New Sponsorship deal for RSCM Scottish Voices

RSCM Scottish Voices is still a relatively new choir, and as a self funded venture it's sometimes hard to rein back the wonderful plans for the future to match our disposable income.  Ideas include our own robes, tours of English Cathedrals, recordings, and lots of other stuff.

We haven't mentioned this previously in case it came to nothing, but over the past few months a lot of hard work and negotiation has been going on behind the scenes by Gordon and me to try to secure sponsorship to help us achieve some of these goals, and I’m pleased to say that only today, the start of April 2011, we’ve finalised a deal with a Glasgow based company who have an international reputation and who are happy to lay out their hard cash simply because we've convinced them that the reputation of RSCM Scottish Voices has become such that their sponsorship money will pay them dividends by getting their name and brand linked to our name and brand which their marketing department are now convinced will unlock a whole new marketplace for them, with the ultimate aim of their leading brand product replacing sweet sherry as the after-service refreshment of choice in refined churches across the land.

Inevitably when a commercial company is willing to provide annually a significant sum of tax free money to be spent by us on whatever we want, then we have to play ball with them to a certain extent, so while the sponsorship deal is in place, and it’s initially for a 3 year period, we will be known as RSCM Tennents Scottish Voices, and a new logo will be used to reflect the harmony between us and their world renowned product.

Below is the new logo, and under that is a mock up of how it is proposed that it will be displayed during the period of the sponsorship deal, when we have the robes which this money will allow us to purchase.

I think you'll agree it's striking, and I welcome any feedback or comments.

 

Dunblane (short) report

The service of Evening Prayer at Dunblane Cathedral on Saturday 5th March went very well, and the whole day, directed by Richard Walmsley and accompanied by Matthew Beetschen, was enjoyable not only musically but socially too, as we went to the Tappit Hen pub across from the Cathedral afterwards.

Our next meeting is on Saturday 21st May in the lovely setting of St Mary's Parish Church in Haddington, just east of Edinburgh, and the service will be at 4pm.  Type of service, music lists etc will be posted in due course.

Now, having sung at Dunblane, banked money, updated spreadsheets, reconciled finance, sent out emails relating to found music copies and missing name badges, written articles for the RSCM publication CMQ and the forthcoming RSCM Scotland Newsletter and the magazine Different Voices, completed Event Registration Forms for our August and September meetings, and finally updated this website, I'm ready to not look at ANY RSCM Scottish Voices stuff for a week or two!  Except I need to try to get the music list notified for Haddington and I need to start thinking about the arrangements for our residential rehearsal weekend in August, not least who and how many will be there and therefore how much it'll cost each of us.  Oh well, I might get a couple of days away from it!

Service at Dunblane Cathedral

Today at 4pm you can hear RSCM Scottish Voices sing Evening Prayer in the wonderful surroundings of Dunblane Cathedral which dates back in parts to the 13th century.

The music will be:

We wait for Thy Loving kindness (William McKie)
Magnificat in e minor (Daniel Purcell)
Praise our Lord, all ye gentiles (William Byrd)
Gaudete Omnes (Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck)

Due to the unavailability of our Musical Director Frikki Walker who is in Sheffield conducting one of his other choirs in the semi final of the Songs of Praise School Choir of the Year competition, for this service RSCM Scottish Voices will be directed by Richard Walmsley (Organist and Master of the Choristers at St Ninian's Episcopal Cathedral in Perth) and accompanied on the organ by Matthew Beetschen (Musical Director and Organist of Dunblane Cathedral, and Chair of RSCM Scotland).

Voices united for Christchurch

Last night's benefit concert for Christchurch went fantastically well, and raised £4155 which will go via the Red Cross to help those most in need after the earthquake.

Representatives of nine different choirs took part, under the inspirational leadership of Michael Bawtree, Glasgow Chamber Choir, RSCM Scottish Voices, St Mary's Cathedral (Glasgow), St Mary's Cathedral (Edinburgh), Edinburgh Singers, Edinburgh Royal Choral Union, Glasgow University Chapel Choir, Strathclyde University Chamber Choir and the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD).

A reporter from BBC Radio Scotland was there to record much of what was happening and he interviewed a few people, albeit he got the first name of the Kiwi soloist wrong by calling her Jane Elder instead of Ruth Elder!  You can hear a recording of the BBC news article, including some interviews and a bit of the choir singing as well as the two Kiwi soloists by clicking here.

The full programme was:

Choir

• Locus Iste - Anton Bruckner (1824-1896)

Stephen Chambers (tenor)

• Comfort ye my people - George Frederic Handel (1685-1759)
  Every valley shall be exalted - George Frederic Handel (1685-1759)

Rachel Hynes (soprano)

• The Lord's Prayer - Albert Hay Malotte (1895-1964)

Ruth Elder (soprano)

• Pokarekare Ana - Trad. Maori folksong

Rachel Hynes (soprano) and Karen Cargill (mezzo soprano)

• Letter Duet from The Marriage of Figaro - W A Mozart (1756-1791)

Stephen Chambers (tenor)

• The Choirmaster's Funeral (Thomas Hardy) - Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)

Choir & soloists
Brynne Mcleod (mezzo soprano)
Nick Morris (baritone)
David Sloan (violoncello)
Geoff Woolatt (organ)

• Requiem (Op. 9) - Maurice Duruflé (1902-1986)

Choir and audience, first verse sung in Maori by choir

• God defend New Zealand (National Anthem)

Benefit Concert for Christchurch, New Zealand

Scottish singers are coming together for a major benefit concert on Monday 28th February 2011 at 8pm for the people of Christchurch, New Zealand.

Brynne McLeod - mezzo soprano
Nick Morris - baritone
David Sloane - cello
Geoff Woollatt - organ
Michael Bawtree - conductor

The concert will take place in St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral, 300 Great Western Road, Glasgow, which is an almost exact twin of the cathedral which has been damaged in Christchurch. The two buildings were built at the same time to a design by the same architect, Sir George Gilbert Scott.

As well as Requiem by Maurice Duruflé the concert will also feature tenor Stephen Chambers and Soprano Ruth Elder, New Zealanders based in Glasgow. They will perform music by HANDEL, BRITTEN and traditional New Zealand folk songs. Soprano Rachel Hynes will also perform.

Choristers from RSCM Scottish Voices, Glasgow Chamber Choir, Strathclyde University Chamber Choir, the RSAMD, St Mary’s Cathedral Choir (Glasgow), St Mary's Cathedral Choir (Edinburgh), Edinburgh Singers, Glasgow University Chapel Choir, and Edinburgh Royal Choral Union will join together at St Mary’s Cathedral in Glasgow’s West End. Two New Zealanders currently studying at the RSAMD will also perform at the concert.

