These thoughts are the unexpurgated, and hopefully not too dull, views of the Webmaster! They in no way reflect the views of the Committee or any other member of the Society. I simply feel that a few personal thoughts and memories may help to indicate the character and nature of the Society and attract you to join us !
The Society emerged in 1929 and our history is outlined elsewhere. I have picked up the threads after the times of musical directors Nicholas Riddle (who developed our enthusiasm and also introduced us to some rarefied obscure music), David Truslove (who worked hard on our singing), and Sir Peter Beale (who kindly guided us through a truly splendid performance of Handel’s Israel in Eygpt). Our spies knew that Robin Nelson was due to retire as Musical Director after some 20 years at Marlborough College, and when David resigned there was only one answer !
Robin joined us as Musical Director some 3 years ago (in 2003) and we have now, to date, sung 12 concerts under him. Eight performances have been in Swindon, 3 at St Mark’s Church, 2 at Holy Rood Church, the 2005 Christmas Concert was at St Augustine’s and the 2 summer concerts at Bath Road Methodist Church. Robin’s first concert, at Holy Cross Church, Ramsbury, was memorable for the wrong reasons! He proved his worth, held the performance together, and confirmed the principle that accompanying musicians need to be well chosen – Handel’s Zadok the Priest was performed in a rare, syncopated but off-beat way. Most unusual !
The second concert took place in the wonderful Chapel at Marlborough College, and it was a return to over 20 years of experiences for Robin !. For many in the Society it was their first “sing” of Haydn’s Nelson Mass. A splendid piece with great interlinking between soloists, orchestra and choir. Durufle’s Requiem was the second item and once again it proved a joy to sing. We know it well, is currently popular and usually it helps to bring in the audiences. However, although the concert was part of a nationwide appeal for Hospices and the College waived their usual fees for using the Chapel as their donation, the attendance by the public was, for the stature of the event, thin. We have experienced low attendances for similar charity events through the years, and to justify our commitment there really must be better liaison about who publicises what.
It was like old times for the 2003 Christmas Concert in St Mark’s Church !. It was posted as a St Nicholas’s Day Concert, and with Robin in Hong Kong and unavailable, who should direct us but our old (former !) MD Nicholas Riddle ! The commentary was again by his lovely sister. A good time and mince pies were had by all !. Mulled wine was restricted to the large audience – who sang well in the second half !
Robin’s fourth concert as MD was in March 2004 at Holy Rood Church. Somehow I always regard this Lenten concert as our annual “big one” and so it proved. Verdi’s Requiem is “big” and the Society, together with our friends (we still have to pay them!) of the West Forest Sinfonia made it so !.
“Music from the Theatre” was our Summer production in June, 2004 and was quite a diversion from our usual brand of music !. We were joined by the Janice Thompson Concert Choir of youngsters from Swindon. Operatic choruses – Verdi, Weber, Wagner, and Bizet all featured, choruses from Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas were sung, and then excepts from Porgy and Bess plus Guys and Dolls all helped to remind us of wonderful melodies ! It was a very good evening and helped by so many tuneful young voices and a full house. Bath Road Methodist Church really has a good acoustic.
In October 2004 the Society again exhibited their proficiency at Hebrew by singing the popular Chichester Psalms, composed by the Jewish-American master-musician Leonard Bernstein. For we English it takes hours of practice to cope with the inflections of Hebrew ! Our former President, the late Michael Tippett’s arrangements of the five spirituals from his Child of Our Time were sung, and Puccini’s Messa Di Gloria was performed for the first time by the Society.
A Journey Through Advent was our Christmas presentation in December 2004. We were well supported at St Mark’s Church by a full house of lusty Swindon carollers. Baritone Richard Quine (it was great to be given supportive advice by an experienced singer) and our then accompanist, Sam Bayliss, at the organ were both splendid.
A concert performance of Elgar’s Dream of Gerontius is always a poignant occasion, and events in Rome made this particular evening all the more so. We were singing in Holy Rood Church, on 2nd April, 2005 at the very time Pope Paul died. His death was announced by Mick Bray (our loyal Front of House Manager and also holder of a Papal medal of some distinction) during the concert interval, and it made our singing of Cardinal Newman’s tender yet agonized words all the more emotional. The evening will prove unforgettable.
