Hi, everyone! This is Sandy, posting now because I like our website to be up to date.
Auditions will be held on Thursday, Jan 8 -- be sure to tell your friends how fabulous we are, if they don't know already.
Rehearsals start Monday, Jan 12. Bring DUES!
The Annual Retreat will be Saturday, Jan 24, 9:30 AM - 2:30 PM.
Happy Holidays to All! (Or Bah, Humbug, if that floats yer boat.)
Monday, December 15, 2008
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Rehearsal Notes Oct 27
Hi ladies,
Here's the rundown on last night's rehearsal:
We started by singing Gloria Tibi, mm 25-49, then sang from the beginning.
We learned the fourth day of Hanuka, then had a very detailed review of the previous days to get it back into our voices. Please make sure you write in your counting, for the rhythms are very tricky, and the meter changes so often. Circle the meter changes so you know when a bar goes from 7/4 to 6/4, etc.
From section B (m. 21) tom. 36 we worked on White Christmas. Very important to review this as well, for the pitches alone might seem easy, until all of the parts are together.
For Allelulia, we sang the piece from the beginning until it got a little hairy (around m. 42), and then did detailed work up to m. 52. Emphasize the "lu" in "AlleLUia," and pay attention to dynamics. Singing one word for a whole piece will sound boring unless there is phrase structure and change in dynamics. Circle the ppp's and the f's.
We didn't get too much done last night, but that was expected because so much time passed since our last rehearsal. We all need to make sure we practice our parts so that we can read through and fix things quickly.
Some other things:
Jessica will be revising the rehearsal schedule. Please make sure you check it out.
If you plan on getting ads, please let Melissa know where you will/will not be going, so that only one member seeks out a business.
If you would like a black folder, please let Catherine know.
She also sent out an e-vite for the potluck dinner, hosted at Margaret Schillings home. Please RSVP ASAP, and if you cannot make/bring something, please let her know.
See you all next Monday!
Melanie
Here's the rundown on last night's rehearsal:
We started by singing Gloria Tibi, mm 25-49, then sang from the beginning.
We learned the fourth day of Hanuka, then had a very detailed review of the previous days to get it back into our voices. Please make sure you write in your counting, for the rhythms are very tricky, and the meter changes so often. Circle the meter changes so you know when a bar goes from 7/4 to 6/4, etc.
From section B (m. 21) tom. 36 we worked on White Christmas. Very important to review this as well, for the pitches alone might seem easy, until all of the parts are together.
For Allelulia, we sang the piece from the beginning until it got a little hairy (around m. 42), and then did detailed work up to m. 52. Emphasize the "lu" in "AlleLUia," and pay attention to dynamics. Singing one word for a whole piece will sound boring unless there is phrase structure and change in dynamics. Circle the ppp's and the f's.
We didn't get too much done last night, but that was expected because so much time passed since our last rehearsal. We all need to make sure we practice our parts so that we can read through and fix things quickly.
Some other things:
Jessica will be revising the rehearsal schedule. Please make sure you check it out.
If you plan on getting ads, please let Melissa know where you will/will not be going, so that only one member seeks out a business.
If you would like a black folder, please let Catherine know.
She also sent out an e-vite for the potluck dinner, hosted at Margaret Schillings home. Please RSVP ASAP, and if you cannot make/bring something, please let her know.
See you all next Monday!
Melanie
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
October 6 Rehearsal Notes
Hi all,
Here's the rundown for last night's rehearsal:
We started singing Over Hill, mm. 1-10.
Then we learned the music and speech parts, starting at m. 23, of the third day of Hanukah. Next week we will be working on the fourth day.
For Hackensack, we quickly sang through the second verse to familiarize ourselves with the piece again.
We rehearsed Zion's Walls, mm. 27-37. Please review these pitches, as the harmonies are not as predictable as Copland's melodies. It might seem simple to sing a single part, but it will be more difficult when other parts are sung at once,
Jessica has suggested to listen to Fanfare for the Common Man to get an idea of Copland's style.
We learned up to m. 41 of Alleluia, and we will be singing up to m. 55 next time, so please look ahead.
For Glimmering, we practiced mm. 17-41. We all need to be aware of our thick NY accents when singing this piece! Remember to avoid emphasizing diphthongs, etc. Next week we will be learning mm. 42-84.
We introduced ourselves to King Kong and Uncle John, the former singing up to 23. We focused on mm. 1-37 oh John but ended up singing through the whole piece.
On Friday, November 14th, we will be having a potluck dinner, hosted by Margaret S at her home. Each part will be assigned a course. Please e-mail Catherine (ctomasi3@gmail.com) with any questions.
Until next time!
Here's the rundown for last night's rehearsal:
We started singing Over Hill, mm. 1-10.
Then we learned the music and speech parts, starting at m. 23, of the third day of Hanukah. Next week we will be working on the fourth day.