Cathedral Provost The Very Rev Kelvin Holdsworth said: “People in Scotland have all kinds of strong links with people in New Zealand. This concert is an act of solidarity with the people of Christchurch. Christchurch Cathedral is like a 'twin' of St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral in Glasgow, having been built by the same architect at almost exactly the same time. As we look around the building in Glasgow, our hearts go out to those who are struggling to cope in a damaged city half a world away.”

Organiser Michael Bawtree added: “Scotland has very strong links with New Zealand. Many of us who will perform have friends and family living and working in Christchurch; many have visited, lived, performed and worked in New Zealand; others are simply keen to show that support by giving of their time and talent.”

Stephen Chambers, an RSAMD Opera student from New Zealand who will perform at the concert, said: "My Dad (Dr. John Chambers) was in Christchurch on a Medical conference when the Earthquake hit. He managed to escape unscathed from the fourteenth floor of his hotel, which looked as though it was about to collapse. Like so many Kiwis around the world, I feel helpless. I hope that in putting on this concert we can get some money together to aid those hardest hit in the beautiful country that I call home."

Funds raised at this benefit concert will be passed through official channels to those most in need.

For those who are into such things there is an associated Facebook Event but the important thing is to come along to the concert and donate whatever you can afford.

Please consider supporting this worthy cause, and if you can't make it along to the concert you can give online to the Red Cross New Zealand Earthquake appeal by following this link.

Dunblane music list

The next service in which you can hear RSCM Scottish Voices sing is on Saturday 5th March 2011 at 4pm when we will be taking part in Evening Prayer in the wonderful surroundings of Dunblane Cathedral which dates back in parts to the 13th century.

The music list, hot off the press, is:

We wait for Thy Loving kindness (William McKie)
Magnificat in e minor (Daniel Purcell)
Praise our Lord, all ye gentiles (William Byrd)
Gaudete Omnes (Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck)

Due to the unavailability of our Musical Director Frikki Walker who will be in Sheffield that weekend conducting one of his other choirs in the semi final of the Songs of Praise School Choir of the Year competition, for this service RSCM Scottish Voices will be directed by Richard Walmsley (Organist and Master of the Choristers at St Ninian's Episcopal Cathedral in Perth) and accompanied on the organ by Matthew Beetschen (Musical Director and Organist of Dunblane Cathedral, and Chair of RSCM Scotland).

Paisley report

On Saturday RSCM Scottish Voices visited Thomas Coats Memorial Baptist Church in Paisley (TCM) where at their request we sang Choral Evensong and were made to feel very welcome indeed by their organist Matthew Edwards and various members of the church who kindly provided us with tea and biscuits whenever we stopped singing for more than a couple of minutes.

A very heartfelt thanks from all in the choir for the excellent hospitality, and it was good to see between 30-40 people in the congregation on such a cold foggy evening!

The setting of TCM is spectacular, and I commend the Blog post of Pencefn, one of our own choir members, who describes the building and a bit of its history.

Musically it felt good, and according to Frikki Walker, our Musical Director, every time we meet we continue to get a little bit better, so the future still looks bright.

After the service a fairly big crowd of choir and friends managed to squeeze into one of the snugs at the rear of The Bull Inn, the oldest pub in Paisley, where we enjoyed good Real Ale and tasty food, and socialised for several hours.

All in all another good day, and a good start to 2011.

Our next service is on Saturday 5th March 2011 at 4pm in Dunblane Cathedral.  Full details of the music will appear here in due course, so watch this space.

Vist to Dunfermline postponed and transferred to Paisley

Due to problems caused by the terrible weather in December, Dunfermline Abbey have had fire and flood (literally!) so we've taken the prudent decision to postpone our visit there and reschedule it some time in the (hopefully not too distant) future.

Instead, our next service will be on that day, Saturday 22nd January 2011, at Thomas Coats Memorial Baptist Church in Paisley, where at 4pm we shall be singing the Choral Evensong we should have sung there last month, except that service was also cancelled because of the poor weather and the church heating breaking down!

The music list for Paisley is:

• Introit: Let all mortal flesh keep silence - Sir Edward Bairstow (1874-1946)
• Responses: John Bertalot (b.1931)
• Canticles: Magnificat & Nunc Dimittis in B flat - Sir John Stainer (1840-1901)
• Anthem: And I saw a new heaven -Edgar Bainton (1880-1956)
• Vesper: In Pace - William Blitheman (c1525-1591)

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to all involved in RSCM Scottish Voices, whether singers, conductors or organists, 2011 is going to be another great year for us as we continue to develop musically and socially!

Dunfermline Abbey Music List, January 2011

Update 7th January 2011:  Due to fire and flood at Dunfermline Abbey caused by atrocious weather conditions, this visit to Dunfermline has just been postponed and instead we shall be singing Choral Evensong in Thomas Coats Memorial Baptist Church in Paisley at 4pm that day.

On Saturday 22nd January 2011 at 4pm RSCM Scottish Voices will be singing Choral Evensong at the beautiful and historic Dunfermline Abbey in Fife.  The music at this service will be as listed below, and I've also pasted some YouTube videos for your delectation.

• Introit: We wait for thy loving kindness – Willam McKie
• Responses: Bernard Rose
• Canticles: Herbert Sumsion in G
• Anthem: Praise Our Lord, all ye gentiles – William Byrd

The Introit, We wait for Thy loving kindness, by William McKie, is below, as sung by the choir of Westminster Abbey



Unfortunately I couldn't find a video with the full Bernard Rose Preces and Responses, but below is the second part (the Responses part).



The anthem, Praise our Lord, all ye Gentiles, by William Byrd, is below.  I've posted this one previously, and mentioned at the time that it's quite an apt one because it was recorded (albeit not by the Cathedral choir) in the very beautiful Wells Cathedral where our own Musical Director Frikki Walker was a Vicar Choral in the choir for a few years



I couldn't find the Sumsion in G Canticles.

Cancelled Paisley visit

Visit to Paisley Cancelled

A combination of concerns of the safety of anyone travelling to Paisley through the foul snowy weather afflicting the whole of the UK right now, uncertainty over who will actually be able to make it to the church on the day, and now the news this evening that the heating for both the church and hall has broken down and there is no guarantee that it'll be fixed by Saturday, has led to me taking the decision to cancel the visit by RSCM Scottish Voices to Thomas Coats Memorial Baptist Church, where we were due to sing Choral Evensong at 4pm on Saturday 4th December 2010.