During the initial rehearsals for our June 2005 summer concert, there were some mutterings within the choir that the piece chosen was perhaps too “quaint” for us to sing and it took a while for certain members to adjust to it. George Frideric Handel’s Alexander’s Feast was unknown to most of the choir and whilst Dryden’s Ode and the tale within it may have been “quaint”, Handel’s music made it all worthwhile. I had attended most of the rehearsals but could not sing in the performance and joined the audience in the Bath Road Church. I have to say that the Society is often – like so many choirs – criticised for not smiling, but it was great to see so many happy singers visibly enjoying the full work ! Robin must be applauded for introducing this Feast to our experience !.
The eleventh concert, in Cirencester Parish Church, produced our largest audience for some time. Bruckner’s Mass in E minor (“The Wind Mass”) had tested the choir in rehearsal, but proved a fine concert piece to sing. It focused the West Forest Sinfonia’s wind players too (!), but the whole ensemble, in the second half of the concert, performed a sublime Requiem by Mozart. We can sing very well ! Reflecting, it took a great deal of effort to stage this concert, for we were in a sense singing out of our patch ! Everything and everybody had to be transported and accommodated – in a rehearsal and concert sense – and all credit to those who plan and stage these things. One interesting thought is that our advertising seemed to get through to the good folk of the Cirencester district who boosted our loyal followers into this large audience ! If we advertised in and around South Gloucestershire would they, having had a taster, come listen to us in Swindon ?
Christmas 2005 was different. We were joined in our Christmas Concert by the well-trained Choir of Ruskin Junior School who not only sang well but entertained us with their violin ensemble ! Where Icicles Hang by John Rutter was the Society’s main piece, but we also sang some of his other arrangements and also another fine carol by our Robin Nelson. Again, the large audience enjoyed their singing of the popular traditional carols too – I rather feel they would like more !
A sad note. During the rehearsal period for the Christmas concert, Wilf. Packer, who had sung with the Society for some 15 years and who was Tenor Leader, suddenly and unexpectedly, died at home. A talented graphic artist who designed our updated logo, a violinist, and a quiet singer who was never out of tune. We miss him.
In March 2006 we again had our “Big” concert at Holy Rood Church. In rehearsal it rather seemed we were learning extracts of Classic FM’s popular bits, but when we came, on the day, to put the whole of Karl Jenkin’s Armed Man – Mass for Peace together as an “oratorio” it became big in itself ! As mentioned elsewhere in the site, the Mass truly came into its own when sung in live performance. The audience – by all reports and despite hard seats – loved it !. The Society loved it, and we could all tell that Nicholas Riddle (again standing for the resting Robin Nelson) was totally enthralled !. The concert had begun with some Bruckner Motets sung unaccompanied and so very sensitively. Beautiful and in tune !. This was followed by The West Forest Sinfonia’s brass leading us into John Rutter’s Gloria. What a programme !!.
What else have we been up to ? We are a registered charity with a broad aim to teach and stimulate singing and particularly choral music. Overall, this is not an easy task in this modern first-world time. Singing is not done any more. We have all thoroughly enjoyed singing with youngsters from our local junior schools, but although we have put out feelers – and at one stage we were joined by a group of some six A level girls for a particular concert – we have never been able to stimulate secondary boys or girls. Thus, our membership is a broad mix aged 20 upwards. We do enjoy the discipline and the real pleasure of singing together in tune and in time. It truly is a team game !
I have wandered ! Our target is that we must have professional musicians playing with us. For two concerts a year this normally means a full orchestra. For the other concerts we may have a small ensemble or be accompanied by that King of instruments, the Organ. We have to fund-raise to support this aim, for even if we could achieve a full-house for concerts there is nowhere in Swindon that could accommodate the ticket sales to break even. Thus, most concerts run at a loss and we rely on our subscriptions, sale of tickets, fund-raising and sponsorship to keep us alive. Should you have – or know someone who has – some GBP 5000+ to donate, I’m pretty certain the committee would be happy to produce a full concert of their chosen works !
