Folka Voca Member Rehearsal History: 2014

This page simply records the songs sung, and the homework assigned,
at each of the Folka Voca rehearsals in 2014.

Homework for Between
Rehearsals in 2014

In mid November of 2011 Lee revised the status of the various songs in our active repertoire, classifying them into the following three groups: Current Songs, On-the-Fence Songs and Dropped Songs (that we almost never do now).
Every so often she adds new songs and downgrades older ones.
In her words, “Here is our repertoire, in order of what we sing most, at the moment:
the starred ones are sung at almost every gig.”

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The Active Repertoire
(in alphabetical order)

1. A La Nanita Nana (*)
2. Billie Jean (*)
3. Boogie Fever (*)
4. Both Sides Now (*)
5. California Dreaming (*)
6. Calling All Angels (*)
7. Chain of Fools (*)
8. Close Your Eyes (*)
9. Drive My Car (*)
10. Eternal Flame (*)
11. Father Figure (*)
12. Fields of Gold
13. For What It’s Worth (*)
14. Houdini’s Box
15. I Feel the Earth Move
16. I Think I Love You (*)
17. I Wear My Sunglasses At Night (*)
18. Knowing Me, Knowing You
19. La Isla Bonita (*)
20. Last Train to Clarksville
21. Mamma Mia (*)
22. Mercy (*)
23. Never Gonna Give You Up (*)
24. Papa Was A Rolling Stone (*)
25. Rock the Boat
26. Tainted Love (*)
27. The Way You Make Me Feel (*)
28. Time After Time (*)
29. With a Little Help (from My Friends)
30. (The) Water is Wide (*)
31. You’re All I Need (to Get By) (*)

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These Were In Circulation for a Long Time
but Are Now On the Fence and Rarely Done

1. Ain’t No Sunshine
2. Crystal
3. Kimbieni (the short version)
4. O Canada
5. This Land Is Your Land

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These are Really Old and We Never Do Them Now

• All now removed from the resource library.

Please make sure that you have your music and cheat sheets organized accordingly for rehearsals, and use these lists as guidelines for what songs to work on between rehearsals.

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Rehearsals in December 2014

Notes on the December 31^st Rehearsal

There was no rehearsal this week because it was New Year’s eve.

Notes on the December 24^th Rehearsal

There was no rehearsal this week because it was Christmas eve.

Notes on the December 17^th Rehearsal

This was the night of the choir Christmas party at the Barley Mow,
so we simply spent an hour singing a number of our favourites before heading to the pub.

1. You’re All I Need (to Get By)
   (We made a real mess of this! We all need to watch Lee. We then sang it again,
   and it went somewhat better, especially when we actually watched Lee.)
2. Chain of Fools
   (In contrast, we sang this one fairly well.)
3. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang this off-book, and it went a little weird in places, so we sang it again.
   It is still not hushed enough at the end, but was better the second time.)
4. I Think I Love You
   (This ended up being pretty good.)
5. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (Lee simply said, “Right on!” at the end of this one.)
6. Papa Was A Rolling Stone
   (We had not sung this in a while, and it went really wonky in places.)

Perhaps because of the party, almost everyone in the choir turned out.

Notes on the December 10^th Rehearsal

This was the night of our Christmas carol gig at Camilla Gardens.
As usual, we started with a short set of our favourite songs:

1. A La Nanita Nana
2. With a Little Help (From My Friends)
3. I Think I Love You
4. Close Your Eyes
5. Calling All Angels

We had a good turnout, and everyone had a good time.

Notes on the December 3^rd Rehearsal

We spent the entire first half of the rehearsal working on Eternal Flame.
We sang the song twice, working on details between the two takes.
The guys dragged badly the first time through, but did better the second time.
We then split the choir in two, and each half sang the song for the other half.

In the second half of the rehearsal we worked on a number of our current songs
in preparation for next week’s gig at Camilla Gardens:

1. Calling All Angels
   (It was pretty good, but we need to stay metronome precise on the rhythm.)
2. With a Little Help (From My Friends)
   (The mezzos were magnificent, but overall we dropped a whole tone.)
3. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (We started running out of time, so we skipped this one.)
4. I Think I Love You
   (We sang this one off book and it was pretty good.)
5. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (Now nearly out of time, we skipped this one too.)
6. Billie Jean
   (This was very good, but overall we again dropped badly.)

We had a goodish turnout this week.

Everyone is reminded that wet or muddy boots and shoes
should not be worn into the sanctuary – bring slippers.

Lee is promising a revised score for With a Little Help (From My Friends).

Rehearsals in November 2014

Notes on the November 26^th Rehearsal

We spent the first half of the rehearsal working on the new arrangement of Eternal Flame.
We ended up working through the song three times, and we kept dragging Lee back;
the guys were taking too long on their breathing and affecting everyone as a result.
By the third time through we were all doing much better.
MP3s are available on the web site – for now, only paper scores are available,
but Lee has promised to supply PDFs for the new arrangement soon.

In the second half of the rehearsal we sang a number of our current songs:

1. With a Little Help (From My Friends)
   (We ended up singing this twice – we needed to be quieter in the verses.
   The guys have to study their MP3s for the labelled patterns.)
2. Houdini’s Box
   (Lee said that it was good work, very nice, and well remembered!)
3. Billie Jean
   (Timing went a bit wonky in the middle, but it was pretty good, yeah.)
4. I Think I Love You
   (We sang this one off book and it went really well. Cheat sheets are required.)
5. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang this one off-book and without cheat sheets and it was extremely good;
   Lee said that it was very well done.)
6. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (Lee simply said, “That was just great!”.)

We had a good turnout, but the animals were really restless tonight.

