Beginning with them

The power of song and voices of children make for a potent combination -- especially when the message is peace.

Witness the long-running International Children’s Choir, based in Long Beach. For the choral group’s 40 to 45 members, “Let There Be Peace on Earth” is more than a song -- it inspired the creation of the group in 1957. The children, 5 to 17, dressed in authentic costumes representing their own ethnic heritage, have sung and danced for audiences worldwide ever since.

“These children have a powerful impact every time they perform,” says Sylvia St. James, who books performers for the House of Blues’ weekly gospel brunch. “I just can’t tell you what an adult audience is like looking at all these children with all the countries represented singing, ‘Let there be peace on Earth/and let it begin with me.’ People are crying. There is so much emotion.”

The group that President Dwight D. Eisenhower once called “the world’s littlest ambassadors” will be performing Friday night at the Voices of Hope concert at the Ford Amphitheatre.

It will be just another line on the resume of a group with a rich history.

According to the ensemble’s co-president, GaleLynn Peterson, the choir was the brainchild of Easter Beekley, who coordinated shows for the Arthur Granger Dance Academy in Long Beach. She met the composers of the song, Sy Miller and Jill Jackson, and decided it would be an appropriate theme song for a choir featuring children of varied backgrounds. The original children had pen pals in foreign countries who sent them ethnic costumes; in return the choir members sent back clothes from this country.

“It was a wonderful learning experience,” says Peterson, who has two children in the choir. “In the early days they appeared on TV on ‘Ted Mack’s Original Amateur Hour,’ ‘Rocket to Stardom,’ and the choir sang the original ‘It’s a Small World’ song when the ride opened at Disneyland and then recorded it.”

Through the years the nondenominational choir has performed with Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Shirley Jones, the Judds, Johnny Mathis, Barry Manilow, Angela Bassett and many more.

The children were part of the opening ceremonies at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles and performed for Pope John Paul II at the Coliseum in 1987. The choir has carried its message of peace to Mexico, Central Europe, Egypt, the Soviet Union, Israel, Finland and Switzerland.

No wonder the participants rave about the experience.

“The choir has helped me develop a vocal system and impress audiences,” says Glenna Peterson, 15, who joined at 6 and represents Scotland. “Now I like to go to competitions outside of choir. When I went to Egypt I was picked as one of three choir members for a competition with children from other countries. It was wonderful.”

Adds Melina Cortez: “The choir has changed my life. It’s helped me with my confidence. Now I’m doing musical theater and just singing more because I love music. The music helps me when I’ve gone through hard times.”

“The music has made me think more and more about the world and not just the United States,” says Devin Cortez, 10, who joined just before he was 5. “I think about all the countries in need and we could do a lot to help them. It also makes me think more about geography in school. Some of the kids I meet even speak the languages from other countries and that’s really cool.”

His mother, Anabelle Cortez, vice president of programs for the choir, says that when each child auditions he or she fills out a form about their cultural heritage and lists three countries they could represent.

The children’s diversity and talents have amazed the group’s director for the last 12 years, Stephen Bullard, 44. Among his varied endeavors, he is a music specialist for the Redondo Beach School Unified District and music director at Faith United Methodist Church in Torrance. He has traveled to Europe and Egypt with the choir.

“These children come together from different socioeconomic backgrounds and form lasting friendships, and it’s their interaction with each other that is the best thing about it,” he says. “They take care of each other whether we are in foreign countries or locally on a bus to an event. These are my kids and I’m so honored just to stand in front of them.”

One of his high points was meeting Hillary Rodham Clinton when the choir performed at the White House. Another was an appearance in Maryland.

“We performed our regular program and at the end President Jimmy Carter sang ‘Let There Be Peace on Earth’ with us,” he says.

Marques Reed, 16, whose mother Marcia is co-president, has been in the choir since age 5. He represents Senegal because his mother learned that a great-grandmother four generations ago came on a slave ship called Nancy from this area of Africa.

“To have traveled to so many places like Egypt and Europe at a young age and done all this has been a blessing and I really cherish it,” Marques says. “It’s better than being out on the street and getting yourself into trouble, and I don’t do that.”

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Voices of Hope

What: Benefit concert for the Ryan’s Well Foundation, featuring Estherleon, Adiss Harmandyan, Marc Yu, Baha’i Gospel & City of Angels Choirs, the International Children’s Choir of Long Beach, Francis Awe and the Nigerian Talking Drum Ensemble.

When: 8:30 p.m. Friday

Where: Ford Amphitheatre, 2580 Cahuenga Blvd. East, Hollywood

Price: $10 to $100

Info: (323) 461-3673; www.fordamphitheatre.org