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Here are some excerpts from
the latest HCS Newsletter Number 90 (April 2006)
:
Chairman's message
As
I write this, I have only a small idea of how our recent concert
went. I have read the review in the Mercury, but as yet not
talked to any members. By the time we meet I will have rectified
the situation. But the review was good…….was it
a positive experience for you all? Did all that hard work
pay off? Did all those markings prove to be timely reminders?
At the end of the concert did you think ‘that was OK’
or was it ‘Wow, we have been part of something special!’
For the first
time ever, I was unable to sing in the concert. Yes, I
was disappointed, but as always, I try to look for the
positives.
It meant that I could step away from the rehearsal on
the last Tuesday before the concert, and listen. It was
a wonderful and illuminating experience. Listening to
150 people singing together
is a very powerful experience, especially when you can
see how pencils and watching eyes are so important. If
singing was a selfish activity then we might as well just
sing in our bathrooms. But, the power of singing is in
its amazing way of communicating its message. Watching
and listening to the rehearsal and remembering John Westcombe’s
comment in his review ‘Problems about hearing the
choir words…..were not entirely solved’, makes
it important that we all work harder to solve this problem.
We must learn to try to communicate the message of our
music through our faces, eyes and the words. |
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Our audience will appreciate
it; we owe it to the music and we will enjoy the whole performance
more. Oh yes……and Derek will probably feel happier
if he has 150 pairs of eyes looking at him more often!
Listening to you all on that Tuesday was an emotional journey….
there were depths of sadness and uplifting joy just from the
power of everyone’s voices. Never underestimate what
HCS can do! So, on to our next concert. I know many people
are very excited about this project and it will be a fantastic
finale to our 2005/2006 season. Make it a truly great one
by freeing yourself from the score…… looking up,
communicating… and enjoying the power of music. A great
statement but there is a small matter of learning the notes!
Get the pencils busy and don’t leave the learning too
late.
At the risk of repeating the oft-repeated message, do please
try to sell some tickets. The Abbey will need filling and
as you, the membership, is our best selling team we look to
you to enthuse friends, neighbours, colleagues, hairdressers,
milkmen…. whoever; get those tickets sold. Please!
The AGM is the time when thanks are usually proffered to those
who serve the choir but as our next concert will not be in
All Saints I would like to take the opportunity now to pass
on this message. To all those members who helped to stage
and decorate (those flowers were something else! - ed) the
church for our last 3 concerts at All Saints….. a huge
thank you. Thank you to those who always sign up, your regular
committment is greatly appreciated. Thank you to those early
birds who volunteer for the early slot we all appreciate you.
A thank you to those members who have helped for the first
time. Your willingness to volunteer is heart- warming.
My best wishes to you all.
I hope you all enjoy our next term of singing together.
Jane Turner
The picture above is a
graffito of St Alban and the miraculous spring, to be seen
on a wall in St Albans Abbey. Alban was born in Verulam in
the third century. He served abroad as a Roman soldier but
converted to Christianity on his return to Britain. In 304
AD, because he refused to worship Roman deities, he was tortured
and led up a hill to be executed. Here began the miracles
of the martyrdom of Alban. When he prayed for water to quench
his thirst, a spring gushed forth from the top of the hill.
According to legend, the executioner’s eyeballs fell
out. St Albans Abbey now stands on this hill.
Dates for your
diary
All
rehearsals at Sele School unless marked otherwise. The 75% attendance
expected means that members should attend at least 10 rehearsals
for the concert on 15 July.
Tues 25 April 06 rehearsal
Tues 2,9,16,23,30 May rehearsals
Tues 6,13,20,27 June rehearsals
Sunday 11 June Garden party
Tues 4,11 July rehearsals
Thurs 13 July rehearsal in All Saints
Sat 15 July 11.30am to 2.30pm rehearsal at the Abbey.