Notes on the November 19^th Rehearsal

We spent the first half of the rehearsal working on the new arrangement of Eternal Flame.
We recapitulated the bridge and then learnt the musical interlude,
before going on to sing the whole song from start to finish.
MP3s are available on the web site – for now, only paper scores are available.

In the second half of the rehearsal we sang several of our current songs:

1. Billie Jean
   (OK, this was pretty good – the mezzos need to study their MP3s.)
2. With a Little Help (From My Friends)
   (We sang this alright, but it really needs to be tighter throughout.
   The guys have to study their MP3s before next week – study hard.)
3. I Think I Love You
   (This was really fun and good. At the end, sing the first two repetitions strongly,
   then gently fade each successive repetition until it becomes as soft as possible.
   Next week we will be going to cheat sheets only for this one.)
4. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (Lee simply said, “Right on!”.)
5. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang this one off-book and Lee said, “Ooh! That was wonderful.”)

Homework for this week: the mezzos need to study their MP3s for Billie Jean;
and the guys need to study their MP3s for With a Little Help (From My Friends).

We had another pretty decent turnout this week.

Notes on the November 12^th Rehearsal

We spent the first half of the rehearsal working on the new arrangement of Eternal Flame.
We learnt through to the end of the bridge,
then managed to sing the whole song from start to finish.
MP3s are available on the web site – for now, only paper scores are available.

In the second half of the rehearsal we sang several of our current songs:

1. You’re All I Need (to Get By)
   (We had a rough start to this one, so stopped and restarted;
   after that we managed pretty well for not having sung it in several months.)
2. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (Lee described it as oh so good, and maybe the best we have ever sung it.)
3. Mamma Mia
   (We went back to having a small group at the start, and sung it fast for fun times.)
4. I Think I Love You
   (We sang this off book, and our only problem was making the fade too early at the end.)
5. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We also sang this one off-book and Lee said well done, it was beautiful.)

We had a fairly good turnout, with some considerable exuberance on display.

Notes on the November 5^th Rehearsal

Lee has rearranged Eternal Flame,
and we spent most of the rehearsal working on it.
By the break we had completed learning up to the end of verse 1;
after the break we worked through to the bridge.
MP3s will be available shortly – for now, only paper scores are available.

We ended the rehearsal with a few of our current songs:

1. With a Little Help (From My Friends)
   (This was pretty good, but the guys go wrong at bar 20,
   and at the same bar in each verse thereafter.
   The guys are also slowing down in bar 96, when they should NOT.)
2. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (Lee described it as oh so good – twice.)
3. Boogie Fever
   (Lee said well done and that it was so good.)

We had a good turnout, and everyone seemed to enjoy the new song.
We all departed in high good spirits.

Rehearsals in October 2014

Notes on the October 29^th Rehearsal

We once again spent the first half of the rehearsal working on:
With a Little Help (From My Friends).
We worked hard on the whole song and eventually sang it twice.

We ended the first half by singing:
The Way You Make Me Feel.
We sang it a little up tempo from usual, and Lee liked it.

After the break we worked on a number of our current songs:

1. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (We started the second half by singing this song again, and Lee said it was a lot of fun.)
2. A La Nanita Nana
   (Lee said it was beautiful and well done, especially after not singing it for a while.)
3. I Think I Love You
   (We worked hard on the church interlude, and finally made it work.
   Next week we will try with cheat sheets only, so be prepared.)
4. California Dreaming
   (Lee was surprised at just how angry and pissed off a song it was.
   We had also dropped a whole lot by the end.)
5. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang it off-book and it was really good, so we will be off-book from now on.
   The guys finally got their last note clean – yay!)
6. Mamma Mia
   (We took this at a goodly pace and it was great fun, and a fine way to end the evening.)

We had a pretty good turnout, and everyone was noisily upbeat all evening.

Notes on the October 22^nd Rehearsal

We once again spent much of the rehearsal working on:
With a Little Help (From My Friends).
We worked hard on the whole song, and eventually split the choir in two and each half sang the song for the other. The guys need to study the MP3s, and everyone needs to listen to the Joe Cocker performance. Alto-2s must rock in the choruses.

We ended the rehearsal by singing several of our current songs:

1. I Think I Love You
   (This went really well.)
2. Papa Was A Rolling Stone
   (Not too bad, but the tenors need to relax on the “check, check, checks” and not get behind.)
3. Mamma Mia
   (This was so much fun; Lee loved it.)
4. Last Train to Clarksville
   (Again, a lot of fun, but we are subtly messy on the word “Clarksville.”)
5. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (This was absolutely great, and a wonderful end to a good rehearsal.)

We had a somewhat modest, but extremely enthusiastic turnout;
the absences in part due to the shooting on Parliament Hill earlier in the day.

Notes on the October 15^th Rehearsal

We once again spent the first half of the rehearsal working on:
With a Little Help (From My Friends).
This time we worked on and reached the ending, then sang the entire song from the top.

In the second half of the rehearsal we worked on several of our current songs:

1. I Think I Love You
   (This was really, really fun, and a great performance.
   Next week we will try with cheat sheets – the guys need to check the notes in verse 3.)
2. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (This was really good, but the tenors were dragging, and everyone needs to watch Lee!)
3. Billie Jean
   (This dropped a fair bit, and went weird in a few places.
   The tenors were dragging, and everyone needs to do some studying...)
4. Last Train to Clarksville
   (We muffed the ending and so redid it, but otherwise it was extraordinarily good
   for a song that we have not sung so far this year! Newer members were impressed.)

We had a pretty good turnout, even if a little low in energy all evening.

