13 January 2026
Dear Singers,
I really enjoyed last night's rehearsal, thank you! We made excellent progress on the tricky final chorus. A special welcome to THIS WEEK'S new members, joining the influx from last week! It's good to have you on board.
Some heartwarming and affirming feedback: On the way out of yesterday's rehearsal one of the basses told me how much more confident he feels about his singing since joining in September. Besides singing regularly now, he owes a lot of that to the weekly warming up session. He was initially a bit sceptical, but has grown to appreciate that although sometimes quirky and daft, they have a serious purpose which contributes to building vocal technique. Even his daughter noticed this when carol singing with him at Christmas!
WHAT WE DID ON 13.01.26
After some fairly sensible warming up (!) which focused on producing the sound 'meee' with a good tone, we spent a hour in sectionals on the Libera pages 130 to 140. The tutti run-through went well and it held together. This is the most challenging chorus of the piece. Although the Sanctus is in 2 choirs, its music is more grounded harmonically and doesn't present so many key changes and accidentals.
The final fifteen minutes were taken up with the Agnus Dei (p104-108) unison melody - tuning was excellent. As an exercise we took turns to sing it in birthday groupings, and by seat rows! There was a variation in the sound quality of the different groups - a natural occurrence, which we will work on and develop......
WHAT WE WILL DO ON 20.01.26
Requiem/Kyrie - p2-16 (Sectionals)
Agnus Dei p104-108
To build on this week's progress we will sing through Libera (p130) at the end of the rehearsal. This slot will become a regular feature so as not to lose the learning.
The composer William Byrd (1540-1623) had some wonderful advice and observations about singing, in 1588:
Reasons briefly by th'auctor to persuade everyone to learn to sing -
1 It is a knowledge easily taught, and quickly learned, where there is a good master and an apt scholar
2 The exercise of singing is delightful to Nature, and good to preserve the health of Man (...this was the 16th century!)
3 It does strengthen all parts of the breast, and does open the pipes
4 It is a singularly good remedy for stuttering and stammering in the speech
5 It is the best means to procure perfect pronunciation, and to make a good Orator
6 There is not any Music of Instruments whatsoever, comparable to that which is made by the voices of Men, where the voices are good, and the same well sorted and ordered
7 The better the voice is, the meeter it is to honour and serve God therewith, and the voice of man is chiefly to be employed to that end
Omnis spiritus laudet Dominum (Praise the Lord with every breath)
Since singing is so good a thing,
I wish all men would learn to sing.
Here is one of Byrd's most exquisite and simplest motets - Ave verum corpus:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3vuU7XAaUM
Happy listening and singing,
Peter