Rehearsal 24th October

Very happy with our work this half-term on our winter concert programme.Starting early (and ignoring those comments about carols in September!) makes for a much more relaxed second half-term, as we polish up all those new items. Tonight, it was the Saint-Saens Ave verum, then a new lollipop by John Rutter, The Colours of Christmas. Is that description 'soft porn for choirs' fair? He seems to be in the same class as the sainted Mr Malone. Audience bait? We'll do anything to fill those seats! Then another Rutter arrangement of a Welsh traditional carol, Deck the Hall. Lots of counting needed to get it right, especially at the lick our Val likes to have it sung.... but we're getting there, and actually starting to enjoy it, I think! Finally, Douglas Cook's 'He wishes for the cloths of Heaven', which is absolutely lush. Next week is the half-term holiday, so see y'all on 7th November

Rehearsal 17th October

More note-bashing tonight. Working hard at memorising the Saint-Saens Ave verum. Then to the Carols for Choirs book, from which we practised Angelus ad virginem (lots of Latin tonight!), followed by Rutter's Deck the Hall (n.b. there's only one hall...) Friday's fund-raiser with John Crouch demonstrating French provincial cookery, followed by a meal, was a most enjoyable night, and thanks are due to all those who pitched in to help - making puddings, distributing samples of John's delicious food, pouring drinks, and then helping with all the washing up and tidying away. I'm not sure how much was made yet, as there are still a couple of bills to be paid, but it was a respectable sum, and I will let you know via this forum when the final accounts are done! I did take a picture on my new phone, but have yet to learn how to upload it....

Rehearsal 10th October

The Christmas programme is becoming gradually populated, if that's the word, with pieces that, initially tricky, are becoming more pleasurable to sing, and therefore sounding better! Tonight, John Rutter's Deck the Hall (tricky rhythms!), David Willcocks's Angelus ad Virginem, Douglas Cook's He wishes for the cloths of Heaven, and then Wherever you are, as a bit of light relief to round off the evening. Oh, and a rousing chorus of Happy Birthday for Sadie Best, who celebrates her **nd

birthday tomorrow. And will be celebrating in style at our fund-raiser on Friday evening at the Christ Church Rooms on South Street, when we have a demonstration of French provincial cookery from John Crouch, followed by a meal. Still a few tickets left at Billy Bowman's, if you've left it till the last minute!

Rehearsal 3rd October

Tonight we worked on the Saint-Saens Ave verum (I never see that composer's name without thinking of Peter Ustinov's brilliant voice-over recording for the Carnival of the Animals, which has to be about fifty years old... "Camille Saint-Saens (pronounced correctly as a very nasal San-Son, or something like...) was wrecked with pains, when folks addressed him as Saint Sains.." I digress. Then Sing until Sundown, followed by Douglas Cook's setting of Keats' He wishes for the cloths of heaven. These last two are quite tricky, so it was a spot of light relief when we started work on 'Wherever you Are', which the sainted Gareth Malone took to the number one spot last Christmas with his Military Wives group. I think we will do it justice!!