A MONTH IN MUSIC
After my first month as Director of Music, I can honestly say it has been a
blast. You have all been so welcoming and supportive, and for that I am
eternally grateful.
The choir, Jo and I are still getting to know one another, but even from the
very first rehearsal and service, I could already hear and feel a difference.
With the incredibly encouraging feedback we’ve received, it’s clear that
this is only the very beginning of something special. To quote just two of
the comments we’ve had: “The choir sounded absolutely amazing —
every note felt like an offering,” and “I especially loved ‘Three Kings’ — I
haven’t heard it like that before!” Comments like these mean so much to
us and really affirm the joy of making music together in worship.
News from the Suggestions Post Box!
There haven’t been many suggestions so far — so either you’re very
happy, or you haven’t found the box yet! It’s on the notices table as you
come into church, on the right. I’ll leave it there for another couple of
weeks, so please do take the opportunity to share any thoughts or ideas if
you haven’t already.
New Repertoire
I’ve been searching high and low for more inclusive morning settings and
small anthems and hymns for us to sing, and I’ve found a couple that I’d
love us to try. To that end, I would like to invite you all to a singing
workshop on Sunday 8th February, where we’ll go through the new
pieces together.
We’ll be learning Macmillan’s St Anne’s Mass and “Forgive Our Sins
as We Forgive” (arr. Baldwin), which we will sing during the Ash
Wednesday service and towards the end of Lent. The session will take
place straight after the morning service (around 12.15pm) and will last
around 1–1½ hours — and a light lunch will be provided as a reward for
all our hard work!
Jo and I are also working on providing learning tracks, which will be
uploaded to St Oswald’s YouTube channel, so you can listen and sing
along at home. The more you immerse yourself in the music, the easier it
becomes. A handy trick of mine when learning new music is to sing along
while doing the housework — so brush off those vocal cobwebs while
finishing the washing up! Of course, you’ll have my full support if you have
any difficulties, but I have great faith that you’ll do just fine.