Cheshire Community Chorus

New and Improved Tu Es Petrus link and Concert CDs and DVDs

2010-10-11T12:36:00.000-04:00

Voila. Auditions for the piece will be this Tuesday. You don't have sing perfectly;just try your best.

Concert CDs and DVDs are available for $10 and $20, respectively. See Fran if you want one, and checks can be made out to Cheshire Community Chorus.

See you at rehearsal!

Rehearsal Tonight and Tu Es Petrus Video

2010-09-14T13:29:00.004-04:00

We have rehearsal again tonight, 7pm at the Highlands Health Care Center. Below is the video for the classical sextet we have planned, Tu Es Petrus.

See you all at rehearsal!

Fall Festival and New Season!

2010-09-11T17:43:00.003-04:00

Today the Cheshire Community Chorus performed a set at the Cheshire Fall Festival. We performed a few selections from our spring 2010 concert, Where in the World is the Cheshire Community Chorus. From "Siyahamba" to "New York, New York" we sang our hearts out for the town.

The new season is underway. Rehearsals are every Tuesday from 7-9 at the Highlands Health Center, 745 Highland Ave. Come join one of our rehearsals. This year's concert theme is "The Sights and Sounds of the Season."

Check out "The Choir" on BBC America

2010-09-11T16:53:00.004-04:00

Have you guys seen the show, The Choir? It follows the choral director of the London Symphony Community Chorus, Gareth Malone, as he establishes choirs in places where they don't have them to drum up interest in singing and classical music. He then motivates them to do amazing things, such as perform in the Choir Olympics. It's an interesting program, and it shows that you don't have to be a professional singer to put out good music. If you've got BBC America, you should check it out.

Spring Concert Approaches: Where In the World is the Cheshire Community Chorus?

2010-04-19T16:34:00.004-04:00

Find out on Saturday, May 1st at 7pm as the Cheshire Community Chorus takes a trip around the world through song. This season's concert will be showcasing folk songs, international music, and geographically-themed standards.

The journey begins at Dodd Middle School, 100 Park Place, Cheshire. Ticket fare is $12 for adults and $10 for students and senior citizens. Globetrotting has never been so inexpensive! Refreshments will be available, and the Chorus will be accepting donations to benefit the American Red Cross. Hope to see you there!

New Season! Welcome Back! Also, Fall Festival Moved to Sunday!

2009-09-11T23:15:00.003-04:00

The fall season started, and we jumped right back in with a refresher of the songs we'll be singing at the Fall Festival this weekend. Due to the rain, the festival was moved to Sunday. We're still meeting at the Gazebo at Noon, and we'll still be setting up the information table from 11-3. Be sure to let Kate know if you can still make it so she can get an accurate head count.

Next weekend will be Bob and Kendle's wedding. Take advantage of the CCC calendar. Hard copies were handed out at the last rehearsal, and there's a Google Calendar version at the bottom of this page. Those of you in the know may be able to sync it with their own google calendars.

Now onto the Chorus Update, courtesy of Kate:

Hi Everyone,

It was good to see many of you on Tuesday! I'm sending our first update a little early as we already have two gigs and about a million details to keep track of. Here's this week's update:

1. We worked on our songs for Fall Festival and Bob's wedding. We will sing Love will Keep us Together, God Bless the USA, Beatles medley, Cantique de Jean Racine, and Love in Any Language (with sign language). For the wedding, we'll sing the Beatles and the Cantique.

2. Fall Festival - Meet at the gazebo in Bartlem Park at 12:00pm.. We will sing at approximately 12:15-12:45. Please wear khaki pants and green chorus shirts.

3. Bob's wedding - the wedding is at something? Methodist Church in Trumbull at 11:00am on September 19th. We will meet at 10:30 to get ourselves organized and ready to go. Please wear formal concert dress - long black skirt and long sleeved white blouse for women and black pants and white dress shirt for men. Directions to the church and reception are forthcoming.

4. Dues for the year are $60. Make checks payable to Cheshire Community Chorus and give to Sue Neal (treasurer) by September 30th.

5. Membership Profiles - Please fill out a new form only if you have any changes to make to your profile, especially contact info. I will send out an updated Membership Roster at the end of the month.

New Season Starts in September!

2009-08-21T13:50:00.003-04:00

Get ready to start singing! A new season with the Cheshire Community Chorus is right around the corner. Rehearsals begin on Tuesday, September 8th at the Highlands Health Care Center on Rt 10 in Cheshire. As always, new singers of all voice parts are welcome, and tenors and basses are especially needed. Come share in the gifts of singing and camaraderie with the Cheshire Community Chorus!

