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HARMONY RAGJune 2016 Special Convention Issue

Forth Valley Chorus2016 Chorus Championsets a new record score at Newcastle 2016 Convention

Surrey Harmony2016 Division AA Chorus Winner

IN THIS ISSUE

HARMONY RAG

QUARTET OF NATIONS REGION 31Sweet Adelines International

Sweet Adelines International is aworldwide organisation of women

singers committed to advancing themusical art form of barbershopharmony through education,competition and performance

Harmony Rag is published quarterly inMarch, June, September and December

by the Regional Management Team(RMT) of the Quartet of Nations in digital

format. The June issue is also publishedin print format.

Materials sent for publication are at theauthor’s/contributor’s risk and while

every care is taken, neither the Quartetof Nations RMT nor Sweet Adelines

International accept any liability for lossor damage.

Send all queries, copy and images to theHarmony Rag Editor,

[email protected]

Deadlines are one (1) month prior topublication

FEATURES

10 • Newcastle 2016 Convention Results16 • Winners’ Stories

USUALS

4 • Regional Buzz SPINNAKER CHORUS’ SUCCESS AT BOURNEMOUTH MUSIC COMPETITIONS FESTIVAL

COTTONTOWN STRIKES GOLD!

A TRIBUTE TO CYNTHIA TUCKER

INTRODUCING IGNITE UK CHORUS TO REGION 31

WHAT A CHARACTER!

9 • Column: Warmed Up NOT JUST FOR REHEARSALS!

22 • Calendar & Coaching Directory

REGIONAL BUZZSPINNAKER CHORUS SUCCESS AT BOURNEMOUTH MUSIC COMPETITIONS FESTIVALSubmitted by Tracy Daniel, PR/Bookings, Spinnaker Chorus

On a beautiful sunny Saturday, 18th June 2016, Spinnaker Chorus took part in the Bournemouth Music Competitions Festival at the Pavilion Theatre. We have been preparing for this competition since early May, after coming third place at the annual Sweet Adelines International Region 31 ladies barbershop convention in Newcastle.

At last year’s festival we entered in two classes, “Songs from the Shows” and “Barbershop Choir” and came first and second place respectively. This year, under the direction of our new Musical Director, John Palmer, we were more adventurous, entering four classes. Jenny Savory was a guest director for two of our songs as well.

Our first class was “Show Choir with Movement” in which we performed two very lively numbers The Moment I Saw Your Eyes and It’s Raining Men. We were dressed in black trousers, black swing tops and colourful shrugs adorned with sparkling, shoulder embellishments. We won this class and received The Seer Cup.

After lunch came the “Choral Sacred Song”, not a genre of music which you would typically associate with a barbershop choir however, we entered with You Raise Me Up followed by I Will Follow Him. There were a number of fabulous choirs in this class who sang some hauntingly beautiful pieces and the well-deserved winner was The New Forest Chamber Choir.

Next came the “Female Voice Choir” class, a new category introduced this year. With a quick costume change we donned our ‘black and bling’ to perform Come In From The Rain and Defying Gravity, one of our favourites from the show Wicked. With ten choirs competing we were overjoyed when we were announced as the first time winners of this new award.

On to the “Barbershop Chorus” class, nine choirs competing for the Roger Mills Trophy. Our two songs here were I Never Meant To Fall In Love and then a newer song to us, Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You. After all entrants had performed their sets, once again to our delight, Spinnaker was announced as first place winner.

At this point the spotlight changed to the “Barbershop Quartet/Ensemble Competition”. Waves quartet, made up of four members from Spinnaker Chorus (Tracy Daniel, Liz Waddon, Kate Middleton and Hazel Smith), competed in this group which comprised of 13 quartets and

Harmony Rag | June 2016 | 5

one octet, Waves sang If I Were The Only Girl and the fun, upbeat Feeling Groovy. After a nervous wait whilst all competitors critique was read out the girls were thrilled to find out they were awarded joint third place!

To finish a perfect day in sunny Bournemouth, Spinnaker Chorus sang in the final class, “Bournemouth Choir of the Year”. The winners of the previous classes throughout the day were invited to compete for a chance to receive the Margaret Miller Trophy and £50 prize money. We didn’t win this one but delighted that the trophy went to the superb Impromptu from Surrey.

Spinnaker had a fabulous day in Bournemouth and we’re looking forward to returning next year.

