It was so lovely to see you all again; it's safe to say we're back with a bang! A really good rehearsal looking at a lot of our new music, as well as a great start to working on ensemble... this is going to be a good term!
For our new members, these Conductor's Notes will be posted weekly as a reminder of what we did, a heads-up about what we'll do in the next rehearsal, and any other bits of information.
If you do miss a rehearsal, please check here to find out what you missed, and what you need to catch up on.
What we did on Tuesday 4th October
We warmed up with Bethlehem Down, immediately focusing on ensemble, which was great. Then we looked at Here is the Little Door, and we were able to begin thinking about the dramatic aspects of the work - different colours, emotions, and characters. Then we worked on the latter half of the Fantasia on Christmas Carols, beginning to find the flow of the music in each section, and ending with the speech-like section after letter E.
After the break we looked at A Hymn to the Virgin, Away in a Manger, and Candlelight Carol, before ending with O Little Town of Bethlehem... nothing like a good bit of cheese to end our first rehearsal with!
What we'll do on Tuesday 11th October
We'll begin by looking at stuff from 100 Carols for Choirs, starting with A Spotless Rose. After this we'll look at Jesus Christ the Apple Tree, and then The Three Kings. After the break we'll have a read of Advent Moon and See Amid the Winter's Snow. We'll end this rehearsal with some more good work on the Fantasia on Christmas Carols.
At this point, we will have seen all of the music (apart from O Come, All Ye Faithful, Hark the Herald, and White Christmas, which I promise not to do before November rolls around!)
Please note that you'll need to pick up a copy of McGlade's See Amid the Winter's Snow from Judy on your way in.
If you're using your own copy of 100 Carols for Choirs, make sure you bring it on Tuesday.
Open Workshop - Thanks!
A huge thank you for the Open Workshop "and Breathe..." a couple of weeks ago. I thought it was incredibly successful. Everyone was welcoming and friendly to all the non-member participants, and the whole afternoon had a really lovely atmosphere. Particular thanks to all involved in organising the day, those who brought/made - and served - the tea, coffee and cakes, and of course to you all for participating.
I hope you learnt a lot, and we can apply it to rehearsals going forward. Thank you!
Marked Scores
As always, here are the Marked Scores for the term. It makes all the difference to rehearsal time, flow and energy when we take a breath together, put a consonant in the right place, or know when to change tempo.
It takes me many, many hours to mark it all up once I've decided what I'd like to do; for you all it should take a matter of minutes to mark your own part... maybe...
I'd be so grateful if you could put these all into your parts as soon as possible, at the latest by our first rehearsal back after half-term. Sit down with a G&T, stick on the playlist, and shove the markings in. Thank you!
Spotify Playlist
To help with familiarity of the music this term, I've created the Spotify Playlist with recommended recordings, which you can ACCESS HERE. It's free to sign up, so I hope it helps.
Full details for the term...
are below, and a note for the rest of the '22/'23 season. Please note that our programmes have been swapped, so our "In the Mood" programme will now be in the Summer.
Spring '23: "To be sung on the water" - a selection of music inspired by the beauty and tranquility of water, its importance to life, but also its power and destructive nature.
Summer '23: "In the Mood" - a jazzy way to bring in the Summer, featuring music from the collection of songs 'In the Mood' - also lovingly called 'The Pink Book' - alongside other jazzy favourites.
Thanks everyone, and see you on the 11th.
- Ben