Notes on the October 8^th Rehearsal

We spent the first half of the rehearsal working on our newest song:
With a Little Help (From My Friends).
We managed to reach the end, sort of, with much work still needed.

In the second half of the rehearsal we worked on several of our current songs:

1. I Think I Love You
   (That was so great that by popular demand we sang it twice.
   The guys need to study verse three for both pitch and timing.
   In bar 13 for the guys, the first two I love yous are loud, the second two soft.)
2. Mamma Mia
   (This was pretty good, but the guys are dragging in the opening.)
3. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang this off-book, and it was glorious.)
4. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (We sang this off book too, and it was wonderfully dramatic! Really, really fun.)

There was a request to sing Eternal Flame, but Lee stated that she was unhappy
with the current arrangement, and wants to rearrange it before bringing it back.

A rowdy crowd had a lot of fun this evening.

Notes on the October 1^st Rehearsal

The first half of the rehearsal was spent working on our newest song:
With a Little Help (From My Friends).
By the break we had reached chorus 3A; we need to study the MP3s.

We spent the second half of the rehearsal on several of our current songs:

1. Billie Jean
   (This went pretty well until the tenors missed the ending!)
2. I Think I Love You
   (This was lots of fun, but we managed to drop a semitone.
   The guys need to do their homework on the last verse.)
3. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (This was really good, but the tenors need to keep their snap:
   no Paul Anka stylings allowed!)
4. Chain of Fools
   (We sang this one off book and it was really intense.)
5. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang this off-book too, and Lee complained that we kept trying to rush her.
   It was still fun, but not as good as the previous two songs.)
6. Mamma Mia
   (We haven’t sung this in ages, and Lee said it was a lovely cool surprise.)

We ended up with a pretty good turnout.

Rehearsals in September 2014

Notes on the September 24^th Rehearsal

We again spent the first half of the rehearsal working on our newest song:
With a Little Help (From My Friends).
After revising the song to the end of the first verse, we worked on the chorus;
The guys really, really need to get smooth with the chorus,
and everyone needs to study their MP3s for the chorus.

We spent the remainder of the rehearsal on several of our current songs:

1. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (We sang the song twice, and it was much better the second time through.
   The tenors are markedly dragging their entries and need to be precisely on the beat.
   For everyone else, the “Bap, bap, baps” continue to need work.)
2. I Think I Love You
   (We sang this one twice as well, and again the second time was much the best.
   The delivery needs to be crisp, and we need to heed the dynamics, but it was fun.)
3. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang this off-book twice, and it was great, with the second time better.)
4. Chain of Fools
   (In the end, we didn“t have time to sing this one.)
5. Billie Jean
   (In the end, we didn“t have time to sing this one.)
6. You’re All I Need (to Get By)
   (In the end, we didn“t have time to sing this one.)

The attendance was initially markedly small, but slowly expanded to a goodly turnout.

Notes on the September 17^th Rehearsal

We spent the first half of the rehearsal working on our newest song:
With a Little Help (From My Friends).
After some revision from last week, we moved on to reach the end of verse 1.

After the break, we worked on a number of our current songs:

1. I Think I Love You
   (Lee thought it was lovely, and has declared it performance ready.)
2. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang this off-book and it was pretty nice, but we dropped two semitones.
   The guys really need to watch the very last note.)
3. Close Your Eyes
   (We sang this off book too, and it was marvelous – Lee was delighted.)
4. You’re All I Need (to Get By)
   (We had considerable pitch difficulties, and dropped two semitones.
   The tenors and sopranos pushed too hard, and went sharp as a result.)
5. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (This was a whole lot of fun, and really good too.)
6. La Isla Bonita
   (We had not sung this in many months, but Lee decided to have us go for it.
   Despite a few fumbles, it really went very well for being untouched for so long.)

We ended up having an excellent turnout, although the tenors were scarce.

Notes on the September 10^th Rehearsal

Lee produced a new song for us: With a Little Help (From My Friends) – arranged
from the Joe Cocker version. We worked on this for the first half of the rehearsal.
Essentially, we covered the introduction, but not the first verse.

We spent the second half of the rehearsal on several of our current songs:

1. I Think I Love You
   (This was really fun, but the guys still need more clarity in the bridge.)
2. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang this off-book and it went very well, but we dropped really fast.)
3. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (It was pretty good, but we all have to be extremely tight.)
4. Papa Was A Rolling Stone
   (We attempted to sing this off book, and there were some real disasters.
   Lee says that the only solution is to learn all the lyrics to the entire song,
   then understand exactly where your parts fit into the whole song.)

Not a bad turnout considering that the Ottawa Folk Festival opened tonight.

Notes on the September 3^rd Rehearsal

We once again started the rehearsal by singing I Think I Love You.
We sang through the song twice, and finally fixed the guys in the church section.
The guys are still dragging, and the baritones are not exciting enough yet.
For everyone, we need to start the crescendo immediately at bar 11 through to 13.
We then divided the choir into halves, and each sang the song for the other – great!

We then began working on The Way You Make Me Feel We sang this through twice,
and the tenors need to give even more throughout; the supporting parts less.
After the break we split the choir into halves, and each half sang the song for the other.
We then reunited the whole choir to sing it again, and this was our best ever.
Lee says to listen to Michael Jackson singing the song.

We ended by singing Papa Was A Rolling Stone.
There were a number of interesting errors, so study your MP3s!

We had a great turnout for our first rehearsal “under new management”.

Rehearsals in August 2014

Notes on the August 27^th Rehearsal

Lee began the rehearsal talking about the fact that the choir was no longer
going to be associated with the Ottawa Folklore Centre, and was going to be hers.
Other than the fact that we will now pay Lee directly, nothing much changes.
More information will emerge gently over the current weeks.