For Hackensack, we quickly sang through the second verse to familiarize ourselves with the piece again.
We rehearsed Zion's Walls, mm. 27-37. Please review these pitches, as the harmonies are not as predictable as Copland's melodies. It might seem simple to sing a single part, but it will be more difficult when other parts are sung at once,
Jessica has suggested to listen to Fanfare for the Common Man to get an idea of Copland's style.
We learned up to m. 41 of Alleluia, and we will be singing up to m. 55 next time, so please look ahead.
For Glimmering, we practiced mm. 17-41. We all need to be aware of our thick NY accents when singing this piece! Remember to avoid emphasizing diphthongs, etc. Next week we will be learning mm. 42-84.
We introduced ourselves to King Kong and Uncle John, the former singing up to 23. We focused on mm. 1-37 oh John but ended up singing through the whole piece.
On Friday, November 14th, we will be having a potluck dinner, hosted by Margaret S at her home. Each part will be assigned a course. Please e-mail Catherine (ctomasi3@gmail.com) with any questions.
Until next time!
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
9/22 Rehearsal Notes
Hi all,
Tonight's rehearsal went as follows:
We started by working on Alleluia, mm. 13-25, working backwards by counting (one, two, tee, four) and then singing it from the beginning.
For Hanuka, we reviewed pitches/rhythms from last week and worked on some new material, mm. 15-24. Please write in your counting, paying close attention to the meter changes. You have two weeks to do this, and Jessica will be checking (just kidding)!
We sang through the beginning of Glimmering, then emphasizing up to m. 16. After, we read through the remainder of the piece. Jessica said that the practice tracks will be up tomorrow.
For Zion's Walls we reviewed the material from last week/week before last.
We worked on the first four days of The Twelve Days of Christmas. Don't worry, we will get music for the other eight. :)
White Christmas is very tricky: please go over your pitches so that we can solidify the chords. We worked on 13-20 and then sang from the beginning.
We reviewed Gloria Tibi, up to m. 23.
Jessica introduced Over Hill, Over Dale and we did a read through of the piece.
After we finished signing, Melissa discussed some of the basics for advertising:
Three sizes, three prices: Business card: $40, Medium: 70, Large:100. Checks can be made out to Bella Voce Inc, and all questions/info can be sent to Melissa: melissa_grober@yahoo.com. Please let her know if/where you plan on going. Deadline is Monday, 11/17. This is not mandatory, but always encouraged.
On Thursday there is an open board meeting: any member can attend. 7:30 at Beth Elohim.
Remember, we are not meeting next week in observance of Rosh Hashanah. For those who celebrate, enjoy!
See you in two weeks!
Melanie
Tonight's rehearsal went as follows:
We started by working on Alleluia, mm. 13-25, working backwards by counting (one, two, tee, four) and then singing it from the beginning.
For Hanuka, we reviewed pitches/rhythms from last week and worked on some new material, mm. 15-24. Please write in your counting, paying close attention to the meter changes. You have two weeks to do this, and Jessica will be checking (just kidding)!
We sang through the beginning of Glimmering, then emphasizing up to m. 16. After, we read through the remainder of the piece. Jessica said that the practice tracks will be up tomorrow.
For Zion's Walls we reviewed the material from last week/week before last.
We worked on the first four days of The Twelve Days of Christmas. Don't worry, we will get music for the other eight. :)
White Christmas is very tricky: please go over your pitches so that we can solidify the chords. We worked on 13-20 and then sang from the beginning.
We reviewed Gloria Tibi, up to m. 23.
Jessica introduced Over Hill, Over Dale and we did a read through of the piece.
After we finished signing, Melissa discussed some of the basics for advertising:
Three sizes, three prices: Business card: $40, Medium: 70, Large:100. Checks can be made out to Bella Voce Inc, and all questions/info can be sent to Melissa: melissa_grober@yahoo.com. Please let her know if/where you plan on going. Deadline is Monday, 11/17. This is not mandatory, but always encouraged.
On Thursday there is an open board meeting: any member can attend. 7:30 at Beth Elohim.
Remember, we are not meeting next week in observance of Rosh Hashanah. For those who celebrate, enjoy!
See you in two weeks!
Melanie
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
9/15 Rehearsal Notes
Hi everyone,
Nice rehearsal yesterday, wasn't it? It feels so good to be making music with all of you again. :)
Here's the run-down on last nights rehearsal:
We started by counting (one and two and tee and four and...) mm. 1-12 of Alleluia. Next week we will be working up until measure 25.
Hanuka is a really interesting work so far, and we sang through mm. 1-13, with all of us learning the soprano section: mm. 7-13. There will be no practice tracks to this piece, for there are too many speech segments.
We worked backwards on the whole first verse of Hackensack.
