If anyone is free this Saturday evening 29th March and fancies a bit of local culture Richmond Orchestra (who will be accompanying us for our June concert) are holding their Spring concert at All Saints, East Sheen. Rachmaninov piano concerto No1 and Tchaikovsky “Pathétique” symphony. A big evening!
Date: Saturday 29th March 2025
Time: 7:30pm
Venue: All Saints, East Sheen
Tickets: here
Dear All
We had a spirited rehearsal last night including Penny gamely recapping some of what we did last week….some of which had not stuck too well in the memory! Nothing that a bit of work at home on the practice tracks won’t put right (even a run through of the trickier bits makes a world of difference – and makes the rehearsals even more fun!) and Penny was very positive about where we are with our preparation at this stage.
Detailed recap of parts covered can be found below as usual, but before I come to that I wanted to let all those who weren’t there last night know about the announcement made after rehearsal.
We’re sorry to say Penny will be stepping down as Music Director after our summer concert. We are incredibly lucky to have had Penny directing us this year. We were enormously grateful when she took the reins of the choir last September which she did seamlessly and in style. That was no small feat, taking on an existing programme of music, especially seeing what preparation she puts into our rehearsals. She has brought an energy and precision to our practice which we have greatly benefited from and which I hope will be reflected in our performance in the summer. I’m confident this news will help us all focus our efforts over the next few weeks so we do Penny proud on June 7th. (Get those practice tracks and recordings out!) I’m delighted to say Penny would love to come back as one of our soloists in future. After hearing her beautiful singing during rehearsals that really is something to look forward to. Thank you Penny.
We will be advertising for a new Music Director over Easter with the aim of holding auditions at the end of next term (which we hope as many people as possible will be able to attend), the position to be taken up from September. Details below.
Rehearsal recap:
If you have time do have a look at what we covered this week as well as new parts scheduled. It really helps fix it in the mind. Chord Perfect links on repertoire page & Cyberbass.
Sections looked at on 25/3:
Aber (II): p25-37, b198-303
Ewige (II): p37-40, b305-337
Haben (VI): p84-88, b3-78
Run whole of Movement (II), p14-40 don’t forget double speed p26 b206
Sections scheduled for 1/4 (don’t be put off – some bits are very short!):
Ach (III): p51-52, b164-173 (the bit not yet covered)
Gerechten (III): p56-60 ,b191-208 (the bit not yet covered)
Ich Will (V): p81-83 , b62-79
Wird (VI): p89-97, b82-207
Du Hast(VI): p104-113, b267-349
Finale (VII): p124-129, b103-165
If time, run through:
Movement (III)
Sections looked at so far:
Movement (I): p1-13
Movement (II), p14-40
Herr (III): p41-45, b17-93
Ach (III): p47-50, b129-161 (p51-52, b164-173 of this section not looked at yet)
Gerechten (III): p52-56,b173-190 (end of this section, p56-60 ,b191-208, still to be looked at )
Movement (IV)
Ihr Habt (V): p76-80 , b18-49
Du bist (VI): p98-104, b208-266
Haben (VI): p84-88, b3-78
Toten (VII): p114-123 , b1-100
Appointing New Music Director:
We plan to follow a similar recruitment process to that used the last time we did this. Outline as follows:
More details will follow as necessary but for the moment the most important thing for members to be aware of is making themselves available on audition day(s).
We will aim to audition all candidates on Tuesday 10th June (already in the calendar as last rehearsal of term). If that date proves impractical for candidates we may add the following Tuesday 17th June.
Please keep audition days free so you are able to attend if at all possible:
Tuesday 10th June
Tuesday 17th June
Calendar:
Spring Term:
7Jan-1April (NO half term break), 13 weeks
Two week Easter break (not the usual 3 weeks) 8/4 & 15/4.
Summer Term:
22 Apr-10 Jun except 1 week half term 27 May, 7 weeks
Subs:
£90/term to be paid into choir bank account:
Account Name: Sheen Gate Choir
Account Number: 47107324
Sort: 60-01-39
Dear All
Please see below for recap of sections covered this week and what we plan to look at on 25/3. Good luck with all that practice! (Two more rehearsals then we’ve got the Easter break.) Chord Perfect practice tracks links on repertoire page & here is Cyberbass.