We WILL visit the church, it's a fine building and a magnificent organ, but it's now back on the to-do list for the future, so watch this space.

The next time you can hear RSCM Scottish Voices sing is on Saturday 22nd January 2011 in the beautiful and historic Dunfermline Abbey, where we shall be singing Choral Evensong at 4pm.

The Baptist Cathedral of Europe

Update 01/12/2010 - This service has been cancelled due to poor weather conditions and the breakdown of the heating in the church

The next meeting of RSCM Scottish Voices, the last of 2010, will be at 4pm on Saturday 4th December in

Thomas Coats Memorial Baptist Church 

High Street

Paisley

PA1 2BA

As a non-denominational choir, as indeed is the Royal School of Church Music (RSCM) a non-denominational Christian organisation, we aim to take part in services relevant to the denomination of the church, cathedral or abbey we're visiting, but on this occasion although it's a Baptist Church we have been asked specifically to sing Choral Evensong, so that's what we're doing, and the music list is:

• Introit: Let all mortal flesh keep silence - Sir Edward Bairstow (1874-1946)
• Responses: John Bertalot (b.1931)
• Canticles: Magnificat & Nunc Dimittis in B flat - Sir John Stainer (1840-1901)
• Anthem: And I saw a new heaven -Edgar Bainton (1880-1956)
• Vesper: In Pace - William Blitheman (c1525-1591)
• Final Voluntary: Postlude in D minor - Sir Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924)

As I mentioned in a previous post, Thomas Coats Memorial was built by the prominent local Coats family who were major benefactors in Paisley, and it's unofficially referred to as the Baptist Cathedral of Europe.  It's a fine building, with a wonderful organ, and a great acoustic, so to sum up the service:

Big Victorian Church + Big Victorian Music = Fun for all the family!

2011 season is announced

The 2011 season for RSCM Scottish Voices has now been finalised, and it's going to be a cracking year!

We kick off on Saturday January 22nd with a visit to the historic Dunfermline Abbey.  The photo below is by Paul McIlroy

Dunfermline Abbey

On Saturday 5th March we pay a welcome return visit to Dunblane Cathedral.  The photo of Dunblane Cathedral is by Kevin Rae.

Dunblane Cathedral

After our last visit in January 2009 which was slightly marred by appalling blizzard conditions causing numerous choristers not to make it, on Saturday 21st May we return to St Mary's Parish Church in Haddington where although we hope to get better weather we couldn't hope for a better welcome than we received last time.  The photo of St Mary's Church is by kind permission of RSCM Scottish Voices choir member gordonrasmith.

St Mary's Haddington

Coinciding with a planned weekend of events in the city held by RSCM Scotland, on Saturday 18th June the choir will be visiting Aberdeen for the first time, singing Choral Evensong in St Andrew's Episcopal Cathedral at 4pm.   The image below is from their own Website.

St Andrews Cathedral, Aberdeen

From Friday 5th to Sunday 7th August our 2011 residential rehearsal weekend will again be in the delightful surroundings of Strathallan School, Forgandenny, Perthshire.

Strathallan School

 
On Saturday 17th September St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral in Glasgow will be where we sing Choral Evensong at 4pm.  The photo of St Mary's Cathedral is by Finlay McWalter.

St Mary's Cathedral, Glasgow

To round off the year, on Saturday 5th November the choir will be back in Glasgow, this time in the glorious St Aloysius Roman Catholic Church in Rose St, where we will be singing in their 5.45pm Mass.  This will be the first time RSCM Scottish Voices has taken part in a Roman Catholic service, but it certainly won't be the last.  The photo of St Aloysius, which shows the stunning interior, is by Stephen Lipton, who happens to be a singer who has conducted his own group, Scottish Chorale, in St Aloysius a few years ago.

St Aloysius

Individual posts containing the music list and finalised times and directions will be made here nearer each service, and of course the RSCM Scotland site will also have details.

Review of Forfar Choral Evensong

After our recent Choral Evensong, the following article appeared in the magazine of St John's Episcopal Church, Forfar, and is reproduced here by kind permission:

Music at St. Johns

Royal School of Church Music Scottish Voices - Choral Evensong

We have been extremely privileged this year musically, in that St. Johns has hosted two very special occasions. The first was in April when the Tayside Organists held their President’s evening here, and a magnificent evening that was.  Readers may remember that it was described in professional detail by Robert Lightband, who captured the beauty and skill of the performances wonderfully.  The second was on September 11th, the Choral Evensong above.  This article will inevitably be much less knowledgeable, more broadbrush than his, but hopefully may convey the impression of three quarters of an hour of pure loveliness, an experience shared by about 40 lucky listeners.

As a member of St. Johns, it is a great pleasure to see the chancel packed with singers, all very colourful in their different choir robes, and to hear the very good acoustics of the church used to maximum effect.  There was a wonderful purity to the sound, which at times seemed to soar right into the roof space, but was never overpowering. We know we have a very special organ, and it was played beautifully by Rupert Jeffcoat.  As a member of St. Johns, also, I felt very proud to welcome the singers here, as the church was looking so good.  We know too that we have a lovely building, but when our eyes our being drawn all the time to the chancel, the brilliance of the brass on the cross was breath-taking.

The music was mainly modern, though the versicles and responses were by William Byrd, sixteenth century, and the final voluntary a Prelude and Fugue by Bach, neither of whom could hardly be described as modern!  But there was a timelessness about the whole service, an evensong one could simply lose oneself in.  The introit was an apparently very simple piece by John Bell, with very direct words; the psalm, a beautiful, slightly haunting chant, so clearly sung, then the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis, an adaptation fauxbourdon by John Bertalot, written post Second World War – it had a lovely Gregorian chant effect; and the anthem, the biggest, most complex piece was by John Ireland. They were, of course, all different, but the effect was of seamlessness – the service a complete whole.

Evensong, by its nature, talks of peace and quietness.  The day was specially poignant in this respect - September 11th - mentioned in the intercessions by Richard Finch, standing in for Andy.  Most pertinent of all, perhaps, was the final Vesper – a truly lovely setting of The Prayer of St. Francis, by Frikki Walker, the musical director.  The following day a member of the congregation described the service as ‘though the angels of heaven had come and filled the church with music’.  This may be a slightly flowery way of putting of it, but I suspect all of us there were thinking very much the same thing.  She just put it into words.  Please come again, Scottish Voices, and we’ll try to make sure that next time many more people will come to share this very special experience.

