Well, another Wednesday night has been and gone. Last night’s rehearsal was a tiring one as we prepare for the jollies of two June concerts. We began with a Rachel led warm-up in which we sung Hebrew with a Brummie accent. Don’t ask!
Last week we were without our two Bass1s; this week the two Bass2s had gone AWOL, leaving us a little thin on the bottom (oo-er). But Maestro Boy stepped up to the plate and sung the low notes (quietly!); as Angus said, “being a bass isn’t that easy”. Cloudburst is really coming together. Our only slight concern last night was the whispered "la lluvia" which comes immediately after A-L’s beautiful wee solo line (after a prompt from Kay, A-L is now singing this line in time though I must admit I quite liked her dotted take on it). We hardly ever practice this whispered moment and are in constant fear (ok, that may be a little strong) that we will entirely forget it on the night. When we do attempt it we all sound like Lord Voldemort from ‘Harry Potter’. It should be noted that Helen does a quite terrifying impression of said Lord of Darkness – quite uncanny!
We also (joy upon joys) got our thunder sheet out last night for the first time. After a quick rendition of the Rolf Harris classic Tie Me Kangaroo Down, Sport (a thunder sheet is not a wobble board – is that the right word? I’m doubting myself now) we sang the ‘stormy bit’ with the excitement of a real thunderclap or two. It was noted that the thunder sheet (which is just a big sheet of metal really) might be a little small when it comes to the big storm. It was suggested that we find a sheet we can "do a roll on”. Of course that leaves you with a wonderful image of gymnastic moves and expressionistic dance, though I think it was a drum roll not a forward roll that was expected. Anyways, we are on the look out for a bigger metal sheet... just in case anyone has one lurking in the garage.
With the Wexler’s away (and Christopher looking after the house - just in case anyone reading this is intent on robbing Chez Wexler while the owners enjoy a break, Christopher has a very mean tickle!) Rufus is pining and sounded as if he was screaming almost the entire evening. Christopher decided he needed a cat gag. I have a great cat gag for you: What is the difference between a cat and a comma? One has the paws before the claws and the other has the clause before the pause. Brilliant! Thanks to online cat jokes for that one - yes, there really is a website devoted entirely to jokes about felines - whatever next?
May I conclude with a response to our esteemed Editor’s comments of last week re vinyl? Though I manage to look extremely youthful, I do actually remember records and can exclusively reveal here that my first single (the highly acclaimed Cliff Richard Christmas classic, Mistletoe and Wine) was indeed in this format, played on a red record player I bought for a few pounds at a Guide jumble sale. Furthermore, when on Bleecker Street, New York just last year (man, that sounds incredibly cool!) we purchased two old records. We don’t actually have anything to play them on but the artwork is brightening up our spare room. I am glad to have had the opportunity to respond.
Next week we are rehearsing at Priestfield and then we have a Saturday rehearsal as well so brace yourself for a blogging double whammy. Until then...
CSW
p.s. Chris says, if anyone wants to print a flyer, here they are:
And in other news, Eric Whitacre provides a link to this on his blog, saying that he is one of "...a few morons out there who think this crap is among the funniest and most brilliant works of art ever created." A telling glimpse into the mind of a composer:
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