Joint Board Meeting and Music Committee Meeting forthcoming.

2009-06-24T20:51:00.004-04:00

Happy Summer, everybody! There will be a joint board meeting for current, incoming, and outgoing board members on Tuesday, July 14th (That's Bastille Day, if you're observant.) at 6:00 at Bill's house. The meeting will start with dinner (outside if weather permits). Drop an email to the mailing list if you need the address.

Also, be on the lookout for a Music Committee meeting tentatively scheduled for late July (possibly the 28th). This meeting will be held either at the Highland Health Center or at Molly's mother in law's house, and it is open to any chorus member who is interested in choosing the music for the coming season.

Chorus Update for the week of March 3

2009-03-10T17:28:00.002-04:00

Courtesy of Kate:

1. All polo shirt orders are due no later than Tuesday, March 17th.

2. Regarding the polo shirts: Some of you have asked questions about sizing. I am unable to get sample shirts from the company. I was told that the shirts run pretty true to size. I'd like to ask a favor of a few present members: Would a few of you bring your chorus shirts with you to this week's rehearsal for a little size show and tell? The sizing won't be exact as the shirt we are ordering comes in unisex sizing only. Marianne tells me that when she was able to order men's and women's sizes when shirts were last ordered. Thanks you!!

3. We worked on Love Will Keep Us Together and Love in Any Language. A note for Love in Any Language - At the end where we split into choir 1 and 2, the first time through everyone will sing the melody - choir 1. The second time through those who will do sign language with me will sing choir 1 and everyone else will sing choir 2. We also ran through Cantique de Jean Racine and Bill Bailey.

4. Homework from Lisa: Work with your CD, especially the Pinkam piece. We will work on Pinkam in detail on Tuesday while we still have Amy. (Have a great vacation Amy!) We will also work on Bill Bailey.

Chorus Update for the week of February 23

2009-03-10T17:12:00.002-04:00

Courtesy of Kate:

It sounds like March is definitely going to come in like a lion. At least they're no longer predicting snow for Tuesday . . . Here's the update for this week.

1. Some member news - I mentioned this at the general meeting, but am including it here in case you missed it or couldn't hear. Liz Hetherington's daughter-in-law passed away a few weeks ago. She had a kidney transplant and experienced complications.

2. We are ordering chorus polo shirts. If you need a shirt, please complete an order form and return to me with your payment by March 10th. I'll place one order for all of us. The shirts run pretty true to size. I am attaching the order form to this email for your convenience.

3. A favor for your Membership Chair - A few members have asked if it was possible to see actual shirts for sizing purposes. Would a few members - 3 or 4 - who already have chorus shirts be willing to bring them to rehearsal on Tuesday for a little size show and tell? Thank you!!

4. We listened to recordings of the Armed Forces Salute, Love in Any Language and Wedding Cantata. We also worked on both the Pinkam and Love in Any Language. We also ran through Love Will Keep Us Together (Lisa says we'll start with this one on Tuesday).

5. Last, but most important - homework from Lisa: Work with your part CD. Review all of Pinkam, especially the first movement.

Chorus Update for the week of February 17

2009-02-24T00:03:00.001-05:00

Courtesy of Kate:

Here's this week's update.

1. We worked on Cantique de Jean Racine, Greatest Love of All, From a Distance, Somewhere Out There, and the Beatles Love Songs medley. Practive everything and don't forget what we've already learned.

2. Next week, Lisa will bring a CD player so we can listen to recordings of Love in Any Language and Wedding Cantata (Pinkam).

3. Lisa also says that we'll tackle movement #1 in the Pinkam as well as work on movement #3 which she says needs help. We should all review movements 2-4.

4. We will have a general meeting after rehearsal on Tuesday. We'll end the rehearsal a little early.

Chorus Update for the week of February 10

2009-02-23T23:53:00.003-05:00

Courtesy of Kate:
Here is this week's update and some chorus news.

1. From Janet -

Sandhya asked me to pass this along...

Daniel Parshotham Desmond made his way into the world at 2:12 on 2/12. Should be an interesting kid! He weighed 7 lbs, 10 oz and is 19 inches long. Mom and baby are both doing well and should be home from Yale some time this weekend.

Congratulations to Sandhya and her husband from the chorus!

2. This week we learned all of the Cantique de Jean Racine. We also worked on the Beatles Medley and For the Beauty of the Earth (sopranos watch - we have harmony). We ran through The Rainbow Connection. Last, we sang through our final new piece - the Armed Forces Salute - in 4 part harmony. Oh, and of course we worked on Pinkam - movements 2, 3, 4!