A lesser amount would be equally welcome – we would do almost anything for financial support ! (I see you can sponsor a stanza in Robin’s “Brunel’s Kingdom” for a pound !)
Our “Wedding Chorale” has probably been our best fund-raiser to date. Some years ago, Georgina Evenett suggested we could support weddings – to replace the now almost non-existent church choirs – and we have done well. We have been to Oxfordshire, to Sussex and many local Wiltshire and Gloucestershire churches. It is such a shame church weddings are declining, for not only do we add to the occasions but it is obvious that our members enjoy these events. We experience – dare I say – “joy” when we reintroduce choral singing to these places of worship. One wedding comes to mind. Memorable because it was our first experience of smoking during the service – in the congregation I should add ! We have also sung appropriate secular songs at hotel weddings, but we have yet to sing in a castle or before royalty. Our time will come.
As the “Chorale” we have also supported several funerals, and we are able to do this, as is the nature of these occasions, at very short notice and for a very sensible fee. Sadness is well tempered by appropriate words and music.
Our latest venture has been for the Chorale to give short concerts in local Homes and Churches. We have not charged for these, but any funds raised have been donated to whatever cause we are supporting. There is a great deal of pleasure in giving – particularly whilst singing !.
Back to the big time ! In May 2006, under the baton of Steve Cass, we sang a very good Creation by Haydn. Reading the concert programme – in all those performers’ career outlines – it would appear that this was Steve’s “first “ as an oratorio conductor. In my view he did it really well. His tutelage in the rehearsals was supportive and he managed to persuade us to achieve an excellent dynamic. One of the great experiences of choral singing is to hear a large choir sing with controlled softness. I enjoyed it. Our guest organist, Ian Crabbe, played to his usual superlative standard, and he will no doubt, in the future carry spare fuses, or whatever, in his travels !
Since June we have moved into a new dimension ! Isambard Kingdom Brunel played a major part in the emergence of Swindon as a Town-with-ambitions. Historically, the name stands, but I doubt there is now any pig production in or around the town. Brunel built the railway through the new town, and where better to make engines and service them than halfway between London and Bristol !. The town enlarged and prospered as a result. Trains still pass through, but the industrial area has been redeveloped to suit the era. However, a Steam Museum remains as part of the site and we will be performing there on 23rd September !
“Brunel’s Kingdom”, words by Alastair Service and the music composed by our Robin Nelson, is a musical drama commissioned by the Society to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Brunel’s birth. We, and also the Ruskin Junior School Choir, have been rehearsing this new piece since June and it has proved to be great fun. It is very tuneful and Robin has cleverly styled the music to match the writings of past composers. Perhaps we should have a fund-raising quiz at the performance to identify the composers ? The West Forest Sinfonia are rehearsing too.
We are now into October and enjoying rehearsing Handel’s wonderful Messiah for our Advent Concert. I cannot think of any other piece of music that is such a joy to sing ! I’ve been singing with the Society for over 16 years and nothing better comes to mind. The Advent concert will only feature Part One of this great work, but with appropriate Advent carols it promises to be a happy concert. I have a feeling some of Handel’s work might find its way into our Christmas Concert as well on December 16th - if only by popular request from the members !
I, the Webmaster, have had an email ! Only one, but it was a delight to read. It came from Mick Bray, our now retired but long-serving front of house manager. He was summarising his thoughts having attended the World Premiere of Brunel’s Kingdom on 23rd September 2006. He enjoyed it: he was enraptured ! (My words !!)
If you have got this far in my Blog, you might be puzzled why I haven’t mentioned the performance of Brunel’s Kingdom earlier, in that my writings are seemingly sequential. In truth, I have been waiting for the dust to settle, for I just did not know where to start ! I suppose it’s fair to say that I found over-awing. Robin’s music was so tuneful that it has stuck ! I find myself whistling it, and if I’m not whistling then I hum it. The words come back too – and so do the memories. Rehearsing somehow didn’t put the show together, but when we entered the concert hall in the Steam Museum having traversed past their splendid exhibition of memorabilia then the whole atmosphere changed. We were in Brunel’s world !