Forfar

Our most recent meeting was a very successful one at St John's Episcopal Church in Forfar on 11th September.  That date resonates round the world in its better known format of 9/11, so music was specially chosen by Frikki to commemorate the 9th anniversary of the events of 2001.

Unfortunately at very short notice Richard Walmsley had to pull out of the service, but luckily we were joined by Revd Rupert Jeffcoat, whose stunning playing left me grinning widely on more than one occasion! I have no doubt that Rupert will be joining us again.

A family commitment, well, committal if the truth be told, meant I couldn't be there for the morning rehearsal so I wasn't able to sing in the service, however this meant that for the first time I was able to hear what RSCM Scottish Voices actually sounds like from a congregational perspective.  And not only was I not disappointed, I was very very impressed!

For some time now both Frikki and Richard have been saying how pleased they both are with the way the choir has developed in the fairly short time since we started, and while in response I've been nodding my head and agreeing, secretly I've been thinking "what are they talking about, it's OK but it's not as brilliant as you guys are making out".  Well I now realise that they have had the benefit of not being in the midst of all the singers so have been able to hear the overall sound.  And they have been right all along!  OK, this is the choir site, and I am the choir administrator, so it's forgiveable if I try to talk up our capabilities on this forum.  But I don't need to talk them up.  RSCM Scottish Voices is actually a very good choir, particularly given the short time it's been in existence, and the paltry 13 times we've met each other to sing together.

Not only that, but the introit actually moved me to tears.  It's no secret that I'm not a big fan of John L Bell's musical style, but his anthem There is a place, written to commemorate the victims of the Dunblane massacre of 1996 when gunman Thomas Hamilton murdered sixteen children and a teacher, just hit the spot.  OK, again emotionally I was in a strange place, having been scattering the ashes of a close and much loved family member that morning, but the choir sang beautifully and very movingly.

And inevitably, following the service a large crowd of us wandered a short way to the Queens Tavern, where some good beer and food was consumed.  As tradition dictates.

All in all, a good day for the choir.

Music for Strathallan

Below are some rehearsal aids for our forthcoming residential rehearsal weekend at Strathallan School.  Some of the following, and much more, will form the basis of our next few events.

I couldn't find clips of Sir John Stainer in B Flat Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis, John Bertalot Fauxbourdons, John L Bell's There is a Place, Frikki Walker's Prayer for Peace, or John Madden's We will remember them.

The first video below contains only the first part (I couldn't find the second part) of the Thomas Morley Responses, which can be found about 50 seconds into the clip.  Be aware though that they perform the 1662 Prayer Book version in which the priest sings "Glory be to the Father ......." followed by a response from the choir, whereas we'll doubtless be doing the correct version as set by Morley!  If none of that makes sense don't worry, all will be obvious on the day.




The video below is of the William Byrd Praise our Lord all ye gentiles, and it's an apt one because it was recorded (albeit not by the Cathedral choir) in the very beautiful Wells Cathedral where our own Musical Director Frikki Walker was a Vicar Choral in the choir for a few years (and you wondered how he got to know so much about singing!).  Having sung there a few times with one of Frikki's former choirs The Marian Consort, I can safely say it's one of my favourite cathedrals, and in fact one of my favourite English cities.  Great pubs!



Below is Samuel Sebastian Wesley's Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace.



John Ireland's Greater Love hath no man than this is below.



Edgar Bainton's And I saw a new heaven, with powerful words from the Book of Revelation, is one of my absolute all time favourite anthems, is very near the top of the exceptionally long list of things I want sung at my funeral, and can be found below.



Also near the top of my funeral list is Sir Edward Cuthbert Bairstow's atmospheric anthem Let all mortal flesh keep silence, which a very important person in a former life of mine always described as my anthem because whenever she heard it she apparently always remembered me singing the tenor solo in it, and which is below.



Lastly, but by no means leastly, Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck's Gaudete Omnes is below.

Enjoy them all!

Cat Herders

This is what it sometimes feels like to be the administrator, particularly when approaching the residential rehearsal weekend!

A twin history lesson

RSCM Scottish Voices will be taking part in Choral Evensong to mark the anniversary of 9/11 on, strangely enough, Saturday September 11th 2010 in St John's Episcopal Church in Forfar (top photo) which is the church in which Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (later to become the Queen Mother) was confirmed on 5th November 1916.  Tha father of a former rector, John Skinner, Bishop of Aberdeen, was one of the three Scottish bishops who in 1784 consecrated Samuel Seabury as first bishop of the Episcopal Church of the then brand new United States of America.  History?  We've got it!

Our final meeting in 2010 will be in the lovely Thomas Coats Memorial Baptist Church in Paisley (photo on right) on Saturday 4th December.  The church, linked to the prominent threadmaking Coats family who were major benefactors in 19th century Paisley, is unofficially known as "The Baptist Cathedral of Europe" and although normally the type of service in which we take part is relevant to the denomination of the church in which we are singing, on this occasion we have been asked to sing Choral Evensong, and it's been suggested that this might be the first time in the UK such a service has been held in a Baptist church!

Full details, and of course individual posts relating to each, will follow in due course.

Richard's wedding music

Richard's wedding is fast approaching, and some videos to aid note-bashing are below:

Videos relating to the Stanford Ye Choirs of New Jerusalem, and Britten Jubilate Deo in C, have already been posted here relating to our recent Dundee visit.  The Patrick Hadley My Beloved Spake is below.

Church Music Quarterly

I was asked recently to contribute an article on RSCM Scottish Voices to the fine RSCM publication Church Music Quarterly.

Not having any guidance as to the length of article expected, my first draft was something like 750 words long, but that's now been negotiated down to 250-300 words although it may be edited further!

The next edition is due in September, so I guess if it gets published it'll be in that one, and if so I'll be sure to post details here!

City of Discovery and wine

Another good day was had by all.

Last weekend saw RSCM Scottish Voices sing Choral Evensong in St Paul's Episcopal Cathedral in Dundee, and leaving aside the visits to two churches and a cathedral where some of our own members sing, this had to be the warmest welcome yet, and it was certainly the biggest congregation!

And not only that, one of the cathedral choir expressed an interest in joining us, so had an audition pretty much there and then, so welcome to the choir Paul!

The enthusiasm with which my initial approach to the Cathedral's Pastoral Musician, Stuart Muir, was met last year, was matched by the generous welcome we received from all at Dundee, from the tea, coffee and cakes we were fed on arrival, to the wine, sandwiches, wine, snacks and wine to which we were treated at the end of the service.  Thanks folks, it was appreciated by all the choir, and was very much talked about in the pub afterwards!

