This is more like it: small forces, small music, tight ensemble, blend. Lots of Verse section to wallow in the wealth of solo voices we have and a gem of an anthem - Purcell’s Hear My Prayer - possibly the most perfect self-contained 2 minutes of music composed by an Englishman — or any man.
So, 10 voices, an even split of 4-2-2-2 and a lovely blend. Sops were Sue, Claire, Eve and Liz; altos Jo and Emily; tenors Ian and Andrew Kirk; basses Chris Gray and Trojan.
We were also honoured by the effortless accompaniment of David Bednall - former Assistant Organist of the cathedral and all-round good egg.
Highlights today were the psalm singing - a step in the direction of what I’m after (drama and ensemble); trios, a particular treat to hear Emily on the two extended verse sections of the Magnificat; and the Hear My Prayer. Although they found it laborious at the time, I think the singers appreciated the sing-through of every single voice part in rehearsal - discovering the points of interest in each line, thus making ‘vertical’ sense of the music as well as the horizontal line. I thought the recording reflects the effort put in. And I remain a fan of the forte finish ;-)
In the evening we went to the Fountain (in a bid to try a different pub each night) pre-barbecue, kindly co-ordinated by Liz. This was yummy.
We had a fair bit to drink - culminating in a blurry but vintage game of 21 (’bring out the chutney!’) - though our inebrity was exceeded by a certain house caller at about 23:30. A visitor whose uncouth behavious quickly soon hurried most of the Number 14 residents to bed. Twat!
