Make A Joyful Noise! is the ultimate celebration of gospel music!

Whether you are a church goer or not, this concert, which will be presented by Paul Galvan Productions on Friday, March 3, offers good old-fashioned family entertainment.

The 7:30 p.m. event at the Highline Performing Arts Center in Burien will feature the Seattle Community Chorus, Kids and Youth Sounds Northwest, a 12-piece band, the Hi-Liners vocal quartet, bagpipers and special guest artists.

Billed as a benefit concert for Ronald McDonald House Charities of Western Washington, all proceeds -- including those from sales of a CD -- will remain in the Seattle area.

Galvan believes a chorus is absolutely necessary to present superb gospel music, so he has arranged a chorus of 40 volunteer singers from several area communities including Burien, Des Moines, SeaTac and Kent.

There will also be 50 young voices under the direction of Paula Hawkins.

On a recent Saturday evening while rehearsing at a Normandy Park church, Galvan took a few moments from his hectic schedule to chat.

A member of the Hi-Liners board of directors, his enthusiasm overflows with the opportunity to help Ronald McDonald House.

“I would rather focus on Ronald McDonald House than the concert itself,” Galvan said. “I think it is important to give back to the community.

“We always seem to live in troubled times. This is life-affirming, inspiring and uplifting music. Everyone will find something they identify with. It’s for a worthy cause.”

Ronald McDonald House is place where parents of children who are in a hospital can stay at night.

Galvan was born and raised in Seattle. His mother, Grace, heard him singing “Jesus Loves Me” when he was 18 months old and in his crib.

He boasts that he could sing before he could talk.

Galvan began singing for audiences in the fifth grade, and at 13 as a boy soprano sang the Shepherd Boy aria in the Seattle Opera’s production of Tosca.

He also acted in high school and summer stock productions.

Then, under the direction of William Moeller, The Hi-Liners, a musical variety troupe of 60 high school students, was formed. It proved to be professional training on a large scale for this high school student.

In college, Galvan took music and drama classes by day and taught ballroom dancing by night, while his Paul Galvan Trio played at the SeaTac Holiday Inn's Top of the Inn on weekends.

He quickly learned that he did not want to sing behind a set of drums, so he hired a drummer, stepped out front, and soon the Paul Galvan Quartet was playing in the top lounges, supper clubs, nightclubs, resorts, and most of the Elks Lodges in the Northwest and Alaska.

Galvan went on to land a singing spot in Jubilee at the MGM Grand. (now Bally’s), where he performed two shows a night, six nights a week, for six years.

He then produced his own nightclub act, becoming a common name on the entertainment circuit in Las Vegas and other major cities.

Galvan is confident that after seeing Make A Joyful Noise! “people will leave with smiles on their faces. The quality of the overall production will be high. It’s worth your time to come to the theatre and see this concert!”

For tickets, log onto Galvan's website at www.paulgalvan.com or call 206-901-1618.

Adult tickets are $10; seniors/ students/children are $8. All seats are general admission.

The concert will be professionally recorded by a Grammy winning engineer, and CDs will be available for an additional $10 donation.