Concert 7.30 St Albans Abbey: Poulenc Gloria, Brahms German
Requiem
Tues 18 July HCS AGM 7.30 Sele School
Tues 5 Sept 2006 First rehearsal of 2006 –
07 season
Sat 4 Nov 06 All Saints Church Hertford
Concert,– Mozart Requiem, Mendelssohn Psalm 95
Sat 16 Dec 06 Christmas concert
Sat 31 March 07 concert – Bach and Handel
Sat 23 June 07 concert
Sun 04 Nov 2007 Berlioz Grande Messe des Morts
Royal Albert Hall.
(Please note dress rehearsal on Sun 28 Oct 07)
Future concerts (tbc) 15 Dec 07, 15 March 08,
28 June 08
Other dates
QC Chamber
Choir
Sat 3 June 7.30pm St Thomas’s Church,
Northaw. Sumptuous Sounds
Tickets on door
Sat 8 July 7.00pm St Nicholas, Great Munden. A Summer Sensation
(3)
Bring picnic. Tickets on door Braughing
Music Society
Sat 10 June 7.30pm St Mary’s Church, Braughing. Alberni
String Quartet
Tickets £12 & £10 reserved or £15 on
the door.
Tel 01920 822167 weekdays between 9am and 5pm.
www.Braughingmusicsociety.co.uk
Haileybury Madrigals
Sat 1 July 9.00pm Congregate by Gt Amwell Pool
Harlow Chorus
Sat 13 May 7.30pm All Saints, Hockerill
Constant Lambert Rio Grande
Sun 16 July 7.30pm Thaxted Church
Mendelssohn Elijah
Tickets tel 01992 462528
It is advisable to buy tickets early
Hertford Symphony Orchestra
Sun 7 May 3.00pm Castle Hall, Hertford
‘Music for a Summer Afternoon’
Family concert
Sat 1 July 7.45pm Castle Hall
Wagner, Mozart, Rachmaninov
Tickets from Castle Hall Box Office
tel 01992 531500
Hertford Music Club
Sun 14 May 3.00pm Friends Meeting House
Matthew Schellhorn piano recital – Messiaen,
Mozart and Chopin. Tickets on door
Hertford Voices
Sat 7 Oct 06 Informal Supper Concert details tba
17 – 20 May 07 Kantorei visit to Hertford
Sat 19 May 07 Concert with Kantorei
Tel Trish Goldsmith for details 01992 589730
Hoddesdon Music Club
Sat 29 April 7.30pm URC, Mill Lane, Brox.
James Hughes on marimba, vibraphone, snare drum. Takes lessons
from Evelyn Glennie
Sat 20 May 7.30pm URC, Mill lane, Brox.
Barbara Manning, pianist; Scarlatti, Beethoven, Rachmaninov,
Chopin, Gershwin
Tickets on door
Soundbites
a lunch date with a difference, admission free
lunch 12.15 - 1.00pm, concert 1.00 - 1.45pm
Wed 26 April Simon Balle School Big Band
Wed 3 May Haileybury Musicians
Wed 10 May Christopher Roberts & Allan Granville –
piano duo
Ware Choral Society
Sat 10 June 7.30pm Ware Drill Hall
Handel Israel in Egypt Tickets tel 01920 462346
Cleone at 80
Cleone wasn’t invited to the Queen’s
80th birthday party having been born 18 days too early but,
instead, celebrated her 80th birthday on 2nd April this year
at Fanham’s Hall with 23 members of her family.
Born on 3rd April 1926, she and her sister, Joyce, and mother,
Grace Adams were three of the original 12 people of the Hertford
Choir which first met in September 1938 at the Parents’
National Educational Union School at 4 Bengeo Street. Cleone
was 12 years old and has been a member of the choir, now called
the Hertford Choral Society, for most of the years since, with
several years gap from 1944 until her return in the early 1960s
when Hilaire Kelynack was conductor. In the meantime, Cleone
had trained as a nurse, met and married Ken and given birth
to four children; David, Richard, Rosalind and Jocelyn. Cleone
now has nine grandchildren; eight boys and one girl, who is
the mother of the one great grandson, Kai, five years old this
year. Husband and fellow choir member, Ken, sadly died, suddenly,
11 years ago during a meeting of the parish council of Holy
Trinity Church, Bengeo.
