1954 and the inaugural concert in 1956, was a tall task, but Pfantz handled it admirably and expanded the slate of performances from an annual spring show to include Christmas music and programs around the community, appearances at various church services in the summer, Memorial and Veterans Day events and even the famous “Singing Valentines” every Feb. 14, which were brought back to Iowa courtesy of longtime member Andy Schwandt after he moved to Illinois for a time. In all, they typically perform at more than 20 events a year.

“We all just enjoy music and we all enjoy singing together, and it’s flexible enough to where we can do whatever we wanted to do,” Schwandt said. “Again, what sets (Pfantz) apart from most other people is his patience with us, his creativity. He comes up with all the scripts, so when we do our shows, none of us really have to lift a finger other than just show up to practice and learn the music.”

His initial stint with the chorus began in 1987, just two years after Pfantz took over as director, before Schwandt left for Fort Dodge in 1995, spent a few years in Illinois and returned to Marshalltown (and reunited with his beloved chorus) in 2002.

“I joined the men’s chorus first and foremost because I was looking for a place to sing, and then Larry just made it easy (through) his patience with a bunch of guys who like to sing who are not singers,” Schwandt said. “His patience with as many of those types of people as we’ve got in the chorus is just phenomenal.”

One reason he enjoyed it so much, Pfantz said, is because of the variety, with songs ranging from spiritual standards to rock n’ roll favorites from the 1950s and ’60s to Broadway classics. For Saturday night’s show, aptly dubbed “The Director’s Cut,” he had the honor of going back through all the programs from his 39-year tenure and picking out his personal favorites.

“There isn’t really a theme to the music other than these are things that I think we did well, and I want to showcase them one more time. So it’s gonna be a variety from soup to nuts this time,” Pfantz said.

Other men in the chorus — like Steve Salasek, a Marshall County supervisor who has been involved for 16 years — appreciate everything Pfantz has given to it over the years and aren’t sure how he’ll be replaced. Salasek is particularly fond of the ’60s and early ’70s songs the director has arranged.

“He’s made it such a pleasure to be in that group. I’ve gotta tell you, we’re as chatty as little schoolgirls, and he’s pretty tolerant of that,” he said. “But everything has to come to an end, I guess, and I’m sure he’s had enough, nothing left to prove.”

Bob Kruse is another longtime member with over 20 years of service and at least 13 years as the president of the group, and he noted that Pfantz has kept memorabilia from past shows and rehearsals — a shrine of sorts to the chorus — at his house. In Kruse’s view, one quality that made him a strong leader was his willingness to be blunt if he didn’t think an idea would work — his wife, Monica, was the only one who could push back, Bob joked. With Pfantz’s longevity, however, he had earned that respect and deference.

“It wasn’t, you know, ‘Well, I don’t know, maybe.’ No, he would give you a direct answer,” Kruse said. “It was his way, which it should’ve been. That’s what made him a great director. He did all the scheduling and everything, and that way, we had one guy do it… It was Larry’s way, and that’s how it had to be.”

Alan Hilleman of State Center, who joined the chorus in 1994, credited Pfantz for his “creative mind” and his scripts, and he particularly enjoyed singing at church services around central Iowa in the summertime. Hilleman was always in awe of his director’s versatility.

“Larry sings all four parts just like nothing. He can help all four parts sing their notes, and that’s what makes it so easy because he can provide so much leadership in that form,” he said. “We’ve got some really good singers in the chorus, but I don’t know if anybody’s got the time or is willing to put in the time (as much) as Larry’s put in.”

In retirement, the soon-to-be former conductor doesn’t have any big plans other than crossing the weekly obligation of rehearsal at Elim off of his schedule between Labor Day and Memorial Day weekend. Even as other civic and fraternal organizations struggle to survive, the MMC is still 35 members strong, and while Pfantz doesn’t plan to jump back into singing with the chorus right away, he certainly isn’t closing the door.

And he’ll always be the first to sing its praises.

“We aren’t a professional group. We’re just a bunch of guys that like to have fun. I don’t have any training. Some of the guys come (and) they don’t read music. The more we work on a piece, they kind of figure out (that) if the note goes up, I sing higher, and if a note goes down, I sing lower. And some of them, it takes a while to get into it,” Pfantz said. “You kind of get into trying to help through that process. I guess the most rewarding thing is there’s no high pressure. There’s no pressure. We’re just having a good time, and whatever turns out, turns out.”

The MMC is currently in the process of searching for a new director, and while there’s a sense of uncertainty lingering at the moment, Bob and Monica Kruse are still optimistic that God will provide the right person for the job. Tickets for Saturday night’s show, which begins at 6:30 p.m., are $8 in advance or $10 at the door. They can be purchased at Lowe’s Flowers or Thompson True Value.

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Contact Robert Maharry at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.