How many have sung in a hall with an enormous green steam engine on one side and an active and busy railway line on the other ? The passing trains were timed to suit the music – or they seemed to ! We have sung in many venues. The golden Musikhalle in Hamburg. The 3000 seat theatre in Macon, USA ( a small town 50 miles south of Atlanta). Some memorable churches and some not-so-fascinating halls, but the Steam Museum is unique and so suited this concert.
Over 500+ were in the audience – our biggest audience since the 800+ at Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem sung in the sports-hall at the Oasis some 11 years ago. That was a very different concert with a more solemn purpose, but I have to admit I cannot remember a single melody from it – and I couldn’t then either. I think I will have better memories of Brunel’s Kingdom !! Whatever !
The choir was tremendous ! The soloists great, and I look forward to the inevitable upward progress of Matthew Beale – a splendid Brunel. Lukas Jakobczyk was an imposing bass with a voice of real potential: at 6’ 7” tall with a voice like that – not a man to be trifled with !! The two sopranos, Anna Wall and Gordana Kostic, were well cast, talented, and visibly enjoyed their parts. I’d be wrong to say that Ruskin Juniors were the stars of the evening for it was a team event, but they gave us all great pleasure. Their “instruments” in the Mechanisation section were inventive to say the least (can you play music on two hammers or mum’s kitchen utensils !), but their singing was beautiful. What a joy.
What has surprised me is the almost complete lack of press coverage and thus public knowledge of the concert. All branches of the local media had been spoonfed details of the production well before and up to the concert. There were a couple of articles (provided by us and edited by them !) in the Swindon Evening Advertiser after the event. But, there was little interest (shall I call it “support”) in the run up to the concert. It does strike me that a concert that attracts an audience of over 500 and which could well have been many more had there been permitted seating, written by two sincere and talented Avebury men for a world premiere, had a professional orchestra of some 60 musicians, a choir of 90, plus the local Ruskin Junior School choir of 40+ children, that happens in a major venue in the town, is part of the Brunel 200 CELEBRATIONS, and - apart from Elton John at the football club - is probably the biggest musical event to have happened in Swindon since 1995, should pass almost unnoticed in the local media ! There is something wrong locally. Call it attitude. (Try a trawl through the websites of the local council and media should you not believe me).
Swindon had aspirations to become a city recently. It really doesn’t deserve consideration if the largest public auditorium is the Wyvern Theatre with its maximum capacity of some 600 - even forgetting its appalling acoustic. Salisbury’s City Hall attracts international talent – the Wyvern, by virtue of its size, frankly, only stages small fry and has-beens.
Ah well – as was sung many times in Brunel’s Kingdom – whatever. Shame about the New Swindon Plan quote “…. Swindon is bursting with …. theatres….”. Shame about local attitude and ambition. Whatever.
After that rant I have something pleasant to comment upon ! The Chorale has been busy again, and this time singing for someone else’s charity and to a full house. We were delighted to test our navigational skills and find the wee church at Compton Beauchamp. Twenty-two of us, plus Helen James our accompanist and young Ciara Parker-Northeast (violin), performed a full programme on a Sunday afternoon – and then thoroughly enjoyed a splendid afternoon tea ! I’m told we raised some £900 towards the refurbishment of the church !.
Returning, for a moment, to my rant about the lack of media support for the Society and also about the never-to-be-built-in-Swindon-concert-hall.
Over the past few weeks I have been browsing the Wiltshire Gazette and Herald for signs of musical support. I must add that I don’t live in Swindon and the Advertiser doesn’t appear in my village. Years ago it was delivered daily here ! It can be bought in Marlborough – still. However, the Gazette offers little – just the odd single sentence – but it did have a handsome advert calling for sopranos and tenors to join the Marlborough Choral Society. I guess they paid for this advertisement – wouldn’t it be great if support for amateur groups was instinctive, good journalism and free !! Do let me know if it was gratis !!
