It’s the week before Freshers’ Week, and I’ve spent the past few days getting to grips with the new repertoire for the coming year with the Chamber Choir. I still find this time of the year somewhat daunting, as I’ve written about previously here, but re-reading the post from last year has reminded me about the trick of learning pieces backwards; a vast stack of new pieces to get under the fingers can be quite intimidating.

Getting to grips with it all…

The trouble with learning all the music now is that I now want to start rehearsing it straight away; and yet there’s still the best part of three weeks before the newly-auditioned Chamber Choir will convene for the very first time. It’s frustrating; as I learn the music, I want to start putting ideas into practice, to start working on the trickier bits, but also to start getting those pieces about which I’m really excited off the page.

This year, both Emma (this year’s student conductor) and myself have our work cut out; the February concert falls a week earlier than it did last year, which means we’ll lose rehearsal time, and there’s the added commitment of a high-profile performance the second weekend in December, when the Chamber Choir will perform as part of the inaugural concerts for the new Colyer-Fergusson music building; which is followed on the Monday night by the Choir singing in the University Carol Service. Three performances in three day: phew.  We’ve talked through our plans for the first term, arranged the content of the first few weeks, and got ourselves organised for the start of term. And with my head now full of the notes, phrases, tonal landscapes and the languages in which to sing the new pieces, I want to start them all now.

I shall just have to be patient, and keep practicing the pieces at the piano until the first time we gather. Reading over the entries last year, remembering the way the Choir unfolded across the first few months, I’m starting to get excited again about the forthcoming choral year. Lots to look forward to; follow it all along with us on the blog here.