3. Homework from Lisa - review everything! Notice your trouble spots and don't be afraid to ask questions when you're clueless.

4. There are soprano and tenor solos in the Pinkam piece which Lisa would like to cast by the first week of March. They are not lengthy, but they are vocally challenging.

5. At this week's rehearsal, the men will be dismissed early and the women will remain to begin working on Girlfriend.

Snow Day!

2009-02-03T16:03:00.002-05:00

Rehearsal for tonight is canceled due to inclimate weather. Continue to look at your music, and we'll see you all next week!

Chorus Update for the week of January 27th

2009-02-02T17:31:00.000-05:00

Courtesy of Kate:

Hi Everyone,

Here's the chorus update for this week.

1. We read through our last two new pieces - For the Beauty of the Earth and Cantique de Jean Racine.

2. We also worked on movements 2 and 3 of the Wedding Cantata. Lisa wants us to practice this one and don't give up!

3. We sang through Greatest Love of All.

See you on Tuesday!

Kate

Chorus Update for the week of January 20th

2009-01-24T01:21:00.000-05:00

Courtesy of Kate:

1. We ran through the two new pieces - Beatles and From a Distance.

2. We also ran through Somewhere Out There, Love Will Keep Us Together and Rainbow Connection.

3. We also worked on three movements of Wedding Cantata.

4. We spent quite a bit of time working on the 3rd movement of the Pinkam piece, Many Waters. Lisa wants us to practice it! (Lisa is expecting us to forget - let's give her a pleasant surprise!).

Chorus Update for the week of January 13

2009-01-19T16:26:00.005-05:00

This week, we had a first rehearsal, and basically ran through the pieces we've worked on thus far.

Below I'm including two of our songs, Girlfriend and Love In Any Language, for you to members to listen to in order to get a feel for how they sound.

Link to YouTube video of original version of Avril Lavigne's Girlfriend.

Link to sample performance of choral arrangement of Girlfriend.

Link to a chorus singing Love in Any Language

Link to Sandi Patty singing Love in Any Language

See you at the next rehearsal!

(Edited to fix link 2/17)

Happy New Year!!

2009-01-13T14:48:00.004-05:00

Welcome to 2009! It's not too late to join the Cheshire Community Chorus. If you, or someone you know, would like to take your singing to a slightly more public venue than your shower, then come join us at Highlands Health Care center on Highland Avenue in Cheshire. Rehearsals are still every Tuesday night at 7:00.

Christmas Tree Lighting on the Cheshire Green!

2008-12-04T19:34:00.003-05:00

Date - Sunday, December 7th
Time - Be there at 5:30 - the singing will start at 5:45 - will be over around 6:00 when Santa
gets there.
Dress - Warmly!!!

We will be leading the crowd in some carols until Santa gets there.
If you can make it, come and bring a friend - the more, the merrier. It's a fun time, doesn't take up too much time, and keeps the Christmas Spirit alive in Cheshire!!

Chorus Update for Concert Week

2008-11-20T20:14:00.002-05:00

Courtesy of Kate:

Here's our update for concert week.

1. Homework from Lisa: Practice ! Practice! Practice! Pay attention to words. Watch dynamics! I got caught barreling in on an entrance last night in Promise of Living that was supposed to be soft. Fix your trouble spots. (We all know what we need to work on.)

Dynamics help for those who don't read music:

pp or ppp = extremely soft

p = very soft

mp = soft

mf = medium sound

f = loud

ff or fff = very loud

2. Please arrive at Elim Park at 7:15pm on Friday. We will begin promptly at 7:30pm. We will run the entire concert as we will give it on Sunday. No stopping to fix anything. This is out time to hear ourselves in the performance space, hear the 4 hand piano pieces with both pianists, hear the violinist and work with the sound guy. As I tell my students all the time, we need to listen, pay attention to the teacher (Lisa) and keep the chatterboxes closed. This will get us all home at a reasonable hour.

Concert Information will be in the comments.

See you on Friday!

Come to Our Concert Sunday, November 23rd, and Help Those in Need

2008-11-19T22:47:00.003-05:00

This is just one example of the kind of donation you can bring with you to our Holiday Concert. Can you really say that after being moved so profoundly by "The Promise of Living", that you won't want to share the bounty of harvest with others? Or are you certain that following the "Banquet Fugue", you won't feel the need to provide someone with a new bowl of insect-free consommé?