I have formalised my grumble. After some encouragement from members, I was persuaded to contact the Swindon Evening Advertiser and draw their attention to my complaint about lack of support - particularly relating to Brunel's Kingdom. I've had a message from their editor, Mark Waldron, advising we had been mentioned some 10 times over the past months - or so his archive told him. I based my mutterings on watchful members comments and also a very thorough trawl through the Advertiser's available website. I've now messaged back apologising for lack of observation of the lesser parts of the paper - and pointing out that headlines are the best attention getters ! The Advertiser has a "Support our Shows" campaign (which I hadn't heard of) intended for local performers such as ourselves. We must direct our messages there - and probably buy the Editor a few drinks in the bargain.
We have just sung two full concerts in a fortnight !. The first in St Mark's Church was an innovation Advent Concert, and the second, at St Barnabas's Church was our traditional Carol Concert. I suppose we cheated a bit, for we sang Handel in both !. We actually sang Part One of his Messiah, with soloists, in the Advent Concert. Because of it's popularity with our members and the audience - and also because we had rehearsed it - we built the choruses into the Carol Concert. It truly is a wonderful piece to sing ! We added the Hallelujah Chorus to both concerts for good measure !
Three points of note came from the Carol Concert. Firstly, it was a sell-out. Secondly, the Society sang notably well - and so did the Ruskin School Choir. Young Darius, of Ruskin, sang an excellent solo and also, was well involved in their large violin band. A star in the making !? The third point was a beautiful new carol written by our MD.. This Endris Night has already been accepted for publication, and was applauded by audience and choir. As a choral piece it was so smooth, tuneful and a joy to sing. It has got to be a winner ! That said, it was a pleasure to listen to Radio 3 and their live broadcast of the Advent Carol Service from St John's College Cambridge. Why a pleasure ? Firstly because it was good, traditional Church of England and, secondly the choir sang another of Robin's carols - I sing of a Maiden. We sang it last year.
Out-and-about carol singing this year was a bit thin. The Chorale is gaining confidence, but we only sang at Lydiard House (twice), and gave a charity concert in Highworth. I believe those who managed to find Swindon and then Debenhams in the monster fog did well too. Anti-cyclonic-gloom would never affect this Choral Society - particularly with Mirian Sirelle conducting us ! She guided 18 of us through a funeral Mass at Holy Rood Church - and won us praise from the excellent organist !
In my view, there is a need to rename the Wedding Chorale. Since it started - to fund raise - our operating spectrum has widened. Perhaps "Chorale" would be more appropriate ? By the way, I hear the WC has raised some £2000 this year !
And so we approach 2007. We will be starting it with a new Chairman - still to be appointed. The trouble with many young people on committees is that they are generally ambitious but have a life outside the Society ! Mark Kowalski had room in his life for all ! He joined us some 9 years ago and almost immediately volunteered - no one else wanted the task - to become concert manager and then also, later, Secretary. He hasn't stopped since ! He has done wonders and learnt a lot ! He has now been Chairman for some three years, married Rachel one of our younger altos, sorted out the Water Research Council, and is now moving to Exeter to stimulate the Meteorological Office. No doubt the pair of them will be organising Scottish dancing in an Exeter Choral Society before long ! We wish them well in their future.
A few statistics to do with this Website. In 2004 when this site opened, we had 404 - as they say in this language - hits. In 2005 we were hit 6308 times. In 2006 14489 people visited this site. Between 1st January and 8th January 2007 we had 561. On Christmas Day 2006 we had 7, there were 30 on Boxing Day, 36 on New Year's Day 2007 and between 1-15th January there were 1216 contacts. All I can suggest is that should you wish to advertise anything on the site get your bids in early before we start charging !
