End of an era

Goodness knows what we'll do without our Diva.



Claire joined us in 2005, narrowly avoiding a photo op after Kay's wedding (John's editing skills out in force there!). A trip to sunny Arran and AnnaLauren's rather exciting wedding reception sped by and then Christmas was upon us once again.

2006 was one of Rudsambee's busiest years: Rachael's wedding (where they seemed to book a stand-up comedian rather than a priest) and a trip to Rosslyn in April; May saw us in the Portrait Gallery and then off up north for a wee tour of the Highlands; in July we sang at a stranger's wedding (not only will we sing into a bucket for money, we will even to weddings), and then in September disaster struck. Back when 'Diva' was a term we only used in jest, our proto-blogstress complained of odd chest pains one evening and left rehearsal early. This turned out to be a blood clot in her lung which had her in hospital while they beat her up with drugs and then left her unable to sing for a while. Any excuse...

In order to keep her amused some Rudsamblets decided to make a wee newsletter, which got a little bit out of hand:

Then after a concert in aid of Bethany, having successfully coerced the choir into doing the whole second half of a concert without music, Frances - who had been Musical Director for as long as she cared to remember - announced that she would be abandoning us stepping down gracefully after Christmas. Which led to another mock newsletter:

In the meantime she managed to coach us through a concert in Cockermouth with Piping Hot, a gig at the Biggar Festival and five(!) Christmas concerts - even managing two in one day!

2007 saw a change of leadership, with Maestro Boy taking the poisoned chalice helm and breaking with the matriarchal line. With the loss of Frances' Alto voice to the budding Moaning Wild Myrtles and Christina's Soprano to a dodgy inner ear, the new captain brought in Claire2 and Helen to fill the spaces. Helen became wonderfully dual-purpose as her studies gave her the know-how and equipment to record and master our next CD, what are they doing?.



Mr Singleton's first public gig as Director, in the Portrait Gallery, saw a demand for more encores than we had ready - leading to a now notorious "hard cheese" remark to the audience. A quick social visit from some friendly Norwegians and a short set at the French Institute passed without trouble before the new Director's mettle was further tested by Svatobor visiting us from the Czech Republic; 40ish visitors being entertained and fed by the choir for three days, ending with a joint concert in the Canongate Kirk. It was at this concert that we attempted Ernst Toch's Geographical Fugue which went better than might be expected but was perhaps a little too hair-raising to bear up under many performances.

The Wexlers, host to our noise and rabble and two of the oldest longest-serving members, celebrates a retirement, a birthday and an anniversary; the boss managed to lead us in a few songs despite beign more than a little tipsy. Rudsambee's first full concert under new leadership was in Whithorn, followed soon after by a Scottish-songs-only concert in Juniper Green! Christmas came as a welcome respite, even when we were pitted againt proper celebs in Glasgow Cathedral (where Maestro Boy and his cohorts had difficulty keeping straight faces during cries of "GABRIEL!").

2008 came around and Claire2 took her mandatory Clare-in-Hospital break, leading to another newsletter!

And of course, 2008 also saw the arrival of Relative Pitch, which our dear Diva has meticulously updated week by week to keep the fans (hello? Anyone out there?) entertained with our antics - so there's not much to be said that hasn't already been blogged with more hysteria...

BAI DIVA!

So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, goodbye

So I begin my final post. Last will and testament and all that. You should be reading a fun-filled story of Rudsambee in Cranshaws. However, we didn't make it, beaten by the snowy weather. We got as far as Meadowbank, Helen and co as far as Cameron Toll and Anne (very wisely) decided to stay at home. The snow turned to slush and has now frozen solid (I've just slid about during a wee trip to Granton for ice-cream - yes, you hear right). Friendly Dave in Cranshaws made the final call and we (and I'm sure the inhabitants of Cranshaws) went home disappointed. In order to organise all this chopping and changing, we used the obligatory mobile phones, wondering what on earth we did before the invention of the cell, as our American friends would have it. At one point all four of us in Alison's car were on the phone. This engendered some funny cross-lines conversations.

The Rudsambeelets went, instead, to Claire 2's for mulled wine. A-L even had time to make spectacular chocolate brownie. I then, as per tradition, had the joy (tearful joy) of having the Irish Blessing sung to me as this is last time I will officially be a Rudsambeelet. Blogstress is off to the sunnier climes of England and the beautiful wee city of Lincoln. We are, of course, very excited about the move, but there are a number of things we will miss a lot. I have loved my four and a half years in Rudsambee. Thanks to all the fantastic Rudsambeelets for your friendship and for the chance to sing in probably the most talented mixed voice acappella 'company of singers' ever to have graced the back room carpet of Chez Wexler.