The pub we went to was DCA (Dundee Contemporary Arts) a few minutes walk from the Cathedral, which was bright, airy, comfortable, and served alcohol, so it was a winner.  The crowd who went there wasn't quite as big as normally go out to play after our services, and we didn't stay as long as normal, but that can be attributed to the generous amount of wine provided by the cathedral after the service, negating the need for more booze, and also the fact that a few of the regular pub attendees were missing from the day for perfectly valid reasons ranging from the writing of the final bit of a Thesis, being in Orkney working at the St Magnus Festival, the work-related requirement to speak to Housing Association Tenants about central heating at an Open Day, and probably the best excuse being the impending delivery of Nic and Carson's first child (which is actually due today but at the time of writing this appears not to have happened yet [although I'm currently relying on Facebook updates for my info] - an announcement will doubtless follow in due course!).

Two of us were staying in Dundee overnight, so we went for a good look round the city the next day, finding a pub in which to watch the Italy v New Zealand football game in the afternoon.  The one-all draw against the current World Cup Holders was as good as winning the World Cup itself for New Zealand, much to Ruth's delight!

Dundee is a really nice arty city, with lots of little statues and artworks dotted about the streets, and it's well worth a visit.  Patrticularly good was the Discovery Exhibition, which was exceptionally well presented.  Go there, next time you get a chance.

Dundee

St Paul's Episcopal Cathedral in Dundee this coming Saturday is the next occasion when you can hear RSCM Scottish Voices sing.

The service of Choral Evensong starts at 4pm, lasts probably a bit less than an hour, and the music we will be singing is:

Introit: Jubilate Deo in C (Benjamin Britten)
Responses: William Smith of Durham
Canticles: Daniel Purcell in e minor
Anthem: Ye choirs of new Jerusalem (Sir Charles Villiers Stanford)

The Cathedral can be found at 1 High St, Dundee DD1 1TD.

The service should be good, so why not come along and hear us.

What can RSCM Scotland offer?

The Royal School of Church Music (RSCM) is largely an educational charity.  As part of the educational aspect of its work, RSCM Scotland can do various things for affiliated churches and members, and in the Spring 2010 RSCM Scotland Newsletter Matthew Beetschen wrote the following:

What can RSCM Scotland do for You? Future events in YOUR AREA?

We need your help please! We’d like to plan events for the next couple of years but need help getting things organised within local areas. We want to be able to run events around the country and are after local input both in finding venues and in organising the right event for the locality.

Here is a list of events that have proved successful and which could be run more or less anywhere:

Meet, Eat and Sing - usually an evening event. We start with informal singing of varied, enjoyable repertoire and follow with a light supper. A chance to meet with other local RSCM members and enjoy music, food and fellowship.

A “Big Sing” - an event where small choirs and other participants come together to sing music that would otherwise be too large-scale. Music can be rehearsed during the afternoon which would end with either a “sing-through” or short Act of Worship.

Voice for Life workshops - an Introduction to the RSCM Voice for Life scheme or training sessions for those already enrolled. An afternoon could cover various sessions in voice production, sight-singing, music reading and “choir in context” or focus specifically on one area. This event could be run for adults or children.

Awards Training Day - helpful hints on preparing for Bronze, Silver and Gold Awards, giving potential candidates and those who train them a guide to the exam syllabus and an understanding of the standards expected, including seeing a “mock” exam take place. This event could be run for adults or children.

Skills Training Day - help and advice for Organists, Choir Directors, Music Leaders. Sessions could be offered in choir training, service accompaniment, improvisation etc. and we hope to be able to launch the new “Cantor” module from the RSCM Skills Programme. We are especially keen to run workshops in setting up and running Children’s Choirs.

Plainsong Workshop and Sung Compline - a late afternoon workshop culminating in the singing of the traditional service of Compline. As the service is all unaccompanied it could literally take place anywhere! This workshop is suitable for everyone, particularly those who have little ability in reading music.

Singing the Psalms workshop - explore different ways to sing the psalms in worship. From anglican chant to responsorial, plainsong to metrical settings. The workshop can be tailored to meet local needs if required and could also end with an informal act of worship.

Exploring Music, Ministry and Worship - wide-ranging and (usually!) lively discussion of all matters relating to music and worship. For clergy, musicians and worship leaders of churches of all denominations and all who are interested in using music in worship.

Please let us know if you can help us arrange an event near you or if there is something else you would like us to do! Contact Pat in the first instance – pat@rscmscotland.org

RSCM Scotland events

There are a few RSCM events coming up which may be of interest not only to RSCM Scottish Voices members, but wider afield too.  I've slightly altered the contact email addresses for each event to try to avoid them being plagued by Spam, but I'm sure everyone who reads this Blog is intelligent enough to work out the correct addresses!

I'm grateful to the RSCM Scotland committee for permission to use some of the content of their March 2010 Newsletter as a base for much of the following:

On Trinity Sunday 30th May Compline by Candlelight will be led by RSCM Scottish Voices member Pat Lynch in St Peter's Church, Lutton Place, Edinburgh. Singers should meet at 1745hrs, and the service itself is at 1830hrs, followed by refreshments.  If you haven't come across the service of Compline before now, then I'd recommend it to you, it's very relaxing and therapeutic and features beautiful music.  A Candlelight Compline for Candlemas was held previously at St Peter's Church, also directed by Pat, and took the format of a short workshop at which the music was learned before everyone moved into the church for the service. The singers were joined in the chancel by a congregation of about 15. St Peter’s Rector, the Rev Canon Fred Tomlinson who led the service said he enjoyed the very prayerful time and issued an invitation to come again on Trinity Sunday to help St Peter’s celebrate its anniversary.  Contact sheila AT rscmscotland DOT org for details.

On Wednesday 9th June Alistair Warwick and Jamie Brand will lead a Meet Eat and Sing at 1900hrs at St John's Church in Dumfries.  This new initiative for RSCM Scotland was launched at Holy Trinity Church, Melrose at the beginning of March, and of that event Ann Treloar wrote: “Singers and their friends from the Borders and as far away as Oban, met in Melrose for the first event of this kind to be held in Scotland. Matthew Beetschen directed a very successful evening with an interesting selection of music, which was accompanied by Sheila Robertson on the organ and piano. This was followed by an excellent supper and some animated discussion. Grateful thanks were expressed to the Director and to the congregation at Holy Trinity for their splendid hospitality."  So please come along to the second Meet, Eat and Sing and enjoy a musical feast!  Contact Jamie at brandjr AT alb DOT dumgal DOT org DOT uk to ensure there is enough music and food available!