For Zion's Walls, we reviewed the section from last week to clean up the pitches.
Jessica introduced White Christmas, and we practiced mm. 1-12.
For next week:
Glimmering up to measure 16, review Hackensack, next 8 measures of White Christmas, and up to 25 on the Alleluia.
By next Monday, please pay your dues. If you would like to drop out and get a full refund, please let Jessica know by that day as well.
Here are the definite dates for the concerts and tentative (?) dress rehearsals:
11/30: dress @ Church of the Good Shepard, Bay Ridge
12/7: concert, 3pm, CGS.
12/11: dress @ St. Saviors, Park Slope
12/13: concert, 3pm, SS.
Also, I am still getting used to using GMail, and I did skip over some messages last week by accident. Please be patient if I don't respond to you right away.
See you next time. :)
Melanie
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Rehearsal Notes 9/8/08
Hi ladies,
So nice to see all of you on Monday evening!
As Jessica said, you will be receiving weekly e-mails from me regarding the previous rehearsal. I do this so that every one of you can review the material rehearsed, know what's planned for next week and so that the absentees from the last rehearsal have an idea of what they missed. I try to be as specific as I can, but if you do have any questions, feel free to write.
I also take attendance in advance for rehearsals. Jessica makes notes of what to rehearse depending on who is there. If we are missing too many singers from one section, it is easier for her to plan ahead. Please send me an e-mail if you will be missing practice. If it is Monday and you need to miss last minute, please send me a text message (preferably) or call me: 917.587.4601.
Here is what we did on Monday:
We had a nice warm-up to get our voices back into gear.
We read a read through Alleluia, the first two pages of Gloria Tibi, and pages 3-6 of Zions Walls.
After, the board was introduced and we discussed the formation of fund raising, advertising and reception committees.
If you would like to be involved with the advertising committee, please see Melissa Grober right after rehearsal on September 22nd.
On September 25th at 7:30 there is going to be an open board meeting at the same place we rehearse.
Cookies and drinks followed with an opportunity to meet and greet. Thanks Jessica! :)
If you did not pay the full amount of your dues, please do do ASAP, or at least have the $15.00 to cover sheet music costs.
See you next Monday!
Melanie
So nice to see all of you on Monday evening!
As Jessica said, you will be receiving weekly e-mails from me regarding the previous rehearsal. I do this so that every one of you can review the material rehearsed, know what's planned for next week and so that the absentees from the last rehearsal have an idea of what they missed. I try to be as specific as I can, but if you do have any questions, feel free to write.
I also take attendance in advance for rehearsals. Jessica makes notes of what to rehearse depending on who is there. If we are missing too many singers from one section, it is easier for her to plan ahead. Please send me an e-mail if you will be missing practice. If it is Monday and you need to miss last minute, please send me a text message (preferably) or call me: 917.587.4601.
Here is what we did on Monday:
We had a nice warm-up to get our voices back into gear.
We read a read through Alleluia, the first two pages of Gloria Tibi, and pages 3-6 of Zions Walls.
After, the board was introduced and we discussed the formation of fund raising, advertising and reception committees.
If you would like to be involved with the advertising committee, please see Melissa Grober right after rehearsal on September 22nd.
On September 25th at 7:30 there is going to be an open board meeting at the same place we rehearse.
Cookies and drinks followed with an opportunity to meet and greet. Thanks Jessica! :)
If you did not pay the full amount of your dues, please do do ASAP, or at least have the $15.00 to cover sheet music costs.
See you next Monday!
Melanie
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Updates from Jessica
Hi again,
A few other things:
- scholarship applications are due tomorrow (Monday Feb 4) at the rehearsal, or you can email them to me during the day. I won't accept any applications after rehearsal tomorrow night.
- the concert tracks (from December's concert) are on the website - the link may still say "Spring 07 concert", but it's the december one. If May's concert still comes up, just hit the refresh button. Also, we should have the practice tracks up sometime today (for new people, the password to get into the members only section is "jabberwocky"). If you're having any trouble getting into the site, let me know.
- I haven't heard from some of you in regard to the extra concerts (mentioned in the email below). Please let me know as soon as you can!
- if you haven't done so already, please bring your dues to tomorrow's rehearsal: $150 for the semester, which includes all music fees.
- the retreat next Saturday starts at 9:30 with coffee and warm-ups, and should end around 1:30 or so. Location:
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
4th Avenue between 74th and Bay Ridge Parkway
(R train to 77th Street- be sure to take the R and not the N)
The entrance is *not* the main church, but instead the building attached to the church - to the right as you're looking at the red main doors of the church. Go down the little walkway to the door there, and we'll be upstairs. We'll have signs too, so you shouldn't get lost!
See you all tomorrow night, and a reminder to please let Melanie know if you won't be there for some reason. Thanks, and have a great day!
Jessica
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