and the walls came tumbling down...

So the work going on at Northcliffe Church isn't that extreme, but it did mean that we were rehearsing amongst dust sheets and plastic covers on Tuesday night.

With Alex Woodrow temporarily joining us (and I'm constantly in awe of people who can sight-read so brilliantly), Jonathan was able to conduct from the front this week. Rutter's Magnificat is coming on really well, even if we are still occasionally putting 't's in the wrong places. Christmas preparation continues as well, and we've got some lovely carols that I haven't heard before, but really like.

Date for your diaries - the next concert will be on 15th November, at Bradford Cathedral and include the Magnificat, Bach's Cantata 140 and Pergolesi's Salve Regina with the Manchester Baroque Soloists.

Christmas is coming....

I know it's early, and like most people, I find the thought of Christmas when we're still enjoying the summer incredibly depressing. However, Christmas music is something else entirely.

Normally, so early in term, we're note bashing the music for the next concert, and Christmas doesn't get a look in until afterwards. Because we're a bit more familiar with the pieces for the next concert (a fact I'm still really enjoying), we can have a go at some more festive pieces as well. Which was how we ended up standing round the edges of our rehearsal space singing 'In the bleak midwinter'. Apparently, it's meant to stop us listening to the person we sit next to, and start listening to the sound as a whole, which is a good idea in principle, but sounds really strange when you do it.

Still, plenty of time to practice....

I'll be seeing you...

....more regularly from now on, I hope.

The Chorale has been sailing some pretty choppy waters recently, following the unexpected departure of our Musical Director. With a tricky concert looming, we were lucky to find someone to steady the ship in the form of Jonathan Eyre, the Assistant Director of Music at Bradford Cathedral.

Haydn's Nelson Mass and Ralph Vaughan William's Dona Nobis Pacem are hard pieces of music for any choir, so there were a few tense moments in the run up to the concert. As ever though, hard work from all parties meant we got there, and the concert went really well.

Jonathan was officially appointed as the Chorale's new Musical Director following official auditions after the concert and term started on Tuesday. The programme for the next concert includes Rutter's Magnificat, which means I'm currently enjoying the slightly smug feeling that comes from vaguely knowing the music at first rehearsal - it's the first time it's ever happened!

If you'd like to join us for a sing, come along to Northcliffe Church, Shipley on Tuesday nights at 7.30. We'd be very pleased to see you - especially men of a Tenor persuasion!

God rest ye, merry gentlemen...

Or is it God rest ye merry, gentlemen?

Either way, Christmas is upon us (just over a week!) and that means the Chorale is very busy.
I haven't been able to make many of the carol singing, but yesterday was one of my favourite events - carol singing in Haworth. The weather was with us, we've been both colder and wetter while trying to sing, and with three men in fine voice, we were sounding pretty good.

Fingers crossed the trend continues for the concert on Saturday. We'll be singing lots of Christmassy favourites - and some less well known ones - in St Paul's Church, Shipley at 7:30. Tickets available on the door if you fancy getting a Christmas glow.

we're Bach!

(and Handel, Purcell and Vivaldi)

Apologies for the long delay, real life has a knack of throwing distractions my way at the moment, but the Chorale have been back and practising for a few weeks.

We have a concert on Saturday at Bradford Cathedral featuring music from the St Mathew Passion, The Messiah and Acis and Galatea. It's an interesting collection of music, lots of which I had never heard before we started rehearsing but there are some pieces that classical music novices like me will recognise (the Hallelujah chorus and Vivaldi's Gloria in D).

There are tickets still available from members of the Chorale, through the website and you can also get them on the door.

See you there!

Man, I hope I get it...

Ok, so Tuesday night's rehearsal confirmed that Britten and I are never going to be great friends. Normally I can feel my way though any difficult bits that I'm not too sure of, but Britten is so challenging, that anticipating where the tune is going next is really difficult. When your sight reading skills are as limited as mine, it's a real challenge to get the right notes in the right order.

Having said that, some pieces of the Britten are sounding really lovely and the although it was hard work, the rehearsal really helped iron out some of the crinkly bits of the more difficult ones. Saturday's concert should be a good one so if you'd like to come along, tickets are available on the door at 7.30, Northcliffe Church, Shipley.

Maybe this time...

I have a confession to make. I'm finding the Britten pieces for our next concert really quite hard.

All of the Britten pieces are pretty challenging, and bits of it sounds much nicer than others. Hymn to the Virgin is pretty, and I think it'll sound really effective in the concert. I'm struggling getting to grips with Rejoice in the Lamb. It's one of Britten's later pieces, and to me, sounds much more 'modern' than Hymn. Bits of it a quite pretty, and I'm reliably informed that the more you sing it, the more it grows on you, so fingers crossed.

Songs of the Fleet are more immediately catchy, though that's not to say there aren't any tricky bits, there's some really high notes in places!

Tickets for the concert have been released and are available from the website, by post, or from members of the chorale. It's on 15th June at Northcliffe Church, Shipley and tickets are £8 when bought in advance.