Author: Dave Anstice-Pim

Dear all I hope you and yours are all keeping well. Apologies that I have not been in touch for a while – the wheels of Government are of course still turning and I am still working full time from home (and busier than usual!) I’m sure this will not come as a surprise, but I have been speaking with…… Read more →

Dear all Apologies for not sending a roundup last week – a combination of 3 concerts in two weeks, being unusually busy at work and a little unwell over the past fortnight meant that it slipped my mind! On 25th April we started by working through the Introit and Kyrie of the Mozart. We have covered all the notes for…… Read more →

Dear all Firstly, to clarify from last evening, there will be NO REHEARSAL NEXT WEEK on Tuesday 18th Feb due to half term. Our next rehearsal will be on Tuesday 25th Feb. Apologies for confusion! We spent most of the rehearsal yesterday making great progress with the first of the Rutter Birthday Madrigals. I think this is the hardest of…… Read more →

Dear all Many thanks for a cracking rehearsal on Tuesday! We spent the majority of the rehearsal breaking the back of the first of the Rutter Birthday Madrigals – It Was a Lover and his Lass. There are some very tricky moments in this movement and it is, at times, complicated to put together, but each verse is largely the…… Read more →

Hi all Huge apologies for not being able to be with you at short notice last week – we had a sudden childcare emergency. I am very grateful to Alison for stepping in and, from what I have heard, achieving so much with you, and to Robert, Chris and Lesley for understanding and helping to cover my absence! For those…… Read more →

Dear all. Apologies for a late roundup this week – it’s been a busy one! Many thanks to those who came to see Carmen last night! Was really touching to see some friendly faces in the audience! Hope you enjoyed it – the cast was buzzing afterwards because we felt it went really well! Still one more chance to see…… Read more →

Dear all Many thanks for another good rehearsal on Tuesday, despite the difficulty with the alarm at the school… We started working on the Lacrimosa, one of the better-known movements of the requiem. The key to this movement will be making it interesting, especially using dynamics. We will continue to work on this, as the notes were pretty solid. We…… Read more →

Dear all Many thanks for a fantastic first rehearsal of the year. It felt great to be back! We made a great start on the Mozart Requiem on Tuesday. We spent a good proportion of the rehearsal on the opening movement, which sounds very solid already. The key is making sure entries are in the right place, especially given how…… Read more →

Dear all Many thanks for the rehearsal on Tuesday – just one more left before the concert! We started with a sing through the Cantique de Jean Racine. This is a piece the choir knows well, but we must ensure we are not complacent with it – it relies on big shifts in dynamics to make it effective. Please pay…… Read more →

Hi all Huge apologies this is coming round so late this week. I hope these messages remain useful and that everyone is reading to the end – there is a good reason to do so today! last Tuesday we worked again on the two piece from the Rutter Birthday Madrigals. These are both difficult sings, and we are now singing…… Read more →