Sections looked at on 18/3:
SS (I): p9-13, b100-157
Aber (II): p25-31, b198-261
Ihr Habt (V): p76-80 , b18-49
Sections scheduled for 25/3:
Aber (II): p31-37, b261-303 (the bit we didn’t get to last week)
Ewige (II): p37-40, b305-337
Gerechten (III): p56-60 ,b191-208 (the bit not yet covered)
Haben (VI): p84-88, b3-78
Du Hast(VI): p104-113, b267-349
If time, run through:
Gerechten (III) run through: p52-60 ,b173-208
The whole of Movement (II), p14-40
Sections looked at so far:
Movement (I): p1-13
Denn (II): p14-18, b22-73
So Seid (II): p18-21, b74-123
Daf (II): p22-25, b146-197
Aber (II): p25-31, b198-261
Herr (III): p41-45, b17-93
Ach (III): p47-50, b129-161 (p50-52, b164-173 of this section not looked at yet)
Gerechten (III): p52-56,b173-190 (end of this section, p56-60 ,b191-208, still to be looked at )
Movement (IV)
Ihr Habt (V): p76-80 , b18-49
Du bist (VI): p98-104, b208-266
Toten (VII): p114-123 , b1-100
Calendar:
Spring Term:
7Jan-1April (NO half term break), 13 weeks
Two week Easter break (not the usual 3 weeks) 8/4 & 15/4.
Summer Term:
22 Apr-10 Jun except 1 week half term 27 May, 7 weeks
Subs:
£90/term to be paid into choir bank account:
Account Name: Sheen Gate Choir
Account Number: 47107324
Sort: 60-01-39
As mentioned at the rehearsal last Tuesday I’m involved in a concert on Sunday at All Saints Putney with the 1885 Singers, under their new MD Chris Langworthy, which is well worth coming to because (a) I’m playing a shedload of notes, because (b) the programme begins with the searingly beautiful “O, Radiant Dawn” by James Macmillan and especially because (c) I’m not playing for the Macmillan which is unaccompanied. Elsewhere you will hear some very fine baritone singing from Ambrose Connolly, the familiar and rousing strains of Vaughan Williams’ Antiphon which is the last of the Five Mystical Songs, some thigh-slapping music from Elgar (think Elgar meets the Sound of Music and you’re in the zone) and some very jolly nautical stuff from Stanford including the following tantalising lyrics: “there are queer things that only come to sailormen; they’re true but never understood; and I know one thing about the Admiral, that I can’t tell rightly as I should…”
Well if you want to know more you’ll be there on Sunday night. 7.30 kick-off. Medals may be worn.
Dear All
Everyone was sounding pretty good on Tuesday, despite working on some particularly tricky bits, and we had good run-throughs of a couple of sections.
Please see below for recap of sections covered this week and what we plan to look at on 18/3. The ‘Gerechten’ section is a difficult one – we made good progress on it and will finish it next week. It’s definitely one worth listening to and working on if you have time! Chord Perfect practice tracks links on repertoire page & here is Cyberbass.
Sections looked at on 11/3
So Seid (II) run through: p18-21, b74-123
Daf (II): p22-25, b146-197
Gerechten ((III): p52-56,b173-190
Lieblich (IV) run through: p61-74, b4-173
Sections scheduled for 18/3:
SS (I): p9-13, b100-157
Aber (II): p25-37, b198-303
Gerechten (III): p56-60 ,b191-208 (the bit we didn’t get to last week)
+Gerechten (III) run through the whole thing!: p52-60 ,b173-208
Ihr Habt (V): p76-80 , b18-49
If time run through the whole of Movement (I) , p1-13
Sections looked at so far:
Selig (I): p1-4, b15-45
Tranen (I): p4-9, b47-96
Denn (II): p14-18, b22-73
So Seid (II): p18-21, b74-123
Daf (II): p22-25, b146-197
Herr (III): p41-45, b17-93
Ach (III): p47-50, b129-161 (p50-52, b164-173 of this section not looked at yet)
Gerechten (III): p52-56,b173-190 (end of this section, p56-60 ,b191-208, still to be looked at )
Lieblich (IV): p61-74, b4-173
Du bist (VI): p98-104, b208-266
Toten (VII): p114-123 , b1-100
Karaoke – June Date tbc:
Choir summer social will be a Karaoke evening – more details to follow in due course. Thank you to Tricia and Sue for organising!
Subs:
£90/term to be paid into choir bank account:
Account Name: Sheen Gate Choir
Account Number: 47107324
Sort: 60-01-39
Calendar:
Spring Term:
7Jan-1April (NO half term break), 13 weeks
Two week Easter break (not the usual 3 weeks) 8/4 & 15/4.
