Flurry of activity

A busy few days. On Thursday  I experienced Young Voices at Sheffield Arena. A number of firsts - the first time that I have been to the arena, the first time that I have been to Young Voices and the first time that I have heard All Angels. Young Voices is amazing. 4000+ children singing in a huge venue with live band and supporting acts. A very good selection of music requiring a variety of styles and techniques, all lead skillfully by David Lawrence. The children really enjoy the whole thing.A long, tiring day but fun.

Friday - Newstead Abbey Singers. A good session despite a few being absent through illness and family commitments. i evening, especially from the ladies. Some good singing thsGot well stuck in to a couple of Bruckner motets. they suit the current make up of the choir well. Also had a read at a couple if new ones from Madrigals and part songs and finished with an old favourite bit of Haydn. The programme is beginning to take shape - romantic sacred music in one half and a secular second half on the theme of Life.

Saturday - abcd Regional Meeting. Four of us sat round a table in The Voicebox, Derby finalising arrangements for our up and coming events. A fair bit of business done in a convivial day. As usual it has generated a few tasks for me, as chair, to complete.

You are the best singer in the world!

I received two unsolicited compliments today. Walking through the corridors of High Oakham School after waving the choir off to Young Voices a small child stood in front of me and said "You are the best singer in the world". Later, when walking home after Evensong in a grump because of yet another out of routine service, a lady stopped me and said "I was showing a friend round the Minster the other day during Evensong. Your voice is beautiful". I pursued the conversation further to make sure that she hadn't confused me with someone else, that she wasn't deaf and didn't want me to contribute to some obscure charity. It's a long time since someone has genuinely commented positively about my singing, so why two on the same day?

At last night's Choral Society I wondered as I listened to a tenor section singing really well and several sopranos not quite getting up to some, not unreasonably, high notes how do we decide which part to sing, and do we ever question it? The throw away line that triggered it was "Altos are sopranos that can read music". I was put onto the alto line at school, and because I could do it quite well stayed there. Male altos are a bit of a novelty and I suppose that I quite liked that idea too. If I wasn't an alto what would I have become? There is quite a wide range of notes that all men can sing so how do some become tenors and some basses? Similarly with women. If anyone is reading this I would be interested to know how you became the singer that you are.

Molehills and Matins

The world seems to be coming back to life. I noticed lots of fresh molehills on the golf course yesterday and in fields that I walked by this morning. All the bulbs are beginning to poke through the ground and it is generally much lighter.
That feeling of well-being was helped by a service of Matins. Matins is such a joyful and hopeful service. It is the only service that we sing that is looking forward. The canticles are full of praise and joy, the collects are positive and it is always done in daylight. We even got an excellent sermon on Christian Unity and three rollicking hymns. The only blemish was the completely foul noise that was used for the playover to the last hymn.

Happy Mondays

Mondays are fun. Reconvened the Junior Choral this evening. Twenty or so lively, excited children. A bit of a handful at times but very rewarding. A few silly warm-ups, an African song, a fairground song and some modern stuff. Began a bit of a Michael Jackson project. Junior Choral has been going since 2005, one of the original members is now doing her DofE community service with us.
The adults worked very hard on the second movement of Brahms Requiem. It is a long and demanding movement and we didn't take the break until 8.45. Worth it though. Let's hope that they remember it all for next time! Made some suggestions that perhaps they should look at the music between rehearsals - lots of nodding heads, but I suspect that there will be blowing of dust off the copies again next week.

HAPPY NEWstead Abbey Singers YEAR

First rehearsal of 2011 on Friday night. Good balanced turn out including a new soprano. Everyone seemed to be in good voice. Tried out some Bruckner, a folk song and a madrigal.
The Buckner went very well and will make the repertoire. The folk song is an arrangement by Graham Pratt of the Sheffield Folk Chorale who we performed with last summer. It also went very well. Also read through Gibbons What is our life. A bit more of a challenge, as much for the text as the music.

766 reasons to take the study of Music seriously

Alistair Cook, England's Ashes hero, puts his success down to his musical childhood. In a Profile in last Sunday's Times we learn that he was a St. Paul's Cathedral Chorister and that his scholarship to Bedford School was in music. What a great gift to those of us struggling to convince school management, parents, reluctant pupils and the government of the value of music. The demanding regime and habits of a choristership and the patience, determination and concentration required to perform music to a high standard help to explain Cook's ability to bat for hours.

This is a tangible, relevant and real reason to learn music and shows that it is not just for the otherworldly, pretentious geeks who are often the public face of serious music.

First Choral Society of the new term

A great turn out as we start to work on the wonderful Brahms German Requiem. Had to squash into the reserve rehearsal room as the school hall was full of exam desks. Didn't get too hot as it usually does. Good start on the fourth movement. It is only six years since we have done the work so many have remembered it. Concentrated on trying to get the text somewhere near, although can't get too carried away as I'm not conducting the performance. A good sound though and a positive ethos.

Had a less thorough go at the second movement.

The first week-end 2011

Evensong Saturday was pretty ordinary with the first two of six renderings of "How brightly shines the morning star". Sunday completed the set and included a rousing Vierne Mass. Voice a bit rusty but will get sorted out once I start work tomorrow.

Planning for tomorrow's lessons completed.
Got to sort out a rehearsal schedule for Brahms Requiem for tomorrow evening - in German.