We started the rehearsal singing our latest new song I Think I Love You.
We worked through the song three times in all, and it is improving.
The guys continue to be muddy on the “reeling” section.
The build from bar 12 is too slow, needs to start sooner.
The start of each verse needs to be more hushed.

We spent the rest of the rehearsal singing half a dozen of our regular songs:

1. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang this twice, off-book both times and it sounded good;
   we need a guy cheat sheet and Bruce volunteered to create one.)
2. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (We sang this off book and it was sluggish, so we sang it again, faster.
   The Tenors continue to be late on “the way you make me,” so MP3 time.)
3. A La Nanita Nana
   (Lee said it was well done, and described it as beautiful.
   We all need to relearn the words, which we struggled over.)
4. Chain of Fools
   (We sang it off book, and it was really good, but the guys keep trying to speed up.)
5. Boogie Fever
   (So much better than last week, but the transitions are muddy.)
6. Billie Jean
   (A good song on which to finish, but we all kept rushing.)

We once again had a good summer turnout, and an excellent rehearsal.

Notes on the August 20^th Rehearsal

We spent the first half of the rehearsal working on our latest new song I Think I Love You.
We managed to sing the song end to end no less than five times, slowly mastering it.
After that, we divided the choir in half, and each half sang the song for the other half.

Our main problem is with the “Isn’t that what life is made of” section,
which we need to sustain firmly, and hold to the end of the phrase.
Lee says to listen to the Partridge Family performance on YouTube.

In the second half of the rehearsal we worked on three of our current songs:

1. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (Lee said it was really fun, but we belted and honked it out all the way through.)
2. Chain of Fools
   (We sang it through twice, both times off-book, and the first time was desperate.)
3. Boogie Fever
   (We sang it through twice, both times off-book, and we need to learn all the words.)

We once again had a good summer turnout, and an excellent rehearsal.

Notes on the August 13^th Rehearsal

We spent most of the rehearsal working on our latest new song I Think I Love You.
We completed learning the church musical interlude, then reached the end of the song.
Listen to the Partridge Family performance on YouTube.

We finished the rehearsal by singing three of our current songs:

1. Boogie Fever
   (We really dragged, and it needs to be much crisper – we will sing it off-book next week.)
2. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (We sang it briskly, but it was a little rough – some homework required.)
3. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang this off-book and it was a little rough; we also dropped three semitones!)

Thanks to Bruce there is now a guys cheat sheet for Boogie Fever,
which Lee is expecting us to sing off-book next week (August 20^th).

We once again had a fine summer turnout, and a really good evening.

Notes on the August 6^th Rehearsal

We spent almost the entire rehearsal working on our latest new song I Think I Love You.
We recapitulated the work from last week, then reached and mastered the church section.
There are PDFs and MP3s available for download.
Lee says to study the MP3s, and for the guys to study the change to the next section.
Listen to the Partridge Family performance on YouTube.

We finished the rehearsal by singing The Way You Make Me Feel,
Lee described it as really good work.

We had an excellent summer turnout, with enough members
in each section for us to produce a balanced sound, and Lee said
at the end of the rehearsal that it was really good work all evening.

Rehearsals in July 2014

Notes on the July 30^th Rehearsal

There’s another new song from Lee: I Think I Love You, by Tony Romero,
performed by the Partridge Family and by David Cassidy.
We spent the entire rehearsal working on it, and almost reached the church section.
Only paper scores available so far, PDFs and MP3s to come.

We had an excellent summer turnout, with enough members
in each section for us to produce a balanced sound, even if
the guys periodically had to be asked to cool their wall of sound.

Notes on the July 23^rd Rehearsal

I was absent from the rehearsal, so thanks to Bruce McNeely for being the recording scribe.

The rehearsal was spent working hard on four of our most recent songs:

1. The Way You Make Me Feel
   (Worked through four times in all, including singing off-book as promised.
   This time the guys were better prepared with cheat sheets to hand.)
2. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (Sung through just once.)
3. Chain of Fools
   (Eventually sung through three times in all.)
4. Billie Jean
   (We ended the rehearsal singing through this one once.)

It is clear that we have reached a level where we perform better singing off-book.
Everyone is encouraged to memorize the words to each song, and to develop
your own cheat sheets, or use ones that someone in your section has shared.

If you want to share a cheat sheet you have developed,
just send en e-mail to the web site administrator.
No need to put it in any particular format, just attach your source document.
I’ll contact you if I encounter difficulties with a file.

Notes on the July 16^th Rehearsal

We again spent most of the first half of the rehearsal working on The Way You Make Me Feel.
We worked through the song three times from top to bottom, fixing many details.

We spent the rest of the rehearsal singing some of our regular numbers:

1. Chain of Fools
   (We sang this off book, but the guys failed on the words,
   so a special dispensation was given for them to use their books.
   Robert will provide a guys cheat sheet a.s.a.p.)
2. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (This was a lot of fun, but the guys still need to be quicker
   and crisper on the entries of their “I just wanna” phrases.)
3. Billie Jean
   (This was a bit sloppy, so everyone needs to study their MP3s.)
4. Close Your Eyes
   (We sang this off book and Lee said that it was wonderful and good work.)

We had a pretty good, if somewhat rowdy turnout, with everyone working hard.
It was once again notable how singing without music made us much tighter,
but clearly revealed that learning the words is critical.

This evening was the last night (at least for a while) of two of the choir’s remaining four founding members, basses Don and Martin. The two other founders are Andra (mezzo) and Julie (alto).
The choir had its first rehearsal in November of 2004.