Summer Term:
22 Apr-10 Jun except 1 week half term 27 May, 7 weeks
Dear All
Solid rehearsal last week well done everyone for all your efforts.
Please see below for recap of sections covered and what we plan to look at on Tuesday 11/3. A couple of people have remarked on how much better they find the Chord Perfect practice tracks compared to Cyberbass, links on repertoire page.
Sections looked at on 4/3:
Ach (III): p47-50, b129-161
Lieblich (IV): p61-74, b4-173
Du bist (VI): p98-104, b208-266
Sections scheduled for 11/3:
Daf (II): p22-25, b146-197
Ach (III) – last bit: p50-52, b164-173
Gerechten ((III): p52-60 ,b173-208
Haben(VI): P84-88, b3-78
If there’s time we’ll run through the whole of Movement III (p40-60, with lots of Baritone solo bits)
Sections looked at to date:
Selig (I): p1-4, b15-45
Tranen (I): p4-9, b47-96
Denn (II): p14-18, b22-73
So Seid (II): p18-21, b74-123
Herr (III): p41-45, b17-93
Ach (III): p47-50, b129-161 (p50-52, b164-173 of this section not looked at yet)
Lieblich (IV): p61-74, b4-173
Du bist (VI): p98-104, b208-266
Toten (VII): p114-123 , b1-100
Subs:
£90/term to be paid into choir bank account:
Account Name: Sheen Gate Choir
Account Number: 47107324
Sort: 60-01-39
Singing Lessons with Marta:
Marta Garcia-Ortiz whom many of you know from when she sang with SGC, is offering private singing lessons locally (Mortlake) at her home. Marta, originally from Spain, is an accomplished musician (teacher, cellist, conductor and singer). For anyone interested in finding out more please don’t hesitate to get in touch with her either by WhatsApp 07511 103 484 or email garciaortizmarta@gmail.com
Calendar:
Spring Term:
7Jan-1April (NO half term break), 13 weeks
Two week Easter break (not the usual 3 weeks) 8/4 & 15/4.
Summer Term:
22 Apr-10 Jun except 1 week half term 27 May, 7 weeks
Dear All
Well done everyone for the rehearsal last week – felt like people had been looking at those practice tracks or something! It was lovely to welcome Becky to the altos as well.
Please see below for recap of sections covered last week and what we plan to look at this coming Tuesday 4/3. If anyone is struggling to follow all the detail do let me know.
Sections looked at so far (*denotes covered on 25/2):
Selig (I): p1-4, b15-45
Tranen (I): p4-9, b47-96
*Denn (II): p14-18, b22-73
*So Seid (II): p18-21, b74-123
Herr (III): p41-45, b17-93
*Toten (VII): p114-123 , b1-100
Be prepared to look at the following sections this week (**denotes new bits!):
Selig (I): p1-4, b15-45
Tranen (I): p4-9, b47-96
Denn (II): p14-18, b22-73
So Seid (II): p18-21, b74-123
Herr (III): p41-45, b17-93 (we looked a this one a couple of weeks ago – be prepared to run through!)
**Ach (III): p47-52, b129-173
**Lieblich (IV): p61-74, b4-173
**Haben (VI): p84-88, b3-77
**Du bist (VI): p98-104, b208-266
Toten (VII): p114-123 , b1-100
Point to note on p17 from b60: make the diminuendo (getting softer) gradual, measured and weighty. As Penny suggested, you might like to listen to Elgar’s ‘Like as the Damask Rose’ which has a similar feel to this part of the movement.
Here is link to practice track. There’s an alternative practice track on Chord Perfect website (thank you Jules!) which some may prefer; links for each part on repertoire page.
Subs:
£90/term to be paid into choir bank account:
Account Name: Sheen Gate Choir
Account Number: 47107324
Sort: 60-01-39
Singing Lessons with Marta:
Marta Garcia-Ortiz whom many of you know from when she sang with SGC, is offering private singing lessons locally (Mortlake) at her home. Marta, originally from Spain, is an accomplished musician (teacher, cellist, conductor and singer). For anyone interested in finding out more please don’t hesitate to get in touch with her either by WhatsApp 07511 103 484 or email garciaortizmarta@gmail.com
Calendar:
Spring Term:
7Jan-1April (NO half term break), 13 weeks
Two week Easter break (not the usual 3 weeks) 8/4 & 15/4.