Don't be caught off guard. Bring a donation with you to the concert, proceeds to benefit the Cheshire Food Pantry.

Chorus Update

2008-11-15T21:02:00.001-05:00

Courtesy of Kate:

Here is this week's update. Please read carefully as there is lots of information as we head into concert week.

***Scheduling Note: Tuesday's rehearsal will be held at Elim Park. Please assemble in the old chapel. We may move into Nelson Hall as the rehearsal progresses as it is available to us as well.***

1. We ran the entire concert on Tuesday. Each of us needs to clean up our own trouble spots.

2. I think we all know that Banquet Fugue needs our attention. Practice! The accompaniment doesn't help with parts. We all need to count and watch Lisa.

3. Lisa says to go over the words. We have the notes now, but are getting tripped up on words.

4. Lisa also says to make sure we support the Glorias in Ding Dong Merrily on High. They're a capella.

5. Continue to review Promise of Living. There is a recording of the piece on the chorus blog.

6. We will be singing at the tree lighting again this year. Fran will give us the specifics.

7. The afterglow party will be held on Tuesday, December 3rd at Sally Ziegler's house at 6:30pm. Please bring an appetizer or a dessert.

8. We will give a short concert for the residents at Highland in December. Date yet to be determined . . .

9. The lyrics to See Amid . . . that I typed up for myself are included in the comments. It spells out what to sing. Please remember that the notations are for my part - soprano 1. Feel free to edit to reflect your part. Thanks to Fran for this idea. It does help.

Holiday Concert Coming on Sunday, November 23rd!!!

2008-11-15T20:51:00.003-05:00

“We Gather Together”
with the
Cheshire Community Chorus

Kick Off the Holiday Season with Songs of Thanksgiving and Joy

Sunday, November 23 @ 3pm Nelson Hall, Elim Park
140 Cook Hill Rd, Cheshire
Tickets are $5 for Elim Park Residents, $10 for non-Residents, $8 for Students and Seniors

Share in the Spirit of Giving by Bringing a Non-Perishable Food Item. Proceeds to benefit the Cheshire Food Pantry

Chorus Update for the week of October 13th

2008-10-17T17:04:00.002-04:00

Courtesy of Kate:

Hi everyone,

Here is this week's update a bit early.

1. We had an inventory rehearsal this week. We ran through every piece in our notebooks.

2. Please hand in Sussex Carol and Wassail Song. They have been cut from the program. Also, please hand in Fall Festival music if you still have it. There are three sets outstanding.

3. Reminder - There are two rehearsals this week - Tuesday night at Highland Health Care and Wednesday night at Elim Park. Both are at 7pm.

4. Homework from Lisa: practice Silver Bells and work with our CDs. Also, women need to work on A Present Fur Elise.

On a personal note, Molly will be sending you the chorus update for the next few weeks. I am having foot surgery tomorrow morning and will be out for 3 weeks. I hope to be back to rehearsal on November 11th. Until then, sing well!

Chorus Update for the week of October 7th

2008-10-11T00:57:00.000-04:00

Here's the chorus update, courtesy of Kate.

Hi everyone,

Here's the update for this week.

1. We worked on Shepherd's Pipe Carol, Rise Up Shepherd and Follow, Time for Praying, One Candle Lights the Way, and The Promise of Living.

2. Homework from Lisa: Work on Wassail Song with the CD. Make sure you know what you're singing in Rise Up Shepherd and Follow. I know I sang several things I wasn't supposed to . . .

3. There is a recording of The Promise of Living on our blog.

4. Change of venue: Rehearsals on October 22, 27 and 28 will take place in Nelson Hall at Elim Park.

5. I am attaching an updated Membership Roster to this message. It is a Microsoft Excel file. I think I have everybody now.

6. I am also attaching two music files to this message. I was playing with my digital recorder at rehearsal on Tuesday and recorded two of our run throughs. They are both soprano and tenor heavy as I was holding the recorder in my hand. And you can hear all of my mistakes . . . One of the recordings is our rough run through of Promise of Living. I thought it would be helpful for everybody to hear what we sound like and I can learn how to use my device in the process.

Enjoy this beautiful fall weekend! See you all on Tuesday.

The Promise of Singing

2008-09-25T00:20:00.003-04:00

Note to the Chorus:

For those of you who would find it helpful to listen to the Promise of Living, you can order a copy of the version that Lisa recommended (sung by the St. Olaf Choir) from Singers.com/ Order that if you want to hear some top notch choral music. In the meantime, here's the New Jersey All-state choir singing a version. It's really gorgeous when you hear how it all fits together.