Saturday 19th June of course is RSCM Scottish Voices' next service of Choral Evensong which will be at St Paul's Episcopal Cathedral in Dundee at 4pm.  Keep looking at this Blog for further info!

From Monday 19th to Thursday 22nd July the Dunblane Singing Break will be held.  Now in its thirteenth year, the Dunblane Singing Break, based at Scottish Churches House, is a very popular course for choral singers and church musicians from many different places, including a good number from outside the UK, who come together for four days of rehearsal in preparation for singing and spiritual refreshment. Once again Gordon Appleton is the Director of the course together with Matthew Beetschen, the organist of the cathedral who accompanies services on the magnificent Flentrop organ. This year`s course, for which no auditions are required, starts at lunch time on Monday 19 July and ends after a closing service on Thursday 22 July.  Places are still available, so contact Brian Baker at dunblanesingingbreak AT rscmscotland DOT org for details of cost and to book.

On Saturday 18th September the Music Director of RSCM Scottish Voices, Frikki Walker, will direct a Young Voices Festival at St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral in Glasgow to which all young choristers are welcome.  Frikki is an inspiring musician and is particularly good with youngsters.  Contact matthew AT rscmscotland DOT org for further details.

Finally, Saturday 30th October sees Gordon Appleton direct a Dunblane Singing Day.  All singers are welcome and it costs a donation to RSCM Scotland.  Contact matthew AT rscmscotland DOT org for details.

St Paul's Cathedral

In about seven weeks from now, on Saturday 19th June at 4pm, RSCM Scottish Voices will be singing Choral Evensong in St Paul's Episcopal Cathedral, 1 High Street, Dundee DD1 1TD.

The music list is:

Introit: Jubilate Deo in C (Benjamin Britten)
Responses: William Smith of Durham
Canticles: Daniel Purcell in e minor
Anthem: Ye choirs of new Jerusalem (Charles Villiers Stanford)

For choir note-learning purposes I've found a couple of performances on YouTube.

The first video below is of the choir of St George's Chapel, Windsor performing the Britten Jubilate (which was written for them at the request of the Duke of Edinburgh in 1961).  It appears to be a bit of an advert for the choir school, but if you want to skip the speaky bits, fast forward to about 2min 9sec and the music starts soon after that.  And bloody good they are too, unsurprisingly.

The second video is Stanford's Ye choirs of new Jerusalem, sung by the choir of New College, Oxford.

The Smith Responses and Purcell Canticles have been sung before by us.

A new Domain

The Domain name www.rscmscottishvoices.org.uk as of yesterday points to this here Blog but at some point in the future it may well lead to our own site (if I get my act together and publish it from my laptop where it's been sitting for a while!).

A new set of email addresses relating to various aspects of the choir are also now just about past the planning stage and are likely to be put into operation soon, but in part they require choir members to check their Spam filters to ensure the new addresses work properly.  I'll email everyone soon to arrange this.

So watch this space, and maybe you might want to bookmark the new address.

Holy Trinity Kilmarnock

Another meeting, another stride forward!

Unfortunately at the last minute our exceptionally talented Musical Director, Frikki Walker, wasn't able to rearrange his regular Saturday morning teaching commitments at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD) so wasn't able to join us exactly as planned, however fortunately our exceptionally talented Organist, Richard Walmsley, stepped into the breach and took over, so the two of them effectively swapped roles for the day with Frikki arriving early afternoon to play the organ for the last bit of the rehearsals and the service itself!

And what a time we had.  It's always refreshing to be conducted by someone else occasionally, and it was a pleasure to be waved at by Richard.  I personally thought that the choir has again taken a good step forward in standard, and the feedback I've had from both Richard and Frikki was very positive. 

On another personal note it was nice to sing a Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis I'd never seen before, although Healey Willan sounds like he should be a sports car not a composer!

The photo is by gordonrasmith.  Well kind of, since he's actually in it and it was taken by a member of the congregation so that Gordon could be in one for a change!

Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in the centre of Kilmarnock is an amazing wee building, with wonderful murals, and the welcome we all got was excellent.  Thanks again to our own Pat, Carole and Kat for all that.

And so to the important bit - the pub!  At lunchtime, recommended by Kat and Carole, a crowd went to First Edition nearby, and were impressed enough by it to head there after the service too.  A nice big crowd of choristers, probably around twenty or so of us, managed largely to get round one table, and had a very nice time replacing lost fluid and having a laugh and a joke. 

We also bounced around some ideas for the future, including the choir having our own robes instead of each wearing the robes of our "home" choir, the acquisition of music folders, the choir having its own library of music, and not least - sponsorship.  Possible sponsors were trotted out, like Guinness, Taylor's (RSCM Late Bottled Vintage Scottish Voices?), Tennants (because their logo is almost cruciform!) and Coors (simply because that was what some of us were drinking!), and whilst it was a jokey interlude with quite a lot of laughs, if we are going to seriously consider such things as buying robes and folders (and I think we should think about such things) then we need to think about how we are going to pay for them, and get some discussion going.

RSCM Scottish Voices as an entity has a lot to offer the right sponsor in terms of market penetration and visibility, as there must be loads of brands whose target audience is the demographic of church-goers.  Pimms, Gordons, Interflora, Co-Op Funeral Service etc etc.  OK that last one was a joke, but you get my drift!

Another exciting idea bounced around by Richard, apart from of course him inviting the choir to sing at his wedding in July which is fantastic and which will doubtless be the subject of future posts and many emails from me, was the possibility of going on a week's tour of cathedrals, minsters, abbeys and churches in England, probably as an alternative to a residential rehearsal weekend, and the Yorkshire area was mooted by him as an option.  This would require some serious organisation and would require commitment from enough choristers to make up an effective choir if it were to be considered.  I'd very much welcome feedback on what the choir's thoughts are on that one.