A TRIBUTE TO CYNTHIA TUCKERSubmitted by Elaine Cox, Somerset Hills and Hilary Pinnock, Region 31 Communications Coordinator

For the first time in early 2016, Region 31 introduced the Women of Note award specifically to recognise those great women who inspire, support and encourage us in our love of singing barbershop. Nine names each with a wonderful story came to the fore for 2016: Anda van Stegeren from Singing Unlimited, Brenda Mansfield from Heartbeat and Mayhem, Cynthia Tucker from Somerset Hills, Fiona McGlashan from Cambridge Harmony, Phoenix and Footlights, Karen Lawson from Forth Valley, Kath Anderson from Lace City, Pauline Parr from Milltown Sound, Valerie Taylor from Vocal Dimension, and Winifred Topham from Sheffield Harmony.

These women were recognised and honoured in the Sunday ceremonies of the Newcastle 2016 Convention where each received a Woman of Note badge presented by Anne Cargill, a member of the International Board of Sweet Adelines International.

There is one we would like to pay tribute to as she has sadly been taken from us since convention — Cynthia Tucker.

Cynthia caught the barbershop bug in 1984 and became a Sweet Adeline in 1987. She was the Musical Director of Somerset Hills Chorus from the very beginning and her dedication, passion and commitment to her chorus family and to Sweet Adelines was a true inspiration to many over the years.

She had many winning performances herself in quartets and under her direction, the chorus achieved first place Small Chorus Award six times and came fifth overall three times. She gained the respect and admiration of many and was very touched and surprised when she realised this year just how many good friends she had made. She was so thrilled to be named as one of the first Women of Note in our region and keenly watched the quartet competition via the webcast in May with a group of members from Somerset Hills Chorus. She was relieved to be able to hand over the metaphorical baton to our lovely new director. It meant she could relax, confident in the knowledge that her chorus will continue going from strength to strength in such capable hands.

REGIONAL BUZZ

REGIONAL BUZZ

6 | Harmony Rag | June 2016

COTTONTOWN STRIKES GOLD!Submitted by John Lesley

The Cottontown Chorus from Bolton is celebrating after having been crowned the UK’s top male barbershop chorus for a whopping sixth time in seven competitions. The 63-strong chorus won the gold medal at the annual convention of the British Association of Barbershop Singers (BABS) over the late May bank holiday weekend in Harrogate. Up against 34 other choruses from around the UK, Cottontown performed to an enthusiastic audience of over 1,500. They now hope to be invited to compete at the International Convention in Las Vegas next July where they would be competing with the best all-male choruses in the world.

Chairman Ian Ford says “To get over 60 members plus supporters over to Vegas is a logistical nightmare to say the least! It’s also not inexpensive and we don’t want any members to miss out on the experience because of the cost so we will be mounting a big fundraising drive in the next few weeks. If anyone is willing to help us out in however small a way we would be very grateful.”

The Cottontown Chorus is available for club shows, concerts, corporate and other special events. More details can be found at www.cottontownchorus.co.uk

INTRODUCING IGNITE UK CHORUS TO REGION 31Submitted by Liz Tomes, Ignite UK

We’re delighted to announce the formation of our new Region 31 chorus — Ignite UK! We started up in February and are based in Belper, Derbyshire where we currently have 45 members. We’re working under the guidance of our Musical Director Doug Harrington and our creative team Kirsty Williams, Debbie Varley and Harriet Adamson.

Doug said, “It’s exciting to be a part of this new chorus. We’ve set a fast pace of learning and are enjoying the challenges of building a brand new repertoire. I’ve been impressed by everyone’s enthusiasm and commitment and we can’t wait to perform in the near future. We’re proud to be part of Region 31 and look forward to being part of the local barbershop family.”

Although it was too soon for us to compete, a few of our members went along to convention at The Sage in May and really enjoyed meeting up with some of you. We recently hosted our first open rehearsal for friends, family and potential new recruits interested to come along and see how we work and what we’re all about. It was a lovely evening and the first time we had the chance to perform to an audience. The response was fantastic and certainly got us raring to go for our first public performance which will be at a music festival near Derby later this summer.

We’re also launching a recruitment drive to build membership so if you live in the Belper/Derby area and are looking for a chorus to join or know someone who may be interested in having a go at barbershop singing, please drop us a line — we’d love to hear from you. Contact our membership officer, Ellie, at [email protected]. Until then we’re continuing to work hard on our vocals and performance and busy building our

REGIONAL BUZZ

repertoire for forthcoming performances and a major show at Christmas. Find out what we’re up to and drop us a line on Facebook at facebook.com/igniteukchorus. We look forward to hearing from you!