The choir is an important part of Cleone’s life. She is
still lighting up the scores for Derek and Peter at rehearsals
and always does various duties, involving parking cones, on
concert day morning. Asked for her favourite oratorio in the
choir’s extensive repertoire, Cleone said that she didn’t
have a favourite but most memorable was the performance of Britten’s
War Requiem in the RAH because her two sons had sung it there
under Britten’s baton when they were still in short trousers
and attending Highgate School. The performance in Ely last year
(Child of our Time and The Armed Man) was also memorable as
the previous time she had been there was on 5 June 1993 (Ken’s
birthday) when she was presented with her Open University B.A.
degree at the age of 67 years. Cleone lives life to the full.
Croquet champion of the local U3A, she is current holder of
the Silver Cup. She regularly conducts non-religious funeral
‘celebrations of a life’ and has officiated at 211
funerals over the last seven years.
At her birthday party she was given a big plate decorated with
a rose and with the first names of her children, grandchildren
and great grandchild written in their own hands around the plate.
Congratulations Cleone. Long may you have the strength and energy
to continue to do what you enjoy.
Footnote: Jessie Hopkins holds the record for continuous membership
of the choir – 63 years! Maisie is not far short..
The Playtex Moonwalk 2006
Last year I had the privilege of walking
through London overnight as part of the Playtex Moonwalk. The
Playtex Moonwalk is an unique event where thousands of women
and a few brave men will not only power walk a marathon through
the night but do it wearing a decorated bra to raise money and
awareness for breast cancer research and cancer care. This year
I have been lucky enough to be able to take part again, and
it will be even more meaningful as a dear friend of mine is
undergoing her own personal battle against breast cancer. The
walk takes place on May 20th. We will begin at Hyde Park at
11.00pm and hopefully finish six hours and 26 miles later! There
will be over 15,000 of us taking part and we aim to raise £6
million. Many of you were kind enough to support me last year.
If you would like to do so again I would be delighted to accept
your sponsorship…it really does help knowing that so many
people have done so, especially when the going gets tough! I
will leave a sponsor form out most nights at choir but if you
are unable to fill that in, cheques can be sent to me. The cheque
needs to be made out to Walk the Walk Worldwide.
Thank you very much.
Jane Turner
Just to remind you……..
Whether you are new to HCS or have been
singing with the choir since it began, there are a few things
which seem to cause confusion. Please forgive us for mentioning
them again:
YOUR PART REP is your first point of contact if you have a question
or problem. Please phone him or her if you miss two consecutive
rehearsals and let them know the reason, because if you miss
three consecutive rehearsals with no explanation you are considered
to have left the choir!
S1 Jessie Hopkins 01992 550802
S2 Ann Poulton 01920 427568
A1 Jenny Lee 01992 500626
A2 Sheila Mander 01992 420114
T David Marshall 01992 484373
B Joe Johnson 01438 715595
REHEARSALS begin at 7.30 and end at 9.45pm. You need to attend
75% of the rehearsals to gain a place in any concert. Your part
rep will be able to advise if you are unsure as he or she keeps
a register of attendance. Obviously if you arrive or leave at
the break you will be given half a mark for attendance –
but did you know that if you arrive later than 8pm you are given
only half a mark? There may be special circumstances. If this
is the case, tell your part rep.
MUSIC is borrowed from the library (unless you sign up to purchase
your own copy). Music hire is costly so we agree to return it
within a few days of each concert. If you are unable to sing
in a concert, you MUST return your music BEFORE the concert.
Please try to be responsible for your own music – the
librarians have enough to do without having to ring around after
each concert to trace missing music. If we fail to return music,
we are fined. We feel it not unreasonable to pass any fine on
to the member who has failed to return his or her music.