Another very good concert has passed. I enjoyed it and particularly the Widor Mass. Until a year or so ago I hadn't come across it, but there is a wealth of music waiting in archives for us to sing. Previous MDs had carte blanche selecting what we were to sing, and much choral music in chosen to - as they say - to put bums on seats. (Have a glance through the concerts of other choirs outlined in Gerontius or British Choirs on the Net - the web addresses are elsewhere on this site) Robin has offered us choice, and he is willing to consider all ideas. Hence I slipped him a copy of the score and a recording of Widor's Mass Op 36, and he took it on - and the Society into new territory. (I am grateful to Robin's successor at Marlborough College, Ian Sutcliffe, for "revealing " it in the College subscription concert series, and also for lending us the scores.) French choral music is fine, but it tested the choir. I think I've said it before in this blog, but there is nothing finer in choral singing than a large choir singing with total dynamic control - and quietly. We have recently repositioned our singing positions within the choir, with male voices in the centre and altos and sopranos on either side. The aim, of course, is to give a better balance. From my new central position what has surprised me is how many singers just do not vary their control - despite what the music indicates and the conductor demands - and just blast on. We, in the main, sing very well, but pianissimo is not certain members' forte (pun?) Could we not lean on members who err - the choir would sing all the better for it. Talking of discipline, the way we turned our pages - in time with the conductor (it proves we watch him occasionally !?) - was spotted and attracted favourable comment from the audience !
It was good to meet baritone Richard Quine again. He offered good advice again, and we now have a new approach to getting high notes first time ! Pretty Charlotte Stephenson's career is one to follow; what an interesting and strong voice !
In 2007 we've had 4456 hits to the end of March.
1189 hits in March, 1222 in April, 970 in May, June 1117, July 1176, August 1095, September 1068 and October 1269.
It is now November, 2007, and I guess I've been having something of a sabbatical. Not because the Society has been inactive for there has been plenty going on. I've waited to see if anyone commented on the lack activity in the blog. I think I've only had a couple of comments since I started the whole exercise, but, I know folk read the site - so there is some real satisfaction in keeping it up to date. Interestingly, one member commented that this blog was becoming a potted history of the Society ! Now there is thought. Since 1929 much must have happened - musically and socially - in the Society and we have no formal record of it. A lot of our past paperwork is now stored in the Wiltshire County Council Archives in Chippenham. Is there anyone out there who would enjoy researching and writing our history ? We still have senior life-long members with a tale or two to tell !!
However, I've been inspired !! Our former accompanist - he supported us splendidly for several years - has obviously been reading the site and has contacted the Webmaster via the link. You could do that too ! Raymond Clarke moved out of the area some years ago and is now teaching the piano at both Bristol and Cardiff universities. Reflecting, I don't know why I did not mention him during the earlier pages of this Blog, but somehow it did not happen. I apologise for this omission, for I really should have recorded the part he played in the history of the Society. He covered the period between Nicholas Riddle, David Truslove and also Robin Nelson, and is an exceptional accompanist and a true friend of the Society.
Two concerts have passed.
In June, 2007 we sang "Music for a Summer's Evening". This was a potpourri of music. Romantic English songs was the first grouping, with a span from Pearsall to Elgar. The best of these English songs was, in my view, the lilting "Oh where art thou dreaming" -by Hamish MacCunn - who just happened to have been a Scot. The most challenging music followed - the Love Song Waltzes by Johannes Brahms. A real test for the choir, and not helped by the publisher's printing style. A first for the Society, in my time anyway, was the diversion into close harmony. The ladies sang under the direction of Pamela Kempton and the men under Steve Cass; an honourable draw I suggest ! Gilbert and Sullivan delighted us all as we sang, with Georgia Ginsberg as soloist, a splendid selection from their operas. I must mention the wonderful piano interlude "Grand Galop de Concert Qui Vive" played by Linda Ager, Paul Turner and Robin Nelson. Six hands on the one piano and well worth the demanded encore ! Wonderful stuff !
October's concert was "A Celebration of Mozart" - and what a joy it was. Somehow this well chosen programme just clicked. The Chameleon Arts Orchestra, well led by Simon Baggs, the soloists and the Society all melded together into a glorious evening. We lost some ticket sales due to the simultaneous final of the Rugby World Cup (4 of my sales withdrew) but they must have regretted it ! I have to say that the singing of Elizabeth Atherton was glorious. I believe she is returning, and bringing her sister, to join us in the Bach B minor Mass, but oh how I enjoyed her Mozart !
