The Sixteen's Blog

Harry rehearsing the choir in Tewkesbury

Just back from a short UK tour: 3 x Choral Pilgrimages conducted by Harry in Wells, Swansea and Tewkesbury and 1 x Immortal Legacy conducted by Eamonn in Marlborough.  All well received.

It is amazing how tour logistics often depend as much on external factors as on the rehearsals and concerts themselves, and it is not uncommon to find the management team getting involved in all sorts of interesting transport, accomodation and on-the-road planning activities.  So, in Wells we spent alot of time in ‘friendly’ negotiations with the local constabulary and a local DJ  running an outdoor karaoke session rather close to the Abbey as part of a Wells-wide outdoor street festival. I guess if it had been a real singer, rather than karaoke fanatics, the experience might not have been so painful for those members of our audience with sharp ears.

Extricating everyone from Wells on the morning of the Tour of Britain cycle race before it hit town, and then getting the choir across the ‘new’ Severn Bridge on the same morning as half of London was trying to get to Cardiff for the England-India ODI – creating 26 minute queues at the toll booths on entry to Wales – made one thankful that the rehearsal was scheduled for late afternoon.

Eamonn rehearsing the choir in Marlborough

And sport played a large part in our Saturday, as the management team left Swansea early for the drive to Tewkesbury to search for an hostelry showing both the Blackburn v. Arsenal match and the Somerset v. Surrey CB 40 final at Lord’s, to cater for the various sporting interests of certain sections of the choir (not sure what the sopranos did at lunchtime).  Ye Olde Black Beare fitted the bill exactly.

Anyone who knows anything about Harry knows he is a passionate Arsenal supporter, along with several of the singers.  Emily, our Concerts and Tours Manager, is an equally ardent Blackburn supporter – so the atmosphere watching the match was electric, and Arsenal’s defeat led to the inevitable ribbing of the conductor for the rest of the day.

And so, on to the next Choral Pilgrimage in Milton Keynes on Thursday: just a few tickets left from the local box-office no time to check out the ski-ing at Xscape though!

Genesis Sixteen consort rehearsal

Nancy Cole (alto) writes: ‘ The last three days of Genesis Sixteen were as diverse as we had hoped. On Day 4, the wonderful Mary King arrived in Wandsworth, bringing her amazing and infectious energy with her. Most of us were fearing an embarrassing array of drama games, the type that expose those of us that are theatrically challenged and wishing to be anywhere but there. Yet we weren’t to worry as the challenges she gave us were testing and all in the spirit of working together. No exposing of dark emotional moments! Later that day the eminent Sally Dunkley led us in a workshop of the Byrd 4-part Mass, which was a wonderful opportunity to get to the heart of the piece and passionate surroundings that Byrd composed the piece for. Day 5 gave us a chance to return to our consort groups, but with the added pressure of Harry and Eamonn wandering around to have a listen. We each performed the pieces once more to each other and it was a great chance to see how differently we all approached solo singing. Day 6, we had our long promised lie in! We then hopped on a coach and were taken to Boughton Aluph, a beautiful destination in the heart of Kent. The coach itself was not exactly appreciated however. On arriving in the village and finding the church, we travelled down a very narrow country lane. As you can imagine, two way traffic does not exist and unfortunately we met with another car, causing her to reverse into a ditch. But, heroically, the Genesis lads came to the rescue and ran to save the small Ford ka from its unfortunate mishap. That’s right, not just singers but brawn as well! On arrival at the church we rehearsed our programme but also got to watch the real Sixteen’s rehearsal for the Choral Pilgrimage concert that night. We were blown away by the sound. Perhaps the best moment for me however was when Harry asked us to come and rehearse Victoria’s Salve Regina with them. And so we stood one Genesis Sixteen, one Sixteen. It was such a heightening for me, to see on a massively vivid scale what such singers could do to our sound and what musicality they created. Definitely one of the most inspirational moments I have experienced. The concert was phenomenal and we left feeling starry eyed and ready for our concert the next day. ‘

Working on Byrd

I went to the National Opera Studio yesterday to see the end of the morning session of the second day of the Genesis Sixteen course.  I can’t reveal the secrets of the rehearsal studio (although the photo shows one of Harry’s techniques!), but it was inspiring watching Eamonn and Harry working with the 22 course participants. 

Bass Harry Bennett has written about Day 2:  ‘Dress for the Garrick Club dinner is suit and tie / female equivalent. Please bring an appropriate outfit or you may be refused entry.
 