Next week Lee plans to have us sing Never Gonna Give You Up off-book.
Study your MP3s and, most importantly, learn the words!.

Notes on the July 9^th Rehearsal

We spent most of the first half of the rehearsal again working on The Way You Make Me Feel.
We worked through the song twice from top to bottom, and cleaned up some details.

We spent the rest of the rehearsal singing several of our regular numbers:

1. Billie Jean
   (We spent considerable time cleaning up troublesome details.)
2. Eternal Flame
   (Lee though this was impressive considering that we had not sung it in months.)
3. A La Nanita Nana
   (Lee described this as nice work.)
4. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang this one off book, and because everyone was watching Lee, the
   dynamics were bang on, and the ensemble terrific. Lee was delighted.)
5. California Dreaming
   (We sang this one off book also, and Lee thought it was extremely tight.)
6. Close Your Eyes
   (In the end we didn’t have time to sing this one.)
7. Time After Time
   (Another song that we haven’t sung for ages, but which went very well.)

Despite another modest modest summer turnout, everyone worked hard and enjoyed themselves.
It was notable how singing without music made us much tighter, as we all watched
Lee throughout the song.

Lee plans to start next week with an off-book go at Chain of Fools.

Notes on the July 2^nd Rehearsal

We spent the bulk of the rehearsal working on our newest song, The Way You Make Me Feel.
We managed to reach the end of the song, but lots of work is still needed.

We ended the second half by singing a couple of our regular numbers:

1. A La Nanita Nana
   (Lee liked the way we sang it, and we only dropped one semitone.)
2. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (Lee loves this song, and was delighted with our performance of it.)

A typically modest summer turnout, but everyone worked hard and enjoyed themselves.

Rehearsals in June 2014

Notes on the June 25^th Rehearsal

After two weeks off, we had a whole lot of eager singers, including some new voices.

The first half was devoted to working on some of our regular numbers:

1. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (Which we sang through twice.)
2. Billie Jeana>
   (Which we also sang through twice.)
3. Boogie Fevera>
   (On which we spent time cleaning up details.)

We spent the second half of the rehearsal working on our newest song, The Way You Make Me Feel. We did this in the second half because a miscommunication meant that the scores hadn’t reached the web site and photocopies had to be made.

Notes on the June 18^th Rehearsal

There was no rehearsal this week because Lee was away.

Instead, many of us enjoyed an entertaining karaoke night.
Many thanks to Lynnie for organizing and Joyce for hosting at her restaurant.

Notes on the June 11^th Rehearsal

There was no rehearsal this week because Lee was away.

No rehearsal next week either, so see you June 25^th.

Notes on the June 4^th Rehearsal

We were somewhat diminished in numbers after the marvelous Sunday concert.
However, everyone was in great form, and delighted to discover that Lee had
another new song for us: Michael Jackson’s The Way You Make Me Feel.

We spent the entire rehearsal working on this new song,
first marking up our scores, then learning all the basic patterns.
It came together very well and sounded glorious.

No rehearsals for the next two weeks, so see you June 25^th.

Rehearsals in May 2014

Notes on the May 28^th Rehearsal

We spent the rehearsal working on the twelve songs we will be singing in the concert.
We will be singing two sets on Sunday, and we rehearsed them in order.

We again spent the rest of the rehearsal working on songs for the concert:

Set the First:

1. California Dreaming
2. Boogie Fever
3. I Wear My Sunglasses At Night
4. Mercy
5. Never Gonna Give You Up
6. Papa Was A Rolling Stone

Set the Second:

1. Father Figure
2. A La Nanita Nana
3. Billie Jean
4. Close Your Eyes
5. Chain of Fools
6. Calling All Angels

A great turnout, but everyone was somewhat noisy! Lee reminded us
that there can be absolutely no noise (talking or whispering) on stage in the concert.

This was the last rehearsal before the Annual Concert, so study your MP3s.
Make sure you have the new scores and MP3s for Billie Jean.

Notes on the May 21^st Rehearsal

Once again, we started the rehearsal working on Billie Jean.
The first time through we made a real mess of it, so we ended up singing it twice more.
By the end it was much, much better, but we really need to watch Lee.
Also, do make sure to download and print the new version of the score.

We again spent the rest of the rehearsal working on songs for the concert:

1. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (Lee describe it as amazing, and then reminded us that the end is a long fade to nothing.)
2. Father Figure
   (It was great, but we really need to study the MP3s,
   which means with the scores, not just listening to them.)
3. Mercy
   (This was pretty good, with the basses splendidly angry throughout.)
4. I Wear My Sunglasses At Night
   (Yes! Great! Lots of Fun!)
5. A La Nanita Nana
   (This was absolutely beautiful, but we dropped three semitones!)
6. California Dreamin’
   (Yes, this was good work on a strong song.)
7. Chain of Fools
   (Good work again, but we dropped two semitones.)
8. Papa Was A Rolling Stone
   (Lee described it as absolutely wicked, as well as good work.)

A good turnout, but everyone was pretty rowdy, which may correlate
with the amount we managed to drop in so many of the songs...

We only have one more rehearsals before the Annual Concert, so study your MP3s.
Make sure you have the new scores and MP3s for Billie Jean.

Notes on the May 14^th Rehearsal

We started the rehearsal working on Billie Jean.
Lee decided to cut out chorus 2a (bars 73 to 80) and new scores will be issued.
The tenors really need to sing up every time on the “kid is not mine”.