Dreams sometimes come true ! We now have another married couple in the Society ! At 3pm on 24th October, there was a quiet wedding in Chippenham, and Mr and Mrs Haydn Jones emerged. To me, this was a love-at-first-sight romance, for Haydn and Janine Parmenter clicked absolutely when they first met. I've never seen this happen so visibly before, and for those of us who attended the wedding it was, as I said earlier, a dream come true. We all wish them well for their future together. 18.11.07
The Chorale sang for the Swindon Welsh Society - in Welsh ! A pleasant evening was had by all - particularly when they helped us with pronunciation ! And we had worked hard at it too.
Robin has again excelled himself, and the 88 members of the Society who sang that evening enjoyed singing his new Annunciation Carol in our carol concert. This carol, together with at least two of his others, have been published by Banks Music. The carol was made available to members on the this web site courtesy of some fine typesetting by David Wright. Interestingly, we had 272 hits on the site on the days it was available - that's pretty well 3 each for member singing !. We really don't mind if other choirs enjoy singing it, but they must get licence from Banks Music ! Britten's Ceremony of Carols was the core piece, but the concert was designed to use the remarkable talents of Laurette Pope and her harp to the full. Her delicious playing in support of the choral pieces, plus her topical solo, made my evening !
STEAM (the railway museum), the town centre, and Lydiard House have formally booked us for carol singing this year, but I'm sure there will be informal outings too. We also had a request for carol singers through our Gerontius link, but sadly it was the day of our Christmas Concert and we just couldn't oblige.
Michael English, a long-standing member of the Society before he upped sticks, retired to County Galway, and where he is again heavily involved in choral singing, has sent us a score for a Christmas song his Irish choir thoroughly enjoyed. It's been passed to the MD for consideration for next year's concert. Could line-dancing be our next diversion ! (I've just saved myself - I initially wrote "lap-dancing" !!) 22.12.07
Time for an update ! J S Bach featured heavily in our choral lives during the first months of 2008. It's a long time since we had 108+ members start rehearsing a piece. Numbers fluctuated during rehearsals, but it is also a while since we had over 100 singers on stage for a concert. 102 to be exact ! Holy Rood Church was as full as I've ever seen it for one of our concerts, and - despite their long sit - the audience's enthusiastic response to the B minor Mass really made all the homework and practice worthwhile. Chameleon Arts again produced a first-rate orchestra and they, together with the five excellent soloists, helped produce a seriously good concert. It is difficult to compare ourselves with other societies, but I can't help feel that we would all have received a pretty similar response from any audience in the Kingdom. An aside - Holy Rood is probably the best auditorium in Swindon; I still haven't found the "many theatres" the New Swindon Plan talks about.
The committee is currently putting its energy into fund-raising - for ourselves. Placing over 100 singers into tiered concert positions has, over the years, worn our old, mainly homemade, staging out. Whoever constructed it in times past ought to be quietly pleased with themselves for the labour of love has lasted so well. We are being more ambitious in that we are looking at commercial easy-pack equipment that's both portable (we have no home !) and sensible. Nobody has yet had a serious tumble, but commonsense about health/safety and all the developing legislation in this field is making us aware. For a choir of our size such equipment will be expensive. Murder evenings, wine raffles, profits, donations, place-purchasing, advertising in programmes are all contributing to the fund, but wouldn't it be great if a godfather made a solid gift ! Do you know a possible sponsor, godfather or sugar-daddy who would help us ?
As time moves on so, sadly, do members. After many, many years of dedicated membership, Geo (Georgina) Evenett has retired. Former BBC singer, anchor of the altos, instigator of the successful Wedding Choral, and a reluctant but able stand-in chair of the Society as well as being deputy honorary musical director, I feel that Geo has managed to have a truly fulfilled membership of the Society. She is also working on a formal history of the Society.