Feel free to comment (on this, or any other post) should the spirit move you.

Chorus Update for the week of September 16th

2008-09-22T02:22:00.001-04:00

Courtesy of Kate:

Good morning everyone!

Here is the update for this week.

2. I have given Lisa a list of all those who indicated that they'd like to be voice tested.

3. Auditions for solos within full chorus pieces will probably be the last week in October.

4. From Sally: Please return any music from the Fall Festival ASAP if you have not already done so.

5. Fran has practice CDs for all voice parts. pleas esee her if you need one.

6. We read through and/or worked on The Wassail Song, Promise of Living, Angels of Seven, Silver Bells, Star Carol, Good News, I Wonder as I Wander and Rise Up Sheperd and Follow.

Lisa says practice everything! See you on Tuesday.

Kate

Chorus Update for the week of September 2nd

2008-09-14T22:11:00.002-04:00

Courtesy of Kate:

Hi Everyone,

Here's our update for this week:

Bring your dues - $60 - to Louise by September 30th.

Please return your membership profile to me ASAP so I can update our roster for the season.

We worked on the following pieces on Tuesday. Lisa would like us to review so we don't forget what we learned.

Ding Dong Merrily on High

Good News

See Amid the Winter's Snow

Sheperd's Pipe Carol

Sussex Carol

Hanukkah Wish

See you on Tuesday.

Cheshire Fall Festival on Saturday!

2008-09-11T01:25:00.005-04:00

This Saturday is the Cheshire Fall Festival, and the Chorus will be there to help usher in the autumn. We'll be appearing on-stage between 1pm and 1:45, so friends of the chorus, grab some carnival fare and listen to us croon some of the greatest hits of the 50s and 60s before taking a spin on the Tilt-a-Whirl*. Those of you who might be considering joining can get a taste of what we do.

*Tilt-a-whirl subject to availability. The Cheshire Community Chorus is not responsible for a lack of Tilt-a-Whirl or whatever weight gain resulting from overindulging in delicious, delicious carnival food.
For chorus members: We're going to be meeting at the gazebo at 12:30. That's approximately a half-hour before we go on. Those of you with official Chorus polos (the hunter green ones), wear them with khaki pants. If you don't have one yet, no worries, just wear a brightly colored, solid (that's all one color) shirt and khakis. The order of the program will be Joy to the World, Hernando's Hideway, Bring Me up Buttercup, Pretty Woman/You Got It, and Goodnight, Sweetheart. Right now, the weather forecast is predicting cloudiness and possible AM showers. If the events are postponed, we'll let you know through email or the phone tree. I'll try to get a note up here if I can, but assume it's on unless otherwise notified. Hope to see you there, and even if you aren't planning on singing, if you can show up, do. It's a good time.

Welcome to All Our New Members!

2008-09-06T20:17:00.003-04:00

Tuesday was our first official rehearsal for the season , and I'm sure I was not alone in being glad to be back! It was wonderful to see new faces in the chorus. To those of you out there reading this thinking to yourselves, "Oh alas and alack, I saw a flyer and picked up a slip and now I missed the first rehearsal," fear not--it's never too late to join in. Pop in to the next rehearsal at 7 pm on Tuesday at the Highland Health Center in Cheshire and check out the Cheshire Community Choral experience.

We'll also be singing at the Cheshire Fall Festival on Saturday, September 13 between 1:15 and 1:45 pm. Grab some fried dough and a local craft and sing along as we perform some of our greatest hits from the last concert (Rock and Pop from the 50s, and 60s) such as Build Me Up, Buttercup, Hernando's Hideaway, and Joy to the World. You can also get some more information about the chorus.

Check back here periodically for updates!

Cheshire Community Chorus Welcomes our New Accompanist

2008-08-19T13:08:00.002-04:00

We are pleased to welcome our new accompanist, Amy Christman. Amy is the director of choral music at Joel Barlow High School in Redding and also works as a freelance pianist and accompanist for solo musicians and chamber ensembles. We are looking forward to collaborating with her.

New Season Starting Soon!

2008-08-19T12:46:00.002-04:00

We're very excited to announce the beginning of our 2008-09 season! Rehearsals begin Tuesday, September 2nd at 7pm. No previous musical experience is necessary. If you've participated in a music group before, or if you only sing in the shower and are tired of the lack of response, come and join in all the fun. No matter what part you sing--Soprano, Alto, Tenor, or Bass--all voices are welcome and needed.

Check back here for updates and information.

Hope to see you there!