The last four of us left the pub around ten to eight, and I staggered up the road to (just) catch the 8pm train back to Glasgow, with thoughts of money, sponsors, robes, tours, weddings and music libraries revolving round my head until I arrived back home just before 10pm, having set off on the five to eight train that morning.  Quite a long day, but a very rewarding one, and this morning having now reconciled the money, written up the accounts, filled out the bank pay-in slip and emailed the details to the RSCM Scotland Treasurer, completed the attendance spreadsheet, replied to a couple of emails from people who were apologising for not being there, replied to an email from a chorister who is now bowing out of the choir, and posted this entry, I'm not going to do anything relating to RSCM Scottish Voices for the rest of the weekend!  Except I'm going to have a chat with Frikki tonight after Evensong about stuff

Who'd be an administrator is a question which often enters my head I have to confess, but after a day like yesterday a resounding "me!" is the answer I usually come up with, and it's a heartfelt thanks I send to all members of RSCM Scottish Voices for making it ultimately so enjoyable, musically and socially.

Kilmarnock music list

The next meeting of RSCM Scottish Voices will be this coming Saturday, 17th April 2010, at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, 1 Dundonald Road, Kilmarnock KA1 1EQ and Choral Evensong will take place at 4pm, lasting around an hour.

The music list, hot off the press this afternoon, is:

Introit: This Joyful Eastertide (Anon - arranged Wood)
Responses: William Smith of Durham
Psalm: 89 vv1-19
Canticles: Healey Willan in E flat
Anthem: Sing Joyfully (William Byrd)

I've found the following on YouTube, which may be of some use for giving the choir an idea of what some of the music sounds like, as a rehearsal aid.  You have to go to 4minutes 8seconds on the Westminster Abbey one to get to the Smith, and it's only the first part (the Preces) they sing.  Part of the second bit (the Responses) is on the next video down, and I couldn't find the rest of it!

Oh, and just for Ruth, Sing Joyfully is performed by a New Zealand choir!

FAQs

I've recently had a few emails from choir members worried that they've missed an email from me giving details of the next meeting of RSCM Scottish Voices on Saturday 17th April at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Kilmarnock.

Just to set your minds at rest, the answers to the FAQs are:

• Yes I know it's now less than two weeks away
  
  
• No, the music list has not yet been finalised, it's being worked on at the moment
  
  
• Yes, I know it is now too late for everyone to source their own copies and if music is chosen that you don't already have, then it will be provided to you on the day

That's about it for the moment!

I know that's a bit jokey, but in all seriousness, the lead up to Lent and then Easter is a frenetic time for choirmasters, and it's only today that there's been a window of opportunity to have the music list worked on by Frikki who is an expert in that field (amongst others) and always takes time to painstakingly and carefully make sure the service hangs together well and the chosen music fits with each other and with the theme of the liturgical season.

I have an email all typed up and ready to go out containing the details of where and when, and the main thing I'm waiting on is the music list so I can include it all in one go.  The timings on the day are exactly as normal, and it's in the centre of Kilmarnock.  More will follow by email.

Looking forward to seeing you all soon.

Wordle

Over at the Blog of the Provost of St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral in Glasgow, the Very Rev Kelvin Holdsworth, he has just posted a Wordle.

Wordle describes itself as a toy for generating word clouds based on text input to it and where the result shows words listed in different sizes depending on how often they're used.

Below is the Wordle I just generated from the RSS feed for this Blog, and it's nice to see that Music is central to the theme!

RSCM Scottish Voices Evensong in St Mary's Glasgow

What a great day! The music for Evensong was clearly something special when I was learning it at home, but put all together for the service created a wonderful atmosphere.Truly a "proper" Lenten occasion. Thanks everyone for contributing to this occasion and especially Frikki, Richard and Gary without whom we would not be enjoying these experiences.

Choral Evensong today - roll up roll up!

RSCM Scottish Voices will be singing Choral Evensong today at 4pm in St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral, 300 Great Western Road, Glasgow.

The music list is:

Introit: Salvator Mundi - John Blow (1649-1708)
Responses: Thomas Tomkins (1572-1656)
Canticles: Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in e minor -  Daniel Purcell (1664-1717)
Anthem: Lord, let me know mine end - Maurice Greene (1696-1755)

Why not come along and take an hour out your busy day to find a place of peace and tranquility amidst glorious music.

Backlog no more

In my previous post I mentioned the backlog of music from the RSCM Online store.

Yesterday when I arrived home from work there was a nice A4 envelope waiting for me, containing the last piece for which I was waiting, Salvator Mundi, by John Blow.

So hopefully everyone should have all their own copies in time for Saturday at St Mary's Cathedral in Glasgow.

Happy Birthday

Happy birthday to the choir's own Patsy.

I also happen to know that another soprano is celebrating a birthday round about the date of our next meeting in Glasgow, so we should celebrate both after the service!

Music backlog

The music for our next meeting, which is on Saturday 20th February at St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral in Glasgow, is all available from the RSCM Online Store, but there was some of it out of stock when I ordered mine on 18th January.

Today I received a reply to my email which had asked them when the due date was, and the reply said:

"The copies of the Blow are due this week so should be with you, and the numerous people awaiting copies, early next week all being well"

So they should be arriving with you from Monday 15th February. 

That was the only one out of stock when I placed my order, so that was the only one I queried but I suppose some of the other stuff which I didn't need to order might not have been available, but I didn't ask about that.  In any case, they say that out of stock items usually take around a fortnight to arrive, so there shouldn't be any problem for any of it.

Blow and Greene rehearsal aids

Thanks to Patsy for pointing us in the direction of YouTube to find rehearsal aids for our next meeting in St Mary's Cathedral in Glasgow in about 3 weeks!

Below you will find the videos she mentioned in her comment. The Blow in particular is handy as the images are of the sheet music!

Just click on the big triangle in the middle of each frame below to play the video.

Different Voices

I was recently contacted by the editor of Different Voices which is a relatively new quarterly magazine, published by the Church of Scotland, about church music in Scotland.

Their website describes it as a magazine for those who: 

• sing in choirs, congregations and praise groups
• play organs or other instruments
• plan and lead the music of the local church in whatever capacity
• write and choose music, songs and hymns for worship, including ministers and clergy
• and all who have a general interest in how the Church worships, what it sings and has sung through all generations.

Published three times a year it costs £12.00 for three issues.  Yes, I too can work out what quarterly means!

Now since the article on their Website features a photo of someone playing a guitar, and this isn't really the type of music that RSCM Scottish Voices is into (he said, rather restrainedly!) I didn't have high hopes that the magazine would be any good, or rather would be of any interest to me.  But Lo and Behold, when the complimentary copy arrived and I had a look through, it's not only very professionally put together there are some interesting articles in it.  I stand corrected then, and at only £12 a year I'd say it was well worth considering subscribing to it.