WHAT A CHARACTER!Submitted by Chrissie Boden, Cheshire A Cappella

I’ve been a high school drama teacher for thirteen years and I’d like to think I know my stuff! However, when I was asked to run drama workshops for my fellow Cheshire A Cappella members, I couldn’t help feel a little trepidation. I was thinking of my lovely friends, the ladies who had welcomed and encouraged me to sing, wondering would they get it? And possibly more importantly, would they be willing to try it? I’d been a member of this amazing, hardworking

chorus for only ten months and although I’m new to barbershop, I knew from day one that despite being a different discipline, similar principles applied. Drama, plays and acting require effective storytelling, strong characterisation and a willingness from the performers to let go of their inhibitions, ignite their imaginations and create magic for their audience.

Working on our new uppie gave us the perfect opportunity to begin a new approach to rehearsals. Introducing drama workshops on characterisation was the main focus and it was important to ensure the ladies felt comfortable. So workshop activities were carefully scaffolded in order to provide the appropriate level of support, encouragement and challenge.

Our Love Medley outlined a clear story and two distinct characters whom we grew to know and love as ‘Sonia and Chelsea’. Using some of Stanislavki’s techniques, our confidence with improvisation and role play really took off!

Time dedicated to these processes and the understanding of our story and characters means that the mere mention of Sonia or Chelsea in rehearsal provokes a psychological, emotional, physical and vocal response from each chorus member, as each one of us has invested something of ourselves into their development.


REGIONAL BUZZ


Including drama was a brave thing to do, rehearsal time is precious and some may argue that chorus life provides enough drama of its own! However, having experienced this approach and being in the fortunate position to see its positive impact on Cheshire A Cappella, I would applaud, jump to my feet and call for more, more!

Female Barbershop Quartet Seeking a Terrific New TenorIf you can sing beautiful high notes to ring chords and would enjoy an opportunity to

join an established experienced quartet that enjoys both competition and performing,

then please get in touch today.

Based in London/Herts/Cambs

ContactRae - [email protected]

Alison - 07908 639505

STAGE COSTUMES FOR SALE

We have 50 attractive green sparkly costumes available in a range of

sizes — from 8 to 24.

Stretchy sequinned tops with black lacy neckline and sleeves plus

matching calf-length elastic-wasted skirts, split

on one side. Tops look good over plain black

trousers too.

£300.

Enquiries to Sheila Jones at Cheshire A Cappella on

07770 553314.

BUY FINESSE & FORTUIT Y A DRINK

Both Finesse & Fortuity are heading back to Las Vegas in October to represent Region 31, with the

aim to bring back the Queens of Harmony crowns. YOU can help them get there by donating to the

Returning Top 15 Quartets Fund.

Go to sweetadelines.org.uk/donate/returning-top-15/ to donate & get more information

CHORUS SEEKING DIRECTOR

Cheshire A Cappella is a seven year old Sweet Adelines chorus looking for a chorus

director with barbershop experience to guide, teach and develop this fun-loving

group of 35 women (and growing!)

Based in Cheshire and with a strong music team to support you, if you are interested and would like further information, please

contact

Jayne [email protected].

COLUMN:

WARMED UP


NOT JUST FOR REHEARSALS!

Warm ups aren’t just for rehearsal night! Practising vocal skills daily is an essential part of our responsibility as chorus members. Your musical leaders will love you for it!

Here are some really great exercises for you to practise on a daily basis. Choose a variety of these exercises every day. These should take around five minutes of your time. Go to http://sweetadelines.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Daily-Vocal-Exercises.mp3 if you’d like to hear Lace City demonstrating these exercises for you.

Remember to move your hips to form a figure of eight as you do these exercises to keep your body free and flexible.