So I never got to cry my way through a final version of O Magnum Mysterium though I did shed a wee tear during the Irish Blessing and my round of hugs. I move from Blogstress to chief supporter and groupie, and hang up my blog 'pen' of wit and wonderment. Thanks for reading. In line with the long-expected change of Dr Who this Christmas, I will be handing the keyboard to a new (probably somewhat improved) Blogstress.

So off I go in my TARDIS to new challenges and new galaxies...

Hugs, love and muchos thanks to all. Here's to a happy, blessed New Year.
What larks!

CSW

Rudsambee Christmas Party

Morning Blog Fans, and morning bleary-eyed Rudsambeelets. It was our annual Rudsambee Christmas Party last night and as usual there was much fun, banter and FOOD. Goodness, the Rudsambeelets know how to put on a spread. We even got to take potatoes home with us after Mr Wexler bought a whole bag (and I mean a sack!) from Costco for under a fiver (other reasonably priced sacks of root vegetables are available). Susan's summer pudding and Jenny's Banoffee were a welcome treat, as was a certain Blogstress's cheesecake...



I could fill you in on the Rudsambee chatter but, to be honest, most of it didn't make much sense to us let alone to anyone else! Suffice to say our conversation touched on such varied topics as A-L's wonderful green hat, gender politics, the problem of dyslexia (and other Greek/Latin (?) words) and, in the most random moment of the night, the merits of Michael Buble serving us red cabbage goulash.



Since the blogstress is currently packing her bags (or at least should be packing her bags) for her move to the Promised Land (I joke, of course!) Jen led a very jolly "ode to blogstress" which made me go red and feel sad/happy. I got lots of wonderful little prezzies and a gorgeous painted penguin (as decorated by our resident Tony Hart herself, Claire 2) which I have named Tormis in honour of my favourite Estonian composer. Thank you Jen, Claire and all the Rudsambeelets for making me feel so special.



I would imagine that Editor Boy will put up some photos at some stage for your perusal so you'll be able to see us all in our glad rags including Maestro Boy who wore Long Johns (amongst other clothing items) and Kay who wore a fabulous dress that was £8 from a charity shop - bonza!



So one concert left before I hang up my, hmm... not sure what one hangs up if one is a singer. Perhaps my folder, or my red scarf? See you in Cranshaws. I'm hoping for snow!

CSW

Two posts in a day - some kind of record!

After Chris' entertaining diversion, service resumes for two last posts from this Blogstress. Just to say a big thank you to all who came to Augustine's last night. We had a great time and the audience were, as always, very encouraging. There were a few exciting moments as always - me and A-L decided to make up the last bit of 'In Dulci' for no particular reason and the 'Miserere' was just a tad on the 'super-scary-rollercoster' side for our liking. But generally the whole thing went off very well.

We missed Anne who decided not to sing after spending some weeks fighting her sore throat. We really missed her, but if she ever decides to give up being an all round cleverclogs she could become a washer-upper!

So one more concert to go down in beautiful Cranshaws. We are, as always, looking forward to catching up with you guys again.

CSW

You can't say *%&*#$&* on the radio

Blogstress and Maestro Boy, as you may have heard, featured on Leith FM a few days ago. Using all the powers of the digital age (and a handy Alto's husband) we can now present to you THE INTERVIEW:



[EDIT: Internet Explorer apparently breaks this player and people have reported problems with it; I'll try to get it sorted later, but in the meantime you can access the audio file here.]

If the LeithFM-ers object (they don't have an archive on the website - shocking!) just let us know.

Meanwhile, we are one concert away from the illustrious Blogstress's swan song. Yes, she's abandoning us. We will surely come up with a way to keep the blog fans happy but there may be a break in service...

Back to Priestfield

Last night was our Christmas Priestfield concert which is always a very jolly affair. A good few Rudsambeelets were running a little late last night (including Maestro Boy so he couldn't even give us a row!) and I now remember why I don't wear high heels regularly, after running from University to Dalkeith Rd. However, the rehearsal went off without a hitch.

There are two particularly jolly things about singing at Priestfield. 1) the people are just so friendly - they always smile at us (in an encouraging 'we like what we are hearing' sort of way rather than in sympathetic pity) and 2)there is always a cup of tea at the interval. In fact the interval at Priestfield is always so chilled out (there are even biscuits!) that generally the Rudsambeelets have to forcibly gear themselves for the second half!