Choir members reading this - the complimentary copy (which is for the choir, not for me personally) will be with me on Saturday 20th February in St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral in Glasgow, our next meeting, so as I said in my email to you all regarding it, have a look at it and decide whether it's something in which you might be interested.  If I forget to mention it (I usually have other things on my mind!) then ask me, because it's already there in my music pigeonhole in the choir room.

Glasgow, February 2010

The next event for RSCM Scottish Voices is a full Choral Evensong on the first Saturday in Lent, which is 20th February 2010, in St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral, 300 Great Western Road, Glasgow at 4pm.

The music list is:

Introit: Salvator Mundi - John Blow (1649-1708)
Responses: Thomas Tomkins (1572-1656)
Canticles: Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in e minor -  Daniel Purcell (1664-1717)
Anthem: Lord, let me know mine end - Maurice Greene (1696-1755)

Afterwards we shall retire to the nearby Lansdowne Bar for an after-service fluid replacement session!

It should be a very good service, not only because the choir continues to improve and gel together, but also because it's Lent, the season leading up to Easter, and the penitential music relevant to that season of the church always tends to be rather lovely in my humble opinion.

The choir still has a few vacancies for singers, so if you are aged 18 or over, live in Scotland, have experience in church choral singing, and would like to be considered for an audition or would like more information, please contact the choir administrator at scottishvoices@rscmscotland.org for an application form.

Holders of RSCM Bronze, Silver or Gold awards need not audition, but should contact the administrator for further details.

Haddington report

The choir continues to develop and grow in corporate ability, as yesterday's service in Haddington showed.

There were a lot of call offs, partly due to the weather and partly for other reasons, so a smaller choir than usual, consisting of nine sopranos, three altos, four tenors, and six basses, turned up at the incredibly beautiful and historic St Mary's Parish Church at 10am to be fed tea, coffee and biscuits by the the very friendly ladies of the parish.  We then walked a few hundred yards to the Trinity Centre, the church hall of Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, where we rehearsed in the morning to allow our organist to rehearse on the splendid looking organ in St Mary's church.  As it happened, we didn't need to decamp, because our regular organist Richard Walmsley couldn't make it so at very short notice Matthew Beetschen, organist of Dunblane Cathedral and chair of the RSCM Scotland committee, stepped ably into the breach but he didn't arrive until lunchtime so we could have rehearsed in the church after all.  Not to worry.

The music was very slightly different to that advertised in my previous post, and consisted of:

Hymn: O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness (tune: Was Lebet)
Anthem: O magnum mysterium (Tomas Luis da Victoria)
Hymn: How brightly beams the morning star (tune: Wie Schön Leuchtet, harmony by J S Bach)
Anthem: In a byre near Bethlehem (Irish trad, arranged by John L Bell and Frikki Walker)
Anthem: Bethlehem Down (Peter Warlock)
Hymn: New light has dawned (I think the tune was by Peter Barnard, but apologies if that's wrong!)
Anthem: Lo! Star led chiefs (William Crotch)
Hymn: Of the Father's love begotten (tune: Divinum Mysterium)

Of all of the above, personally my highlight was the Victoria anthem which is very atmospheric and very beautiful.  The lowlight?  Well, for me the jury's still out on the New light has dawned hymn which I didn't quite get to grips with and I suspect I wasn't the only one.  It went well enough, but I didn't particularly enjoy it.  Still, if everything was perfect it'd be a boring world I guess!

A nice surprise for me was the William Crotch anthem, because it was one I've never heard before, and it's a wee gem.  Lots of fun to sing.

RSCM Scottish Voices is still a new choir, and we've only met some half dozen times so far.  For the first wee while the focus was just on a rehearsal day with a small service tacked on at the end, almost as an afterthought, but that's the nature of starting up such a choir consisting of people who don't already know each other and who don't meet to rehearse on a weekly basis.  The first services weren't advertised in any way and so were put on pretty much just for ourselves to round off the day of rehearsing, and the first actual congregation I think we had was a single person at the service at the end of our residential weekend in Musselburgh last year. We had a small handful at St Ninian's Cathedral in Perth last September, and a similar sized group at St Mary's Cathedral in Edinburgh in November.  Yesterday though we had over 20 in the congregation which, while clearly is a small number of people in the grand scheme of things, was the biggest number to whom we've sung so far.  Numbers aren't the target of course, but it was nice to see them.

Performance wise, our Musical Director Frikki Walker was pleased with the way it went and how we sounded.  We continue to develop and progress, and things are still looking good for the future.

So that's all very well, but what about afterwards?

About 100 yards along from the front gate of the church is a pub called the Tyneside Tavern, sitting next to an old mill on the river Tyne.  I'd already identified it from the CAMRA Good Beer Guide as a good place to go, and we weren't disappointed.  A good turn out of choir members, maybe 20 people, and the beer and craic were good as was the food a few of us had a bit later.  With very friendly staff, and the lounge bar pretty much to ourselves, I could have stayed there all night, but sadly had to travel back west to home!

Haddington 2010

The next meeting of RSCM Scottish Voices will be a service in St Mary's Parish Church in Haddington, East Lothian at 4pm on Saturday 16th January 2010.  That's a week tomorrow.

Music will include:

Bethlehem Down (Warlock); O Magnum Mysterium (Victoria); Lo star-led chiefs (Crotch); The Coventry Carol (trad arr Willcocks); There is a star (trad Spiritual); How brightly beams the morning star (Bach).

As ever we will be conducted by Frikki Walker, and accompanied by Richard Walmsley.

It'd be great to see a nice big congregation in this lovely historic church, which is in Sidegate, Haddington EH41 4BZ.

On their Website, they describe how to find the church as:

The market town of Haddington is 20 miles East of Edinburgh along the A1 dual carriageway.  Travelling East take the second exit to Haddington - St Mary's is signposted from the main road.  Look to the South, and you will see the old church tower in the distance.

The choir still has some vacancies for singers, so if you are aged 18 or over, are resident in Scotland, have experience in church choral singing, and would like to be considered for an audition or would like more information, please contact the choir administrator at scottishvoices@rscmscotland.org for an application form.

Holders of RSCM Bronze, Silver or Gold awards need not audition, but should contact the administrator for further details.

Wrong date advertised

I've been advised that some information in the RSCM publication The Network is wrong.  I haven't seen it myself but apparently it states that RSCM Scottish Voices will next meet on 6th January, when in fact it is Saturday 16th January which is the correct date.  For the avoidance of doubt we always meet on Saturdays.

Apologies if this error has mislead anyone, but the information passed to the editor of The Network was correct.

The service, which is open to all to attend, will take place at 4pm, and the church is in the middle of Haddington.