• Start with rhythmical hissing — SHHH, SSSSS• SH SH FF SS x 2, K T P SS x 2, then bubble x 4 — keep bubbling high in the mask• Call and response bubbling — various sequences — make up your own going from low to high register; glissando down the scale• Bubbling into vowels — into AH, EE, OH, OO ensuring you use the model throughout• Bubbling into a pitch exercise — bubble then 1-2- 3-2-1 — vary the vowel AH, EE, OO, remember the OO vowel has to be produced with relaxed lips (no chicken’s bottoms!); bubbling will give you the forward placement• Resonant sound production — MO MO MO MO MO (make up your own sequences); relax lips and create plenty of space — keep lifting the sound; use kinaesthetics to help keep the sound lifted• MMMM MMMM MMMM to the sequence 1-1- 1-2- 1 then go up a semitone — keep the sound

bright and shiny as you go up to the higher note then come back down a semitone at a time but keeping the sound lifted all the time; create space inside to keep the sound full and resonant• NYUM, NYUM, NYUM, NYUM, NYUM using the notes 5-4- 3-2-1 and keeping the sound light• REE arpeggio 1-3- 5-8- 8-8- 8-5- 3-1 — keep the notes light, no opera singers here please; roll your RRR to keep the sound forward• VEE VOH routine — keep a powerful stance as you go quiet; increase your lift and stature and you’ll produce a very well supported sound which will keep in pitch; sequence is 1324354654321 - full volume for first sequence then repeat same sequence on pp; check posture — stay tall and proud; “screaming softs” (Jim Henry)• ZOOM GALLY GALLY exercise — keep full and resonant without any scooping; take pressure away from the ZZZ to be able to tune accurately and instantly; do alternate loud and soft; use similar technique as in VEE VOH exercise with a powerful stance and supported soft; this is another exercise where the soft dynamics should demonstrate real presence.

Hope you enjoy your daily practice warmups. You will notice a huge difference — promise!

Next time I’ll explore and share how choruses all around the Sweet Adelines world develop their breathing techniques. Please keep all your suggestions for future articles coming to me!

Alyson Chaney, a certified International Faculty member and current Region 31 Education Coordinator, presents a regular column about how to devise a great vocal warm up routine. She would love to hear from you, too.

If you have any great warm-up routines to share, please send to [email protected]

FEATURES

THE MIX & FORTH VALLEY ARE CHAMPIONS AT NEWCASTLE

The MixHeartbeat UK

Score: 618Razzle Dazzle (Tom Gentry)

Can’t Help Lovin’ That Man Of Mine (Brian Beck)

Forth ValleyDirector: David SangsterScore: 694Yesterday I Heard The Rain (Brent Graham)I’ve Got A Feeling I’m Falling (Nancy Bergman)

QUARTET RESULTS

Tone-AcityMilltown Sound & Chapter-At-LargeScore: 597I’ve Got A Feeling I’m Falling (Joni Bescos)All The Way (Tom Gentry)

IncognitoHeartbeat UKScore: 586Come Take Your Place In My Heart (Jim Clancy)Angry/Bill Bailey Medley (Nancy Bergman)

SPARKAberdeen, Forth Valley & Chapter-At-LargeScore: 581Bye Bye Blackbird (Karen Schmidt)Auld Lang Syne (Clay Hine)

Royal EffectHeartbeat UK, Lace City & Milltown SoundScore: 580All The Way (Tom Gentry)I Used To Call Him Baby Medley (Jay Giallombardo)

DeciBellesAberdeen & Viva AcappellaScore: 572If You Love Me, Really Love Me (Nancy Bergman)I Can’t Give You Anything But Love (David Harrington)

Mac4Forth Valley & Chapter-At-LargeScore: 567I Wanna Be Around (Jay Giallombardo)Time After Time (Jim Arns)


QUARTET RESULTS

Road TripSpinnaker & Chapter-At-LargeScore: 546You Turned The Tables On Me (Nancy Bergman)I Will Love You Till The End Of Time (Al Baker)

ChatterboxSolent SoundsScore: 542 • MOST IMPROVED QUARTETIf I Had The Last Dream Left In The World (Joe Liles)I Don’t Know Enough About You (Nancy Bergman)

Vice VersaViva AcappellaScore: 527Flirty Eyes (Nancy Bergman)At Last (Nancy Bergman)

Raise The RoofPlymouth MayflowerScore: 508If You Love Me Really Love Me (Nancy Bergman)Cry Baby (Marcia Hill & Nancy Bergman)

CarouselPlymouth MayflowerScore: 504I Don’t Know Enough About You (Larry Wright)Each Time I Fall In Love (SK Grundy/Larry Wright)

Blonde AmbitionMilltown Sound & Chapter-At-LargeScore: 490At Last (Nancy Bergman)Never Say Never (Tom Gentry with mods Mo Field)


QUARTET RESULTS

StardustAberdeen & Chapter-At-LargeScore: 431Somewhere Over The Rainbow (Joni Bescos)Get Happy (Nancy Bergman)