Another rarity (I trust she will excuse me !) to leave us, but after a much shorter time, is Moira Greenhalgh - our lady tenor. She has decided to return to her roots and family in the North. Nobody, they tell me is indispensible, but we will have to think seriously about who could replace her in our future stage productions ! I'm delighted to report that she has been recruited into a choir in Cumberland ! As a tenor, she has been replaced by Elizabeth Gruber who has returned to both singing and organizational duties - so we still have a rarity.
I have also to report that Saffron Walden is gaining our Steve Cass. For 4 years, Steve has been assistant or deputy or stand-in for our musical director. However, for family reasons he has decided to move east, and I very much hope someone will snap him up and use those musical talents. He has proved himself with us as a soloist, a multi-tenor, and especially as a conductor and tutor. From barbershop to spiritual to oratorio he has excelled with us - and all with a rare sense of encouraging humour. I'm told he also knows all the words of Gilbert, linked to the music of Sullivan, by heart. As the tenors found when they dined him out, he can also eat a man-sized curry. What talent - we wish him well but please could he find us his replacement ! (22.5.08)
Time for an update. June '08 was notable for our latest overseas tour. Some 50+ members, co-ordinated by tenor Chris Metcalfe, accompanied by Sam Bayliss (organ) and led from the front by Robin, departed by air pre-dawn from Bristol for Pisa and Tuscany. Six days later, the same number returned happy, exhausted, and well-cooked ! They had sung 5 concerts in a variety of splendid churches, but had experienced celsius temperatures in the 40's ! The heat appeared to be their only problem, and the travel-bug appears to have stimulated them in the sense that other travels are being mooted - to more temperate zones. Their concerts were based on our June concert programme listed in our past concert's folder.
Several returning travellers almost immediately climbed into rubber boots and sang at a wedding in a field ! We were booked to sing at a wedding at a derelict church (only the chancel remains) near Cricklade and, the summer being as it was, it rained solidly until noon on the day. The drainage at the church was poor, and although the sun eventually shone and some got sunburnt, it was a unique and happy occasion - standing in the puddles with the Australian service taken by an Australian priest and everyone singing splendidly to Suzanne Bullimore's guitar. Memorable if not quite bizarre !
I should put on record that about this time Sally Marchant chose, for personal reasons, to resign as chairman. It was something of a shock to us all, for the Society had been running well under her very industrious efforts and she had shown all the signs of having volunteered for a long and rewarding tenure. It took a while for the committee to recover, but they then persuaded Pamela Kempton to chair the Society until the AGM and a formal new appointment. I know the Society would like me to put in record out thanks to both Sally and Pamela for their sound work for us all.
The 2008 AGM eventually took place and the Society in now in the safe hands of a chairman, Malcolm Edwards who is both Welsh and a tenor - what more could we want ! We wish him well - as we do to those other new committee members, Gill Llewellyn, Mirian Sirelle, Haydn Jones and Tony Keeling.
Earlier in the year we received an invitation from the BBC to participate in their latest musical time-killer "game" of "Last Choir Standing". Sally and Robin gave some thought to this venture, and made the sound decision not to join in - for all sorts of reasons, but essentially short notice and time itself. Having now seen the show, I feel it was the best decision ever made ! It just wasn't us. The music and the singing were OK, and it would have been great to have sung with a free orchestra, but the format was typically BBC dumbed-down pseudo-entertainment, presented by third-rate comperes, badly produced, and with flag-stimulated, encouraged numbi-audiences. That's my opinion - I wouldn't even enter the Chorale !. However, I must say that one of the judges was quite pretty.
We have just sung another excellent concert. During my now many years in the Society, I have always felt that to sing major works with an orchestra was what it was all about. Somehow, it put us on a different plane to lesser societies. Brahms personally scored his German Requiem for two pianos, and what a splendid combination they made with the choir. Quite often when we sing with orchestras (unless they are true professionals) they seem to ignore the conductor and the choir and play for their own satisfaction. On this occasion the audience enjoyed the piano/choir meld, and from the feed-back I am getting, the choir did too. Having pianists of the calibre of Shelly Morgan and Ian Crabbe really solved the equation. To just make the evening, Dvorak's Te Deum proved rousingly popular. (6.10.08)