Ask Auntie Di
Gladys How does Peter,
our accomplished accompanist, do that?
Di Do what my dear?
Gladys You know – sing and play the piano at the same
time as he did at the workshop.
Di Good genes, natural talent and years of practice.
Gladys Phenomenal
Di Bet he can’t dance though.
Gladys How can you say that?
Di Despite their inherent sense of rhythm and timing, have you
ever met a male classical musician who knows what to do with
his feet? Even that nice ‘stand-in’ conductor, Jeremy,
admitted he couldn’t dance. He told us an hilarious story
about shuffling his feet in waltz time, partnered by his wife,
in a straight line through the middle of a crowded dance floor
at a wedding party.
Gladys And he gave a demonstration (how we laughed – ed).
What about our own estimed MD?
Di !!!*********!!!!
From newsletter no 67, 13 April
1999
‘Asked for his Desert Island Disc
selection, Peter named …… Mahler’s 8th, Mendelssohn’s
Violin Concerto, Britten’s War Requiem, Belshazzar’s
Feast, some trad jazz, Abba, Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring.’
But the disc he most wanted to take to the island was –
The Kingdom. ‘Louder – The Kingdom. Did you hear
that Derek?’ Well, obviously he did. Which just goes to
prove that Derek does listen and welcomes suggestions for programmes.
It may take some time to surface but it’s well worth a
try.
From the HCS book of Limericks –
what? You didn’t know there was one? Time for an update
plus new additions. Send or give your Limericks to the editor.
Prizes! Closing date 18 July 06.
‘I have handled the old text with wit’
said Poulenc ‘for I want a hit.
My tunes in The Gloria
Are designed not to bore yer
So the words and the music don’t fit.’
By Richard Hitch HCS Vice President
Editor June Crew (back row alto) assisted
by Victor Crew.
Grateful thanks to all contributors.
More please to 26 St Davids Drive, Broxbourne, EN107LS or
email junecrew@brox1.demon.co.uk
St Albans Concert Arrangements
Mid-day rehearsal from 11:30am to 2:30pm. We should be ready
for the performance in the Abbey by 7:10pm.
Transport
There will be extremely limited parking in the Abbey School
during the day. There will be a map on the St Albans notice
board showing parking places and costs.
We will need very early information should we need to run
coaches, but we may be able to share transport.
The car sharing options will be:
A: To St Albans before the rehearsal and
returning after the concert.
B: To St Albans before the rehearsal, returning
to Hertford after the rehearsal, and going back and returning
after the concert.
C: To St Albans before the rehearsal, returning
to Hertford after the rehearsal with no opportunity (due to
audience friends) for return in the evening.
D: To St Albans for the concert and returning
afterwards.
Coaches might be provided for option A and
option D (this to include any audience requirements). We shall
need to know if they are required and have firm commitment
and payment very early; by the end of May.
Please sign up for any of these transport
options on the St Albans notice board (at choir, Tuesdays)
We are trying to arrange rooms for changing
and recuperation (with coffee provision) in the Abbey School
between the rehearsal and the concert.
Personnel
Diana, concert manager, programme compiler and stand-in soloist
to be known henceforth as Sparky……
From a review of a recent concert of Hertford Symphony Orchestra.
The high-energy Festive Overture by Shostakovich unleashed
the exuberance of the orchestra……
Clearly the musicians were enjoying the brass fanfares, lively
themes and growing momentum of the
percussion – I swear I could see sparks fly from the
triangle in the hands of Diana Salthouse!
>> HCS
Newsletter Number 95 (Jan 2008)
>> HCS
Newsletter Number 94 (Sept 2007)
>> HCS
Newsletter Number 93 (April 2007)
>> HCS Newsletter Number
92 (December 2006)
>> HCS Newsletter Number
91 (September 2006)
>> HCS Newsletter Number
89 (January 2006)
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