Note-AbilityPlymouth MayflowerScore: 413L-O-V-E (Nancy Bergman)All The Way (Joni Bescos)

Calamity & JaneHeartbeat UKScore: 390If You Love Me Really Love Me (Nancy Bergman)No No Norman (Clay Hine)

Oops!Surrey HarmonyOpen Division • AUDIENCE CHOICE WINNERHow Many Hearts Have You Broken (Jim Arns)Short People (Corinna Garriock)

FootlightsCambridge Harmony & Chapter-At-LargeOpen DivisionBig Spender (Bev Sellars)You Make Me Feel So Young (Mark Hale)


CHORUS RESULTS

Lace CityDirected by Glenn ChaneyScore: 644I Have Dreamed (David Wright)I Love Jazz (David Wright)

SpinnakerDirected by John PalmerScore: 620I Never Meant To Fall In Love (Joe Liles)The Moment I Saw Your Eyes (Joe Liles)

Surrey HarmonyDirected by Lorraine TurnerScore: 597My Foolish Heart (Joni Bescos)The Joint Is Jumpin’ (Nancy Bergman)

No Borders Show ChorusDirected by Stuart SidesScore: 591When You’re Smiling (David Harrington)Jazz Me Blues (Joe Johnston)

AberdeenDirected by Gwen Topp & Sophie RadcliffeScore: 589If We Can’t Be The Same Old Sweethearts (Jay Giallombardo)Sweet Georgia Brown (Joni Bescos)

Sheffield HarmonyDirected by Tim BriggsScore: 555In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning (Jim Arns)Lulu’s Back In Town (Jim Arns)


CHORUS RESULTS

Singing UnlimitedDirected by Anita ZengerinkScore: 546 • MOST IMPROVED CHORUSMy Foolish Heart (Joni Bescos)I’ll Never Say Never Again, Again (Tom Gentry/Sandy Robinson Marron)

Rhapsody UKDirected by Helen GlavinaScore: 522The Bandstand in Central Park (Nancy Bergman)Angry/Bill Bailey Medley (Nancy Bergman)

Milltown SoundDirected by Kim PotterScore: 506If I Give My Heart To You (Jim Clancy)Goody Goody (Joni Bescos)

Cheshire A CappellaDirected by Wal SaundersScore: 482If You Love Me Really Love Me (Nancy Bergman)Love Medley (Nancy Bergman)

Plymouth MayflowerDirected by Sarah GillScore: 452It’s A Million To One You’re In Love (Joey Minshall)Some Enchanted Evening (Larry Wright)

Solent SoundsDirected by Lorraine HowdenScore: 439Chase the Rain Away (Lynell Diamond)I Can’t Give You Anything But Love/I’ve Got a Feeling I’m Falling (Nancy Bergman)


CHORUS RESULTS

Zero DegreesDirected by Christopher Mackintosh-SmithScore: 428All The Way (Brent Graham)Oh, You Beautiful Doll! (Jay Giallombardo)

London City SingersDirected by Simon ArnottScore: 421When You Wish Upon A Star (Nancy Bergman)Whose Honey Are You? (Jean Shook)

Viva AcappellaDirected by Gaynor SchofieldEvaluation OnlyOnce Upon A Time (June Dale)I Won’t Dance (Liz Garnett)


A NEWBIE’S FIRST CONVENTIONSubmitted by Leslie Bee, Forth Valley

Wow, what a weekend! I can’t believe the first time I had the honour to compete with Forth Valley at Region 31 convention, we won a gold medal. I am hugely privileged to be part of such an amazing group of women along with our fabulous director, David. Every time I think of my wonderful chorus, I smile.

It’s true I’m a newbie. I joined Forth Valley Chorus (FVC) in the spring of 2015 after going along to the January Open Evening. I’m the fourth member of my family to join. My mum

and aunt have been members since the 90s and my cousin is also a member. The sequins have finally got me! After years of waiting to hear from Mum at around 5pm on the Saturday of convention, this time I was the one phoning home to whoop down the phone to a bewildered hubby!

Our convention week started with a very supportive ‘Friends and Family’ performance. It was lovely, but my gosh I was nervous having invited some friends along who were new to barbershop. We got to practise our competition set (twice, I might add) and our new and improved walk on and off. By Wednesday evening, our wonderful Sweet Adeline coach

FEATURE STORY

and Lions Gate Chorus Director, Sandy Marron, was here with her husband Tim. What a night that was. We were RELENTLESS, as was Sandy! She literally had David running round in circles to ensure our choreo stayed top notch along with our sound. More air, internal dynamics, concentration, performance! We were buzzing when we left rehearsals that night. We were on our way to the Sage.

