Make ‘Em Laugh! First showcase with the Music Theatre Society

This year’s Music Theatre Society promise to ‘Make ‘Em Laugh!’ at their first showcase of the year next month.

To be held in Darwin’s Missing Link, the shows will include songs from Spam-a-lot, Hairspray, Shrek: The Musical, Chicago and many more.

Tickets are a mere £5, and can be booked in advance from the Mandela building, and will be available on the door on each of the nights; there are more details on the event’s Facebook page here.

Prepare to be both amused and amazed!

And to whet your appetites, here’s the classic song itself, inimitably performed by Gene Kelly and Donald O’Connor.

Chorus of approval

Last night saw the last of the ‘first’ rehearsals in the new Colyer-Fergusson concert-hall, this time the turn of the University Chorus.

There was a general air of wonderment as members came through the entrance lobby into the new hall, waiting to be seated on the new choral risers.

Everyone waits to be seated

First to be seated were the tenors and basses, ably regimented by ‘Director of Choral Seating,’ Steve;

Seating the tenors and basses

Followed by the ladies of the alto section:

The alto section

And finally the ladies of the soprano section:

The Sopranos

And with everyone seated:

Tutti: this year’s Chorus

Now the hard part is over, the work can begin! 🙂

First rehearsals: a look back with the conductors

As the first week comes to an end, the conductors of the various ensembles reflect on their first rehearsals in the new concert-hall;

  • conductor of the University Concert and Big Bands, Ian Swatman, takes a look at Wednesday night’s session and ponders acoustics and the urge to wear slippers over on the Big Band blog, ‘On the Beat.’
  • conductor of the University Chamber and Cecilian Choirs, Dan Harding, considers the joys of singing Britten and stepping in sedate circles over on the choral blog, ‘Cantus Firmus;’
  • conductor of the Symphony Orchestra, Susan Wanless, reviews last night’s rehearsal on the Orchestra’s blog,’Playing Up!’.

Stand by for the last ‘first’ rehearsal with the University Chorus on Monday night…

A week of firsts…

So far, it’s been a week of firsts.

Moving into the new building on Tuesday, Tuesday night saw the first Chamber Choir rehearsal in the new concert-hall.

University Chamber Choir

Yesterday, Day Two of the move, saw the Sirocco Ensemble meeting for the first time this year in one of the upper rehearsal rooms:

Sirocco Ensemble

Following this was the inaugural rehearsal of the newest departmental ensemble, the University String Sinfonia, which became the first instrumental ensemble to use the new hall.

Strings attached: the String Sinfonia

And finally, in the evening, Concert Band and Big Band came into the new building for each of their first rehearsals here.

Band substance: Concert Band

Today is Day Three, which will see the Cecilian Choir rehearsing in the hall this afternoon, followed by the Symphony Orchestra tonight. Which will leave Chorus to meet in the hall on Monday of next week for the first time, and we’ll have run the gamut of all the current ensembles trying out the new building. Plus the development of the building’s social spaces as its furniture is installed.

What an amazing week; and it’s not over yet…

The big day: we’re on the move

The day is here, and we’re moving into the new music building as I write – literally. I’m standing amongst various items of furniture in the new foyer, which we’re gradually dispatching to the various practice-rooms, watching the modular staging being put together that will form a performance area in the new foyer.

As is customary, we’ve been carrying chairs hither and yon; I’m sure that’s in our job descriptions somewhere. And former Music Society President and tuba-player alumnus Chris is back, helping oversee moving equipment from Eliot into the new hall.

Rehearsals will start in the new building forthwith; exciting times beckon… Follow pictures from the day on Twitter.

(Now back to the chairs…!)

Making waves at Medway: meet the new Music Society Committee

This year’s new trio at the helm of the Medway Music Society are feeling very pleased with themselves already; meeting them in the third week of the new academic year, membership is already up on last year’s total.

The man in charge this year is Jack McDonnell, who assumes the Presidency after being Vice-President last year. Vice-President for 2012-13 is Garrick Wareham, and Treasurer is Joe Tinker.

(l-r): Garrick Wareham, Jack McDonnell, Joe Tinker

The trio have once again set the musical life of the Medway campus rolling in continuing their highly successful Tuesday night Band Night and Rockaoke sessions, both of which were instigated last year and continue to attract crowds to Coopers on Tuesday nights. They’ve also set up special deals for Medway’s burgeoning Music Society members with music stores in town, and are hinting at some exciting new projects in collaboration with other societies at the campus that could lead to some large-scale projects in the year ahead.

“We were all over Freshers’ Week,” declares Jack decisively over lunch at the No.1 Cafe, “but there’s still more we can do. With the new BMus course that’s started here at Medway, there’s a bunch of new students we can get involved in the Society. We’ve already got more paid-up members than we had last year; and we want to get them all into Coopers!”

Garrick, meanwhile, is busy co-ordinating the return of the Medway Big Band which, he says enthusiastically, “we’re re-christening the Medway Jazz-Funk Band, which is the new direction we want to go.”

This year, Rockaoke starts next Tuesday from 8pm in Coopers; there’s also the launch of the Universities at Medway String Group, Big Band and Chamber Choir this term. The Society is now taking signups for Battle of the Bands which starts next month, and there’s even a Pub Golf social coming up! Get in touch with them via e-mail.

The Society has an active Facebook page and lively presence on Twitter, and looks set to continue developing the musical life at Medway. Keep an eye out; there’s plenty of exciting times ahead…

New building: latest images

The excitement’s getting almost unbearable, as the date for moving in to the new music building looms ever closer; in the meantime, here are photos from last Friday’s site visit.

View from the foyer balcony towards the Gulbenkian
Looking down the foyer towards stairs to first floor
Rooflight in the concert-hall
View from the balcony behind the audience seating towards choral risers

See a full gallery of all the images from the project, by clicking the album below.

Images