Summer Term:
22 Apr-10 Jun except 1 week half term 27 May, 7 weeks
Dear All
I hope you had a lovely half term all those who were away last week. Turn-out last Tuesday was quite low in the end due to holidays and illness so we kept new material to a minimum, recapping some of what we did the week before and having a first look at the second movement (II).
Sections looked at so far (*denotes covered on 18/2):
Selig (I): p1-4, b15-45
*Tranen (I): p4-9, b47-96
*Denn (II): p14-18, b22-73
Herr (III): p41-45, b17-93
Toten (VII): p114-117 , b1-34
Be prepared to look at the following sections this week (**denotes new bits!):
Selig (I): p1-4, b15-45
Tranen (I): p4-9, b47-96
Denn (II): p14-18, b22-73
**So Seid (II): p18-21, b74-123
Herr (III): p41-45, b17-93
**Du bist (VI): p98-104, b208-266
**Toten (VII): p114-123 , b1-100 (note the extra bit at the end!)
Here is link to practice track. If anyone has trouble navigating it do let me know. Here is link to YouTube recording. Both links may also be found on repertoire page.
Reminder that everyone is invited to The Plough for a post rehearsal drink this Tuesday 25/2. Hope to see many of you there – I know it’s a school night but you deserve it after all that hard work…!
Subs:
£90/term to be paid into choir bank account:
Account Name: Sheen Gate Choir
Account Number: 47107324
Sort: 60-01-39
Singing Lessons with Marta:
Marta Garcia-Ortiz whom many of you know from when she sang with SGC, is offering private singing lessons locally (Mortlake) at her home. Marta, originally from Spain, is an accomplished musician (teacher, cellist, conductor and singer). For anyone interested in finding out more please don’t hesitate to get in touch with her either by WhatsApp 07511 103 484 or email garciaortizmarta@gmail.com
Calendar:
Spring Term:
7Jan-1April (NO half term break), 13 weeks
Two week Easter break (not the usual 3 weeks) 8/4 & 15/4.
Summer Term:
22 Apr-10 Jun except 1 week half term 27 May, 7 weeks
Dear All
It was lovely to have everyone back for the first Brahms Requiem rehearsal and to welcome newcomers Hannah and Seb.
I’ve listed below the parts that we covered this week and what we should be prepared to look at on 18/2 – hope it helps rather than confuses!
We covered:
Selig: p1-4, b15-45
Herr: p41-45, b17-93
Toten: p114-117 , b1-34
Be prepared to look at the following sections next week (*denotes new bits!):
Selig: p1-4, b15-45
*Tranen: p4-9, b47-96
*Denn: p14-18, b22-73
Herr: p41-45, b17-93
*Du bist: p98-104, b208-266
*Toten: p114-123 , b1-100 (note the extra bit at the end!)
It’s always a bit confusing when we start a new piece to find where we are in it and see how it all hangs together. If you have time, it would be great if you could listen to the practice tracks – link here. They isolate the four parts and you can slow them down (a feature I rely on!). It’s worth listening to a recording too. Here’s one of Youtube’s many excellent examples. Both links may also be found on repertoire page.
Robert’s Recital Sun 16/2, 3pm:
See earlier post for details. Link to flyer here
Subs:
£90/term to be paid into choir bank account:
Account Name: Sheen Gate Choir
Account Number: 47107324
Sort: 60-01-39
Singing Lessons with Marta:
Marta Garcia-Ortiz whom many of you know from when she sang with SGC, is offering private singing lessons locally (Mortlake) at her home. Marta, originally from Spain, is an accomplished musician (teacher, cellist, conductor and singer). For anyone interested in finding out more please don’t hesitate to get in touch with her either by WhatsApp 07511 103 484 or email garciaortizmarta@gmail.com
Calendar:
Spring Term:
7Jan-1April (NO half term break), 13 weeks
Two week Easter break (not the usual 3 weeks) 8/4 & 15/4.
Summer Term:
22 Apr-10 Jun except 1 week half term 27 May, 7 weeks
Message from Robert about his recital this Sunday:
“Recital at St.Mary’s Battersea – Sunday 16th February at 3pm
A pair of Jimmy Choos
If you are free on Sunday afternoon do please come along. I’ll be playing some Schubert – the B flat Impromptu – and some Schumann – his beautiful and evocative Humoresque which is all too seldom played. Concert is free and there is a sumptuous spread of tea and biscuit (sic) afterwards. The church alone is worth a look, grade 1 listed and with historical connections to both Turner and William Blake.
Link to the website and the concert poster is here. Sadly my picture didn’t make the cut.“