All the rehearsals with David, the coaching, the hours of singing with my new friends came down to this. We had timed our performance, I think I remember someone saying it was six minutes something. Six minutes to do our best. Remember the breathing plan, remember the dynamics, remember to perform. Performance transcends technique! We were so completely moved by the response of the audience. Sandy had told us it would be amazing and oh my goodness, it was electrifying. As the uptune built to our new ending we could feel everyone’s love in the auditorium. My hand was shaking as I held it in the finishing pose. The noise was incredible. I thought we had done well but was it enough?

We spilled out onto the side balconies of the venue. We hugged, we cried, we held hands and we made our way back to our seats. Soon there was a short break, which seemed to last forever. I sat with my lovely roomie, Mum and Auntie Moira amongst the sea of pink sequins. The results are an incredibly exciting countdown! Auntie Moira was writing down the scores as they were announced. By the time they had got to second place she had abandoned her notes. Was it us? Had we done it? I didn’t hear our name. All I got was ‘with a score of 69...’ and the FVC girls erupted. We were the champions! Our score was a Region 31 record of 694. A brilliant improvement on our previous best score. And A level. We were blown away. Thrilled by the response of our Region 31 friends, we received our medals. A wonderful, wonderful day to top off our weeks and months of preparation. Thank you!

A WORD FROM THE PROUDEST DIRECTOR IN SWEET ADELINESSubmitted by David Sangster, Musical Director, Forh Valley

Well, well. That was quite a convention. The piece from Leslie, one of our contest first-timers, really says it all about how we felt at Forth Valley to win with the score that we did and what it felt like to perform to such a smart, enthusiastic, warm and demonstrative audience. But I’ve been asked for a few words from the director’s perspective, so here they are.

One thing that always astonishes me and delights me in equal measure in Sweet Adelines is to see the amazing variety of directing styles among all the choruses here in Region 31 and beyond. Whether we like it or not as directors, the way we are, the way we rehearse and the way we wave our arms has a bearing on the personality of our choruses. We’ve all had moments where we are not sure if we like what we see in that mirror! But we all have the guts to get out front and soldier on. Take a moment to salute your own unique director, right now.

At Forth Valley our best scores had previously been at A-level and our goal was to break into A (or at least be glorious and fearless in its pursuit!). Of course we worked tirelessly on all the technical and musical elements, there are no shortcuts there, but what we also learned last year and what was brought sharply into focus for us by the marvellous Sandy Marron who coached us in November and for six hours pre-contest, was that to perform at that level requires a significant recalibration of the chorus/director balance.

I had an hour of one-to-one coaching from Sandy, on the day before the competition. Summed up as follows:


FEATURE STORY


Sandy: “David, you have to get out of their way.”

David: “Sandy, I’m listening. I will do whatever it takes.”

Every director reading this knows what we are talking about and knows just how hard it is. It is really, really hard! But you can’t ask your chorus to change if you can’t try to change yourself. For us it has been brewing for a year or two but this year we finally felt a tectonic shift taking place. The sense of empowerment and shared purpose I felt washing over me and out to the hall when we sang our set on that day was beyond anything I’ve experienced in nearly 11 years of directing Forth Valley. New ground, new scores.

So my humble advice to all our dedicated, talented, generous and cherished musical leaders is this. It doesn’t matter whether you’re trying to get from C+ to B-, B+ to A- or A to A+! Keep changing it up at rehearsals, take small steps toward chorus empowerment and responsibility but take those steps. Sing a song undirected. Have the chorus sing with their eyes closed to foster unity through the ears and the breath, not just through your hands and (for some of us, including me) your mouth! Give more musical tasks to more people, and not always the obvious people. Free your minds, and feel the weight lifting from your shoulders as your chorus grows.

Lastly, a special tribute to our other medallists. In particular, a superb new best ever score from Spinnaker after an apparently seamless change of director and my special thanks to everyone at Lace City, our friends and fierce rivals! After their beautifully sung, classy, top notch set earned them a silver medal, I lost count of the number of Lace City singers who shook our hands, hugged us and were so generous with their congratulations on our result. The true spirit of Sweet Adelines International is everywhere in Region 31. We’re humbled and honoured to be your current champions and we’ll champion

every one of you from the UK and Netherlands in Vegas!