We spent the rest of the rehearsal working on songs for the concert:

1. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (This was absolutely the best – glorious!
   Lee really believed the “I just wanna” each time.)
2. A La Nanita Nana
   (This was pretty good, but we dropped three semitones!)
3. Chain of Fools
   (This was OK, but the leads need to really shine through.
   The guys must remember to shake their fingers on “welded to ya!”)
4. Father Figure
   (Lee described this as oh so good, and that it sounded magnificent.
   We dropped a semitone, and the basses need to really sound out at the end.)
5. I Wear My Sunglasses At Night
   (Again this was so good, and Lee really believed!
   Tenors need to punch up all those low notes.)
6. Mercy
   (Very well done and so good – we were on fire for this one.)
7. Calling All Angels
   Lee said only that it was well done, people.)

A good turnout, and everyone was very focused, making for a great rehearsal.

We only have two more rehearsals before the Annual Concert, so study your MP3s.
Watch for the new scores and MP3s for Billie Jean.

Notes on the May 7^th Rehearsal

We began the rehearsal by singing through A La Nanita Nana.
Despite some practice beforehand, we still have trouble with the fast words,
most notably in bars 69 and 113, so type them out and memorize them, a line at a time.
We actually sounded pretty good, and Lee like the sense of flowing we achieved.

We spent the rest of the first half working on Billie Jean.
Lee remarked that there were an awful lot of “interesting” things going on,
not least of which was the timing! We have to watch Lee carefully in the tricky spots.
We ended up dividing the choir in two, and each half sang the song for the other half.

After the break, we devoted the rest of the rehearsal to singing songs
we will almost certainly be singing at the annual concert:

1. Chain of Fools
   (This was so unbalanced that we had to stop part way and restart from the beginning.
   The second time round we were much better, but it was still a little draggy.)
2. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (Everyone absolutely must watch Lee at the end of the song.
   The guys need to make their “I just wanna...” sections more believable.
   Lee thought that overall it was so beautiful it made her want to cry!)
3. Mercy
   (We ran out of time, and ended up not singing this one.)
4. I Wear My Sunglasses At Night
   (We ran out of time, and ended up not singing this one.)
5. Father Figure
   (The tenors need to study the MP3 for their lead sections – they were dragging.)

A good turnout, and lots of energy in a good rehearsal.

We only have three more rehearsals before the Annual Concert, so study your MP3s.

Rehearsals in April 2014

Notes on the April 30^th Rehearsal

We started the rehearsal working on our latest new song: Billie Jean.
We sang it through twice, working on important details in between,
and Lee has decided that we should be in a position to sing it at the annual concert.
However, there is still a way to go, so please continue to study your MP3s.

We finished the first half of the rehearsal with a couple of slightly neglected songs:

1. Chain of Fools
   (This was fun and Lee thought we sounded great.)
2. Father Figure
   (For not having sung it in a while, Lee thought it was just great.)

We spent the second half of the rehearsal working on songs for our annual concert:

1. A La Nanita Nana
   (We still have a tendency to rush when the words get difficult.
   Nonetheless, we sang it really well, and Lee thought it was really good.)
2. I Wear My Sunglasses At Night
   (This was just great, and Lee said it was, “So good!”)
3. Mercy
   (Yes, that was great.)
4. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We are still tending to rush the choruses, but it was god, good, good.)
5. California Dreamin’
   (Not just great, but wicked hot!)
6. Boogie Fever
   (We were on fire.)

A whole lot of energy had us on fire – a great rehearsal.

We only have four more rehearsals before the annual concert, `so study your MP3s.

Notes on the April 23^rd Rehearsal

We spent the first half of the rehearsal working on our latest new song: Billie Jean.
We worked our way through to the end of the song, learning the ending,
and starting to address all the places in which sections found themselves in difficulties.
However, there is still a long way to go, so please continue to study your MP3s.

We spent most of the second half of the rehearsal working on songs for our Sunday gig,
with the gig volunteers front and centre:

1. Close Your Eyes
2. I Wear My Sunglasses At Night
3. Never Gonna Give You Up
4. Boogie Fever
5. California Dreamin’

All of these went well and were a lot of fun, pleasing Lee.

At this point there was time left for just one more song,
and in the end we elected to sing Papa Was A Rolling Stone.

All in all, a terrific rehearsal, ending on a high note.

Notes on the April 16^th Rehearsal

There was no rehearsal because Lee was away.

Instead, there was a gathering at the Barley Mow.

In her absence, Lee asks us to please study the MP3s, especially
for the songs we sang last week: Billie Jean and Never Gonna Give You Up.
Studying means sitting down with the score in front of you while listening to the MP3.

Notes on the April 9^th Rehearsal

We spent most of the rehearsal working on our latest new song: Billie Jean, by Michael Jackson.
We managed to reach the end of the song, albeit being surprised by the ending.
However, there is still a long way to go, so please do study your MP3s.

Scores and MP3s are available, so please make sure you have the score in your books,
and make use of the MP3 files, especially the all MP3.

We ended the rehearsal singing a couple of our regular songs:

1. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (Lee complained that we insist on rushing. This is a quiet, hushed song
   and we must allow it to be slow – watching her for the tempo.)
2. Boogie Fever
   (This went extremely well, and Lee said that it was oh so much fun.)

Lee is away next week, Wednesday, 16^th April, so there will be no rehearsal.
Feel free to join us at the Barley Mow any time after 8 p.m.

In her absence, Lee asks us to please study the MP3s, especially
for the songs we sang today: Billie Jean and Never Gonna Give You Up.
Studying means sitting down with the score in front of you while listening to the MP3.

Notes on the April 2^nd Rehearsal

Lee produced another new song for us: Billie Jean, by Michael Jackson.
Scores and MP3s are available, so please make sure you have the score in your books,
and make use of the MP3 files, especially the all MP3.

