Thanks to everyone for turning up in good time and finding your places. It was good to have this framework as a basis from which to work, and, as you can imagine, it was not a simple process positioning over 50 people in a constricted area. It all worked out well with a few tweaks, people missing who should have been there, and people present who won’t be there for the concert.
Eamonn was happy and stress-free from that point of view!
Standing facing the other way with the amplification in place gave us a different perspective and sound. We will have this set up from now on (that would make a good song title!) until the concert so that it will become familiar.
The clear message from last night was WATCH EAMONN.
However, it is not good enough to watch him but to respond to his directions, especially at the crucial cut-offs he clearly shows. Some voices could still be heard holding long notes when they should be short. Take note! You know who you are!
We all know the songs now and the notes to sing, although sometimes the Basses sing the right notes, they belong to the Sops! Basses, and sometimes Tenors, when you should be singing harmony, and it feels too easy, you are probably singing the tune!
It is all down to performance now. The more you practice, the more familiar the words and music will become, and you will then have the confidence to look up, watch, and be guided by Eamonn. As you can see from last night's performance, he puts his all into it and encourages us to bring out our best performance. We need to embrace his energy in our performances.
Unity is strength... when there is teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved.
Hints & Tips
Are we a pleasure to watch? Not quite Eammon!
Looking as if you are enjoying it will lift your performance and add to our audience's pleasure.
Watch Eamonn as much as possible.
Obey his commands, especially at the cut-offs, the start and endings. He will indicate loud and soft, fast and slow, where each of the different parts come in and, of course, where to breathe and when not to!
Tell the Story
Every song has its story, so it is important to enunciate the words. Express them and make the audience feel like it’s the first time they’ve heard them. Keep the songs bright and intense.
Listen to each other.
Be aware of the voices around you and know when to come in with your part, but don’t be seduced by the tune!
Hold your beautiful black folders.
Keep your folders just above waist height, slightly away from your body. This will allow you to look up and down easily with your eyes and not nod your head!
It will naturally open your chest and enable you to squeeze those oranges when appropriate.
I don’t want to bore you with reiterating the usual mistakes we made last night. You either know what to correct, or you can refer to past blogs with more detailed descriptions.
Act One was completed last night, so the emphasis will be on Act Two next week. However, when practising, keep Act One in mind and have a refresher now and then so that when we return to it, all will not be forgotten!
If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself!
Food for Thought! One for our next concert?
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