INTRODUCING THE MIXSubmitted by Jo Braham, The MIX

What a fantastic weekend in Gateshead — an incredible venue, competition and superb organisation by the Regional Management Team. The MIX are thrilled to be 2016 Region 31 Champions and representatives in Las Vegas 2016. Nancy and Sandra are no strangers to the region as they are Master Director and Choreographer to Heartbeat and also from Eu4ia quartet, past regional champions and international representatives.

But the region is a new experience for Jo and Andrea and what a fabulous first time! Jo and Andrea are the Musical Director and Assistant Musical Director, respectively, of Cheshire Chord Company. We’re excited to be joining Heartbeat on their travels to Las Vegas in October and will be proud to be on that MGM stage with Finesse and Fortuity representing such a successful region!

We formed in November 2011 and after a year of hard work forming a repertoire including competition material, were crowned the Ladies Association of British Barbershop Singers (LABBS) champions in 2012. From there, our title enabled us to compete in the 2013 European Championships in Holland where we won gold in another nail-biting contest. The Sweet Adelines’ experience was a new one for us as a quartet and certainly put us on a new learning curve, especially for Andrea and Jo who had the chance to learn more about the different judging categories that Sweet Adelines International uses. We travel a fair amount of miles to get together and meet generally in Hale in Cheshire. The surrounding motorways from Marple, Congleton and Wakefield certainly get some hammer!

FEATURE STORY

It’s onwards and upwards for us as we prepare for our first International experience. Rehearsals are planned and fundraising is on the go! May to October is such a short period of time to raise the money to get us there, but we’re hoping to do so with a few ventures and one where maybe you, dear readers, could help?

We have commissioned a couple of barbershop-themed linen bags. Why not consider purchasing one to carry your music to rehearsal or take on holiday and in turn, your contribution will help us get across the Atlantic to represent the region this year. Please visit our website or Facebook page (facebook.com/themixquartet) for details of how you can help or email us on [email protected]

Finally, a big thank you to our choruses and our nearest and dearest. We couldn’t do it without you. And to you all in the region for your welcome, support and messages of congratulations, we really appreciate your encouragement and friendship.

IT WASN’T AN IMPOSSIBLE DREAM AFTER ALLSubmitted by June Campbell, PRO, Rhapsody UK

Early 2015, our script writers started writing our Christmas show. They’re never just a list of carols with a sprinkling of barbershop, they always have a story and for Christmas 2015, we would base the show on becoming gold medal winners at convention 2016. The chorus thought this was a great idea and eagerly learned the lovely song Impossible Dream to feature in the dream sequence of the show. Told you our shows are not the norm!

One of our members had a dream of her own and that was to be able to perform in 2016. She had been fighting her own battle and when the rest of the chorus was singing on stage in 2015, she was in the operating theatre.

Well, our show was a sell out! We kept the thought of winning all through our convention


FEATURE STORY


rehearsals which Lucy slowly started attending again. She eventually got the all clear so was with us at the wonderful Sage. We did it! Division A gold was ours! Helen, our director couldn’t quite believe it on stage awaiting the results when our name was called. Team Co-ordinator, Anna had to give her a push to wake her up from the dream. We had won!

My husband was listening to the live stream at home and said he heard the first syllable, Rhap... and then a great roar from (me, he said) the audience. All the rehearsals, pushing ourselves out of our comfort zone had worked. The dream, now a reality, meant we could sing Impossible Dream on the show — with the biggest smiles!

Convention was emotional for Rhapsody members for many reasons but the friendship and strength gained from being part of such a great group of women couldn’t have been more visible than when we all shared a meal on the Saturday evening. We sang till we could sing no more and the tears and laughter flowed in equal measure.

Thank you everyone who helped us achieve our goal. Our wonderful director, music team, committee and every single chorus member for believing the dream. A special thank you must go to Sally McLean, our brilliant coach.

Our script writers are already writing our next show. It’s about Rhapsody Chorus appearing on the international stage in Las Vegas — we are good at dreaming!

SURREY HARMONY’S ONE DAYSubmitted by Angela Taylor, Surrey Harmony

We have a new favourite song in Surrey Harmony — we love its uplifting and positive message. It’s the Elbow hit One Day Like This. If it’s good enough for the Olympics, it’s good enough for us! That’s why it was so great to have the opportunity to sing at the Showcase of Champions in Newcastle.