We spent nearly the whole rehearsal working on the new song,
getting a fair way through and making good progress.

We ended the rehearsal singing a couple of our regular songs:

1. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (This went extremely well, and Lee said that it was magnificent.)
2. I Wear My Sunglasses at Night
   (It was a great deal of fun, but we managed to drop three semitones!
   Lee emphasized that we really need to sing out on the “Yes I Do!”)

There was a great turnout, and we were pleased to welcome several new faces.

Rehearsals in March 2014

Notes on the March 26^th Rehearsal

We again started the rehearsal working on I Wear My Sunglasses At Night
(We sang through the song twice, and both performances were pretty good,
but we really need to watch Lee all the way through as she signals the dynamics.)

We spent the rest of the first half working on regular songs:

1. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang this twice, and produced an absolutely terrific ending. However,
   we need to be really careful with the dynamics; it works wonderfully when we do.)
2. Chain of Fools
   (Fabulous stuff, so we sang it twice.)
3. A La Nanita Nana
   (We practiced the fast Spanish words first, which made a big difference.
   When we sang the song it went superbly, although we have a tendency to rush.)

We spent the second half of the rehearsal working on more of our regular songs:

1. You’re All I Need
   (Pretty good, but we need to stay big at the end.)
2. Father Figure
   (Lee said we did well, but there are some tuning issues, and we dropped a lot.)
3. California Dreamin’
   (This went so well that Lee said she could really believe it.)
4. Mercy
   (There were some wonky bits, so we put some time working on the “Hoo!”
   We really need to study our MP3s for this one.)
5. Boogie Fever
   (We really need to stay on the beat, and there were tuning issues too.)
6. Calling All Angels
   (We ran out of time and ended up not singing this one.)

After polling the choir, Lee has decided that our annual concert will now be
on Sunday June 1^st at Sunnyside Wesleyan, with the show starting at 7 p.m.

Lee has promised us a new song for next week, so be there.

Notes on the March 19^th Rehearsal

We again spent the first half of the rehearsal working on I Wear My Sunglasses At Night
(We spent a whole lot of time marking the scores for the dynamics.
The first time through we were much too loud all the way through;
the second time was rather good, as well as lots of fun.)

We spent the rest of the rehearsal working on regular songs:

1. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang this twice, but we were too loud – it’s a quiet song.)
2. Boogie Fever
   (It really was a Boogie, Boogie, Boogie performance!)
3. Houdini’s Box
   (This is another soft song, and we were much too loud.)
4. Papa Was A Rolling Stone
   (“Wow! So good, so good!”)

This time there were plenty of the Mexico survivors (21 were present) and they sang
two songs that they had worked on. Then they sang Close Your Eyes to words that soprano extraordinaire Bernadette had written entitled “Thank You Lee” and it was a real hit.

This was a boisterous rehearsal, and everyone put lots of energy into it.

Notes on the March 12^th Rehearsal

Thirty members of the choir braved the blowing snowstorm outside
to make a quorum for a great rehearsal.
Everyone was delighted to be back after two weeks of absence,
and we were all eager to sing.

We spent the first half of the rehearsal working on I Wear My Sunglasses At Night
(We were a little wonky the first time through, although the repetitiveness carried us.
However, we sang flat out all the way, so Lee spent time with us
marking up the dynamics for the whole song.
It has been suggested that we apply a colour coding to
at least distinguish between loud, medium and soft.
We sang the song again, with the dynamics, and it was absolutely great.)

After the break we worked on Never Gonna Give You Up
(It was somewhat rough, and the dynamics were not as good as usual;
we also tended to speed up, and Lee insisted that the key was to be rock steady.
We sang the song again, and it was much better, although we really dropped.)

The Mexico survivors (only 9 out of 25 made it to the rehearsal) then sang two songs
that they had worked on. Despite the missing voices, it was a fun performance.

All in all, a terrific rehearsal, and probably two thirds of us then
ended up at the Barley Mow to catch up on the last couple of weeks.

Notes on the March 5^th Rehearsal

There was no rehearsal because the church was in use for Ash Wednesday.

Rehearsals in February 2014

Notes on the February 26^th Rehearsal

There was no rehearsal because of the choir workshop in Mexico.

Notes on the February 19^th Rehearsal

In the first half of the rehearsal we focused on three of our songs:

1. I Wear My Sunglasses At Night
   (The basses entertained us all by donning hats and sunglasses!
   It nearly all sounds great, but the “I can’t believe it”! is muddy.
   The guys really have to mean it – the ending also went a bit wonky.)
2. A La Nanita Nana
   (We all need to memorize the fast Spanish words, which are still ragged.
   It sounds great, but we need to relax rather than galloping at it;
   We were much, much better the second time through.)
3. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (The dynamics are great when we watch Lee, which we don’t all the time!
   It is important that we pull back when Lee signals us to do so – it’s a lullaby.)

In the second half of the rehearsal we sang several of our other songs:

1. Chain of Fools
   (So good, That was fun. The gents need to be strong in the chorus,
   and subtle in the verses.)
2. For What It’s Worth
   (We had quite a few problems – Lee is going to revamp the scores.)
3. California Dreamin’
   (At the end Lee said, “I believe!”)
4. You’re All I Need
   (The dynamics were really good, but the tenors have a tendency to fall behind,
   so they need to keep watching Lee at all times.)
5. Mercy
   (“Oh yeah! So good! That was such fun!”)
6. Calling All Angels
   (Nice, a real tear-jerker and a great way to end the rehearsal.)

There will be no rehearsals for the next two weeks:
first the Mexico workshop and then Ash Wednesday.
The next rehearsal will be Wednesday 12^th of March.