The whole concert went rather well I thought, though you'd have to ask the audience. It is always a laid back affair (mostly due to the sweetness of the audience) and there is lots of laughter on and off the stage. Particular hilarity reserved for Deck the Hall (singular) yesterday...wait 'til Saturday night!

Oh, did you catch Leith FM on Monday night? Blogstress and Maestro Boy were live across the airwaves for all of ten minutes. I think we managed to say everything we needed to, once we'd worked out which Saturday night we were singing - we could hear Anne screaming (not literally of course, her voice isn't that loud - Balerno to Leith is a fair whack!) "this Saturday, THIS Saturday!"

You'll get another post on Saturday/Sunday/whenever the Blogstress has a spare moment, to fill you in on the concert at Augustine's. Do come along if you are free. If you saw the St Giles' concert then come to this one too. Not only will you have the pleasure of hearing O Magnum Mysterium again, but you will also have the chance to hear the Rudsambeelets sing in Polish, do a bit of modern American jazz, attempt a 'seat-of-your-pants' Vitoria number and enjoy a new piece called Trees of the Field which, as Kay pointed out in her introduction last night, is a song "about trees in... a field". [Chris says: And don't forget the two Divas' special!]

Until then
CSW

A Night at St Giles

Evening blog fans. It's a Sunday and I'm writing a fantabulous post for Relative Pitch, so it can only mean that we had a concert tonight. So it was the first in our Christmas series - St Giles at 6.

As always we had a great audience. In fact the place was packed and we even sold two CDs before the concert! The couple bought the recording on the basis of our 4pm rehearsal. That's proper showbiz - only the big bands sell merchandise before the gig. Lots of familiar faces in the audience including the entirety of the blogstress' family on the first three rows.

But as always it's the behind the scenes goss that the blog fans really want. So, I realised at 11pm last night that I was missing two whole pieces of music! Susan, of course, saved the day by bringing a couple of new copies. But, you ask, who made the biggest mistake of the night? Did Angus forget to bring the right shirt again? Did Maestro Boy lift his eyebrows a little too frequently (see numerous earlier posts)? Well, the culprit was Rudsambee's resident Whitacre wannabe Jen who brought the regulation black shoes... but two completely different black shoes. Genius!

So how did the concert go? Well, I must say very well. We even managed to crack the jazzy bit of Deck the Hall much to Maestro Boy's evident surprise. His face was an absolute picture - such pride... and astonishment! Everyone clapped a lot (after the whole concert not just for Deck the Hall...even though it was great) which I always think is an encouraging sign.

If you are a Rudsambee groupie (and who, I ask, isn't?) you can even hear us on the radio tomorrow night. Check out me and Maestro Boy as we become the radio stars that video certainly didn't kill. 9pm on Leith FM. Fantastish! Our second concert is Wednesday night at Priestfield Church on Dalkeith Rd. And then, of course, we have the full shebang (not just the abbreviated version you got tonight, folks) next Saturday night at Augustine Church on George IV Bridge. Blimey, how can you keep up! Apologies, btw, for performing at three venues where parking is virtually impossible. Not intentional.

Do check us out at some stage this Christmas. Oh, and a CD makes an excellent Christmas present - compact, easy to wrap, provides entertainment beyond boxing day and won't make you fat. Brillig.

CSW

"There are some questions not to ask 2 days before a concert" (A Grindley)

I realise that recently I have begun a number of posts with an inspiring word from Anne. Well last night, given that Maestro Boy was sunning himself on a beach somewhere (actually I don't know where he was but in this grotty Edinburgh weather I felt that it would be understandable if Our Great Leader was soaking up the rays) Anne took over the reins. While the cat's away...

So this blog post will mostly be an ode to Anne as she really is most quotable. So!

"You have lots of men behind you" - how nice! Anne addressing the problem of loud basses, I think.

"You had your own 'D'" - Anne to the tenors in the 'Huron Carol'

"We'll take a quick run through St Giles" - sweatbands on ladies and gents!

Brilliant! Anne did a wonderful job of leading us and we behaved ourselves even though the supply teacher was in. So it was onwards and upwards as we had our last rehearsal before the Christmas season. It all went rather well really. A few issues here and there. We confirmed the long-held assumption that Rudsambee-lets, a) cannot dance and b) have no rhythm, by rehearsing the stamp in the 'Apple Tree Wassail' which caused great hilarity all round. We are 'bish!

Sunday is our next stop so please join us at St Giles at 6 for a fun and free 40 minutes or so. Always a great concert. So see you then.

I've just finished my final teaching of the term (and indeed at Edinburgh) so I'm off to have a cuppa to celebrate. See you later.

CSW