Surrey Harmony is thrilled to be your Division AA Winners for this year, and to be back in the main medal table was the icing on the cake. It was the second contest for our Director Lorraine Turner. “The music team set a goal for point improvements across the four judging categories, and I’m pleased to say we surpassed our goal thanks to the hard work of all chorus members”.

Surrey Harmony had four singers on stage that had never competed before, but plenty of old hands too including one of our founder members Joan Felstead. Our two medals from Newcastle takes her total to 18!

Our quartet Oops! also revelled in their Audience Choice Award and the reaction their Minions package received on the webcast.

Thanks to everyone for a wonderful contest. As the song says, “One day like this a year will see me right”. One day at Region 31 can certainly be uplifting for a whole 12 months.

FEATURE STORY

SPINNAKER’S PERSONAL BESTSubmitted by Tracy Daniel, PR/Bookings, Spinnaker Chorus

This year 72 members of Spinnaker Chorus travelled to Sweet Adelines International Region 31 convention in Newcastle by train, plane, mini bus and car!

Saturday 7th May, we were up bright and early to start our hair and makeup before a light breakfast to top up energy levels for the day ahead. We were due on 4th on stage so we had to be fully dressed and ready to leave the hotel by 8:30am in order to get to our rehearsal venue for a full vocal warm up and final run through. Before we knew it, it was time to go and after a nervous wait for our coach which arrived late, we were on our way. With butterflies whirling in tummies we entered the traffic pattern within the Sage.

Stepping on stage was amazingly exciting; the seven or so minutes to follow would be the finale of months of hard work and preparation. Introduced as being from Plymouth (ooh, just a little unnerving) nothing was going to rock Spinnaker now. First a gorgeous ballad, I Never Meant To Fall In Love then a lively uptune The Moment I Saw Your Eyes, both of which written and arranged by Joe Liles.

The Spinnakerettes could be heard screaming with delight when announced as third place winners overall with our best ever score of 620 points, an improvement of two places on our 2015 position. Watching our new Musical Director, John Palmer, collecting our certificate on stage

with Jill Cook, our President, was fabulous; we were beaming with delight. The result was made even more exciting knowing that friends and family had been watching us at home via the live webcast.

The lead up to this year’s convention had brought its challenges. Our previous director, Jenny Savory, stood down in January so the hunt was on to find her successor. In February, John Palmer (formerly of the Royal Harmonics) was appointed so we had some adjusting to do whilst preparing for convention. We rose to the challenge though and John has fitted in wonderfully to his new role and the Spinnakerettes are learning so much from his wealth of barbershop experience and knowledge.

We’re one big supportive family, a great team with the determination to succeed in the hobby we love so dearly. Winning 3rd place in Newcastle is the icing on the cake for us, it has given us all huge confidence and we are immensely proud of our achievement.


£808Donations as of end of June 2016

WE’RE GRATEFUL FOR ALL YOUR DONATIONS TOWARDS THE WEBCAST TO DATE

Please keep them coming so we could have them again in 2017 and subsequent years!

Go to sweetadelines.org.uk/donate/webcast/

CALENDAR & COACHING DIRECTORY

17-22 October 2016 70th Sweet Adelines International Convention Las Vegas

28-30 October 2016 LABBS Convention Harrogate

12-14 May 2017 Quartet of Nations Region 31Newcastle 2017 Convention Gateshead

ELLIE BLACKEBY • Lace [email protected]

ANNE CARGILL • [email protected]

ALYSON CHANEY • Lace [email protected]

GLENN CHANEY • Lace [email protected]

EMMA DUGUID • Vocal [email protected]

NORMA FERRIER • Forth [email protected]

ELAINE HAMILTON • [email protected]

TANYA JENKINS • [email protected]

NANCY KELSALL • Heartbeat [email protected]

SANDRA LEA-RILEY • Heartbeat [email protected]

DOROTHY MAIN • [email protected]

NICKY SALT • [email protected]

DAVID SANGSTER • Forth [email protected]

VALERIE TAYLOR • Vocal [email protected]

GWEN TOPP • [email protected]

MICHELLE WALKER • Lace [email protected]

LYNDA WOOD • [email protected]


COPY DEADLINE

The next Harmony Rag will be issued in September

Please send all contributions and adverts to [email protected] by 26 August 2016

Rhapsody UK2016 Division A Chorus Winner

The MIX2016 Quartet Champion

harmony rag - sweet adelines international · in this issue harmony rag quartet of nations region...

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