‘Even after 24 email reminders, this was the message that pealed around in my mind with sheer horror. I was reminded once again upon arrival that it was imperative we had a suit to wear for our privileged invitation from the founder of the Genesis foundation, John Studzinski. Before I left my home in Portsmouth, I tried my suit on to check if it needed any repairs or such. Alas, I had piled on a few pounds since I had last worn it, and I had to hang it on my shelf of shame in my wardrobe along with all the skinny jeans and tops I had grown out of. I thought I was too old to grow out of clothes now. Clearly not. I’m now old enough to grow out of clothes the “grown-up” way.
 
‘We spent the day rehearsing the most beautiful music to the highest standard I could ever dream of. Most of us have now spent some time with our very own singing tutors, Chris and Charlotte, and I think it’s clear to say that with their extensive choral backgrounds their advice has been invaluable. Most of my choral life is spent singing sacred music, and this course has been such a great opportunity to explore this secret secular world that I have been missing out on. In particular, Vaughan Williams’ Three Shakespeare Songs have helped me learn how to enhance text through music. Harry and Eamonn’s direction has enabled me to harness this skill, and now I’ll be able to use it with any piece of music and ensemble I sing with.
 
‘Although I savour every minute we’re making music, I love the tea breaks that interject our rehearsals! We’re all a lot more relaxed with each other having let our guard down in the pub last night, and it’s great to get to know my fellow course mates. I’ve particularly enjoyed watching Lottie trying her hardest to find people to “volunteer” to write the blog. She bribed me with a packet of my favourite biscuits. We finished our rehearsal at 5.30PM, and I burst out of the National Opera Studio as quick as I could. As I was power-walking towards Wandsworth Town railway station to head to Oxford Street to buy a new suit, it occurred to me that perhaps a packet of biscuits was not the best fee for the guy that grew out of his suit the “grown-up” way.’

Eglise abbatiale de Lessay

Great Choral Pilgrimage concert last Friday, the final evening concert in this year’s York Early Music Festival. A packed Minster, but no national critics to notice the size of audience and their response – I suppose the entire music media corps was at the first night of this year’s BBC Proms.

I stayed in York for Saturday’s YEMF Young Artists competition.  Listening to ten very different ensembles in one day is exhausting but inspiring, and it certainly helps expand your repertoire knowledge: Michel Blavet (1700-68), Francesco Rognoni (d ?1626), Paolo Antonio del Bivi (1508-84), Lambert de Sayve (1548/9-1614), and David Pohle (1624-95) were all new to me.  The groups which particularly impressed me and which will be worth looking out for in the coming years were Profeti della Quinta (the eventual and deserved winners), Encantar, L’Istante, Les Ombres and Den Haag Piano Quintet.

BBC Four transmitted an intriguing documentary about Sir Peter Maxwell Davies the other night (it is still available on the BBC  iPlayer). As with our Sacred Music series, BBC Four allows the time for an in-depth portrait, with some fantastic music extracts, including a touching performance by the composer of his piano piece Farewell to Stromness.  Unfortunately The Sixteen’s recording of Max’s O Magnum Mysterium is not currently available on CORO, but watch this space!

As I write, the choir is on the Portsmouth to Cherbourg ferry en route to Lessay in Normandy, for a concert tomorrow night in Les Heures Musicales de l’Abbaye de Lessay.  Harry is still in mid-run of performances of Handel’s Saul in the Buxton Festival, so our assistant conductor Eamonn Dougan will direct a programme of Byrd, Tallis and Sheppard.  The concert is being recorded for future broadcast by France Musique, so I’ll put up a link in due course.

Krakow has been one of my favourite European cities for the last six years, having been involved in setting up a concert series there for Arts Council England, and making around 20 visits.  I’ve always been aware that the Wawel Castle and Cathedral must have been the base for many composers during the long period when Krakow was the royal capital.  A few days research (well, research implies musicology in which I have no expertise, more rooting around collecting information) in the music libraries of Warsaw and Cambridge Universities has led me to believe this was the case and that there is some interesting seventeenth and eighteenth century repertoire to explore.  So it was fascinating to go to the Lufthansa Baroque Festival’s Saturday afternoon concert to hear works by Zielenski, Jarzebski, Gorczycki, and Szarzynski performed by the Retrospect Ensemble (our sopranos Julie and Ildiko in fine solo form!).  Watch out for The Sixteen’s ventures into Polish repertoire from this era in the coming years, a project on which our assistant conductor Eamonn Dougan is taking the lead.

Eamonn Dougan outside Ardingly College Chapel

  Harry was conducting in Granada so Eamonn directed our Immortal Legacy programme in a concert at Ardingly College: with music by Tallis, Byrd, Gibbons, Morley, Britten, Tippett and MacMillan, this is one of our most popular ‘mixed’ programmes.  Harry was back from Spain in time to conduct the same programme in St David’s Hall in Cardiff on Tuesday.  We look forward to returning to Wales for a concert on our Choral Pilgrimage in Swansea on 16 September.

Half the sopranos in Cardiff