Notes on the February 12^th Rehearsal

We spent the first half of the rehearsal working on I Wear My Sunglasses At Night,
and learned the whole song in detail – still need the basses to be angrier.

In the second half of the rehearsal we focused on five of our other songs:

1. A La Nanita Nana
   (It was really nice, but now we need to work on the dynamics of this lullaby!)
2. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (We sang this twice, and it was beautiful the first time and nice the second.
   Lee reminds us to drop out if we are unsure of a note or section, and listen.)
3. Father Figure
   (We stopped this part way through to correct some tenor wrong-headedness.
   The second time through was much better, but we did drop a whole tone.)
4. Papa Was A Rolling Stone
   (In the end we didn’t have time to sing this one.)
5. Time After Time
   (In the end we didn’t have time to sing this one.)

An excellent rehearsal, despite a couple of sections being rather short of voices.

Notes on the February 5^th Rehearsal

As promised, Lee brought back I Wear My Sunglasses At Night,
which she has revised slightly since we last sang it, issuing new paper scores.
The revised scores will be made available on line sometime soon.

We spent nearly the whole rehearsal working on some I Wear My Sunglasses At Night,
and actually succeeded in relearning all the way to the end of the song.

We ended the rehearsal singing quickly through two numbers:

1. Father Figure
   (This went OK but felt really low, although it only dropped one semitone.)
2. Mamma Mia
   (We started really fast then slowed down – it was rough but not bad.)

An enthusiastic, albeit somewhat rambunctious rehearsal.

Rehearsals in January 2014

Notes on the January 29^th Rehearsal

We started the rehearsal singing A La Nanita Nana
and it went so well that Lee decided we could leave it for the week.

We spent the rest of the rehearsal working on some of our other songs:

1. Never Gonna Give You Up
   (Lee really loves this song, and we ended up singing it twice.
   We still need to be bigger on the “say goodbye”.)
2. Father Figure
   (We did well for not having sung it in many months – needs relearning.)
3. Mercy
   (“That was a lot of fun!” – need to go crazy on the very last chorus.)
4. Papa Was A Rolling Stone
   (We managed pretty well this time, and had fun with it.)
5. Boogie Fever
   (We sang this crazy fast, and ended up dropping a whole lot – insanely fast.
   The alto ones need to listen to their MP3s.)
6. California Dreamin’
   (We were running out of time and ended up not singing this one.)
7. Calling All Angels
   (This was extremely nice, and a great way to end the rehearsal.)

Lee is planning to bring back I Wear My Sunglasses At Night,
so look out your music and listen to the MP3s.

Lee has decided that our annual concert will be on June 7^th.

Notes on the January 22^nd Rehearsal

We spent the entire first half of the rehearsal working on A La Nanita Nana,
which we ended up singing four times, including with the choir split into halves.
We are still having trouble with the fast Spanish words and need to memorize them.
Do listen to the all MP3 for the fast bits, and for the outro.

For the second half of the rehearsal we worked on some of our most frequently sung songs:

1. You’re All I Need
   (The finish was good, but we still need to study the MP3 files.
   Also, tenors need to sing down in the verses, and basses punch up throughout.)
2. Time After Time
   (Good work, and Lee continues to absolutely love this song.)
3. Chain of Fools
   (This was pretty good, but we need to punch up the verses and adjust the funky parts.)
4. Papa Was A Rolling Stone
   (Lee said, “Whoa! Great finish.” Pretty good, but still some rough spots.)

Another pretty good rehearsal, with adequate numbers in every section.

Notes on the January 15^th Rehearsal

We spent the first half of the rehearsal working on A La Nanita Nana
(We need to memorize the Spanish words, and listen to the all MP3 for the outro)
and Never Gonna Give You Up.
(This was really good, especially as we last rehearsed this early in November!)

For the second half of the rehearsal we worked on some of our most frequently sung songs:

1. California Dreamin’
   (“So dramatic!” – men need to watch Lee and not drag.)
2. Mercy
   (“That was fun!” – need to sing the very last chorus all out.)
3. The Water is Wide
   (This sounded really pretty.)
4. Houdini’s Box
   (Tenors really need to sort out their final run from bar 103 on.)
5. Papa Was A Rolling Stone
   (With Lee focused entirely on the basses, a lot of other sections missed entries.)

An excellent rehearsal, despite our numbers being somewhat depleted by sickness.

We have three possible dates for our annual concert: May 24^th, June 7^th June 14^th.
If you are unable to manage one of these dates, let Lee know.

Notes on the January 8^th Rehearsal

This was our first rehearsal of the year, and we had a good turnout.

We spent the entire first half of the rehearsal working on our latest new song, A La Nanita Nana.
The words of the verses remain a problem, so everyone is encouraged to memorize them.
That way we can concentrate on the notes without worrying about the syllables.

For the second half of the rehearsal we concentrated on some of our most frequently sung songs:

1. You’re All I Need
   (This went well, but we need to watch Lee at the end as we swell the final note.)
2. For What It’s Worth
   (At the end, after the four repetitions of the the chorus, we need to SLOWLY let the
   volume diminish toward the final hushed note – no sudden drop from loud to nothing.)
3. Chain of Fools
   (This was a lot of fun.)
4. Boogie Fever
   (That was a whole lot of fun, and is Lee’s favourite, despite it meaning nothing.)
5. Time After Time
   (A lovely way to end the rehearsal.)

There was a whole lot of rowdy energy going round at this rehearsal;
Everyone seemed really happy to be back, and marking the end of the holiday season.

Notes on the January 1^st Rehearsal

There was no rehearsal this week because it was New Year’s day.