Week two: Going through the second half of the concert songs.
Well, this is how it went:
· Two songs had definite ticks (means Yes! Great! Included!)
· Quite a few had just a tick (means just a little tweaking!)
· Some only had half a tick, like We’ll Gather Lilacs (means a lot of work, especially the exceptionally high notes!) Eamonn's advice to us was to think Julie Andrews. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T29bxIh_krI We'll Gather Lilacs, also called We'll Gather Lilacs In The Spring, is a song by Welsh composer Ivor Novello which he wrote for the hit musical romance Perchance to Dream. Written as World War II drew to its close, the song describes the yearning of parted couples to be reunited. It evokes the joy they would feel when together once again, and the pleasures of the English countryside in spring with its lilac blossom
· Hallelujah was parked in brackets (Oh Dear! means Eamonn would really like to include this, but it needs lots & lots of work!)
· The famous Eamonn ‘Dunce Holes’ need to be avoided (even some of us who are familiar with them fell in!)
· The major faults (like Dunce Holes) had to be marked on our music scores, in blood if necessary!
· Every time Eamonn announced a song from his list there was someone who groaned and moaned. There is danger of having a swear box equivalent for anyone who complains!
· Misbehaviour in the ranks, by person unnamed, was threatened with detention!
There is a lot of homework for everyone!
The Leprechaun, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmgCONoj0ug which I like, but doesn’t seem too popular with some, we actually sang very well (including an Irish lilt!). However, the playing wasn’t to the usual standard (on his own admission), so homework for Eamonn too!
Only six weeks to go – homework with Dropbox tracks each day and we WILL be concert ready.
We can do it!
After a six week break, In Flagrante is back in action with Eamonn O’Dwyer eamonnodwyer.com again at the helm to prepare us for our first concert in over two years. It will be on Thursday 03 March 2022 at Royal Mid Surrey Golf Club.
We are very fortunate to have such a large, well ventilated, and safe venue to meet in. It was great to see so many old friends and new in person and to sing together. There was real buzz in the room as we gathered together
We began with our inevitable warm up to loosen our tongues and then tie them up with tongue twisters! This creates great laughter, and we are relaxed and ready to sing.
In our concert we will be singing some new songs, originally learned during lockdown on Zoom, and some old favourites. We only have eight weeks to prepare and be concert ready!
One of the songs we will be singing is, 'You'll never walk alone' from the film and show Carousel. Marcus Mumford from Mumford and Sons recorded this version in lockdown. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoSsTXahPA8 . All the proceeds went to Grenfell Foundation and War child UK
Eamonn took us through half of the repertoire to get a feel of how much work is needed. We will cover the second half next week. He was pleasantly surprised that over half of the songs are in really good shape. However, that does leave some that need to a lot of homework to be done, where the usual Oohs are flaccid and need to be bright, as do the high notes! A lot of smiling and oranges under the armpits are needed!
It is our responsibility to do our homework to bring us up to Eamonn’s exacting standards. We have the backing tracks we can listen to as we go about our day to help us embed the right notes in the right order!
In Flagrante is the best local choir and is very professional and WILL be ready to perform again.
Shall we?
When In Flagrante was originally formed, one of the first songs we learned was called The Rose. Eamonn O’Dwyer https://www.eamonnodwyer.com composed a beautiful arrangement especially for us and it has remained a favourite of ours and we often include it in our performances.
What is it about the rose makes it endearing and powerful?
The Rose Song
The Rose was written by Amanda Broom and made famous by Bette Midler, who sang it in the closing credits of the film of the same name. It has been covered by many artists, including Conway Twitty and Westlife and, of course our local choir, In Flagrante.
Amanda Broom said she heard a song called Magdalena on the radio and loved the line “Your love is like a razor. My heart is like a scar” and though she didn’t agree with the sentiment at the time, words just rushed into her head and as soon as she reached home, she sat at her piano and The Rose was written in ten minutes
The Rose for Rugby
From the first international rugby match in 1871 against Scotland, England has had the Red Rose emblem. It’s not known why rugby chose the red rose rather than the three lions passant guardant as other sports. It was suggested that it was believed (mistakenly) to represent the English monarchy and therefore England. The story goes back to the Wars of the Roses (1455 – 1485).
However, it was the House of Lancaster that had the red rose which was merged with the House of York’s white rose making the royal English rose red and white. Elizabeth I, who was from the House of Lancaster, continued to use the red rose, so this maybe why the error occurred.
The Rose of Shakespeare
The famous line from Romeo & Juliet “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet” where Juliet argues that if Romeo had another name rather than Montague, he would still be handsome and Juliet’s love and he wouldn’t be a Montague and then she could marry him. Short clip of the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUbaVt7l2f4
The Rose of In Flagrante
Our local choir is blooming and if you can’t wait for us to perform The Rose live at one of our concerts, you can see and hear a clip of a previous rendition. Keep watching for when we next perform and come and hear us, or indeed, join us to sing.