Latest Event Updates
Proposed trip to Holland
The Choir is proposing a trip to Holland following the visit by the Grootkoor. The organiser, Nan van Groenigen, has been in touch and the initial outline of the trip, in his words, is shown below. Please note the costs are approximate and do not include travel/ferry crossing. The date proposed for the trip is the first weekend in August, 2-6th, 2018. Further details will be made available once we have the travel costs.
Choir trip to The Netherlands 2018
Thursday
Departure on Thursday 2 August 2018 towards Harwich. In Harwich you can take the night boat to Hoek van Holland where you will arrive on Friday morning. If you prefer to travel by day you could also drive to Colcester, stay there for a night in a hotel and take the boat on Friday morning to travel to The Netherlands. This will be a bit more expensive since you need to have an extra night in a hotel and the trip in The Netherlands will be 1 day longer and therefore more pricey.
Friday
You will arive in Hoek van Holland at 09.00 in the morning and you will have a 30 minute travel towards Delft. A beautiful city with old buildings, amazing shops and a touristic city center. Your choir members can walk through the city and have lunch here. In the afternoon you will go to a hotel on the outskirts of Amsterdam. This 4 star hotel has decent rooms and a marvelous restaurant. You can choose to stay in the hotel and have a shared dinner at night. Or you could choose to have a dinner at the late afternoon and have a concert at night.
Saturday
After breakfast we go to Amsterdam city. Your choir members can enjoy the city. Go to one of the many museums Amsterdam has and after we will take a traditional boat tour through the canals of Amsterdam. Everyone will take care of his/her own meals during this day. After dinnertime we will walk towards the Noorderkerk where you will be performing a concert at night. After this concert you can all have a drink in one of the restaurants or bars in the area. Afterwards we will go to the hotel again.
Sunday
After a delicious breakfast we will drive by bus to Schevening where you can have another touristic day with each other. Especially in the months May until September this city is the place to be. The shops are opened and the boulevard and beach have many restaurants, bars and beach clubs. In the late afternoon you will go to Hoek van Holland (40 minutes) again where you take the nightboat towards Harwich.
Monday
You will arrive at Harwich at 9.00 in the morning and the bus will take you to back home where you will arive at the late afternoon.
Price: €215,– p.p.
Including:
• 2 night stay in a 4 star hotel for 2 people in 1 room
• 2 days breakfast buffet
• Tourleader from the start in Hoek van Holland until departure
• Tourist tax
• 2 concerts in different churches
• A concert in Scheveningen if the weather allowes it
• Visit to Delft
• Cozy gatherings after the concert
Excluding:
• Own expenses during the trip
• Lunch and dinner
• Boat tour through the canals of Amsterdam, €11,– p.p.
• 1 room surcharge for staying in a single room, €95,-
Sing with Willcocks
Jonathan Willcocks will be conducting a choral workshop on Saturday 30th September hosted by the Plymouth Philharmonic Choir at Meade King Hall, Plymouth College.
Tickets are £18 and the booking form can be downloaded by clicking this link.
Willcocks-workshop-leaflet (2 pages) (1)
Further information can be obtained from Pauline Cornish 01752 346563
When daffodils by George Shearing and William Shakespeare
As part of our concert programme Celebrating Summer, we sang a pretty little number celebrating Spring – well, why not? Short and sweet, here is Shakespeare set to music.
What do you think of it?
The Two Moors Festival
We have been contacted by Sarah Muirhead of The Two Moors Festival who are recruiting singers for a Two Moors Festival Chorus to sing the Creation on Saturday 21 October at Tiverton.
If you are interested and would like to take part please contact
Sarah Muirhead: e-mail admin@thetwomoorsfestival.co.uk mob. 07585941215
There is more information about the Two Moors Festival HERE
Rutter doesnt melt
Rutter doesn’t melt
This term Chorally Confused has been learning two pieces by John Rutter and has been promoted to the second sopranos. We say promoted because she has been sent to the back row to help bolster what is often a somewhat neglected soprano area. Sopranos love to sing high notes, the higher the better, and singing an under part is not necessarily what they aspire to.
As usual Chorally Confused has discovered the Rutter Requiem and Magnificat have their challenges and more so because she doesn’t read music. On this occasion, since she is singing a harmonising part rather than picking out the melody, she has to follow a different line of music and ignore what the first sopranos are singing. Added to this challenge is that the fact that John Rutter has written some harmonies that are tricky to pitch and yet sound sublime when you hear them.
During the first rehearsal break we noticed that she was sitting quietly and looking rather spaced out. “Are you OK?” we enquired gently.
“Yes,” she replied, “It’s just that my brain is tired with trying to pick out the right notes and I am cross-eyed with trying to follow the music!”
“That’s quite normal,” we responded cheerily, “the more you do it the easier it becomes.” Chorally Confused smiled weakly. “Oh good.” she said.
We checked in with her again recently. “How’s it going?” we asked.
“Well, I think it’s a case of Rutter doesn’t melt in the mouth when you are trying to learn it.” she smiled.
“You like it then?”
“Oh yes,” she replied ” but I think the audience definitely has the easy part. All they have to do is let Rutter melt in their ears!”
If you would like to let Rutter melt in your ears why not join us at our spring concert Rejoice with Rutter at Central Church, Tor Hill Road, Torquay at 7.30pm on Saturday 8th April, 2017. For all the information you need to buy tickets in advance please click here. Tickets are also available on the door price £12. Students 19 and under are free of charge.
Fifty years of singing
How many years?
Pam Fenton was recently awarded a Long Service Certificate for her amazing 50 years of membership and singing in the South Devon Choir. Sally Laird, the Choir’s Chairperson, presented Pam her Certificate and a basket of spring flowers at the AGM in January 2017. Even though it seems a bit of an effort to turn out in the wind, rain, snow and fog on a winter’s evening to attend rehearsals the effort is always rewarded with a feeling of well being after singing and meeting old friends. Well done Pam, we applaud you.
Christus Natus Est!
Joyous Christmas Singing
Mobile phone technology being what it is now, a member of our audience has supplied us with this recording of the last part of Cecelia McDowall’s lovely Christmas Cantata, “Christus Natus Est!” We hope it will enjoyed once again by those who attended the concert and for the first time by those who didn’t.
Happy Christmas, to one and all.
