Message to Membership – February 16, 2023
Message from the Music Director
Dear Chorale,
The end is near! With only two rehearsals left (2/18 and 2/20) before our dress rehearsal, we are in a very good position heading into production week for this concert! Much was accomplished this past Monday night in our rehearsal, and I continue to be very happy with our sound & progress. As we look to Saturday, I want to impress upon the tenors and basses to be looking at movement three of the credo. This is by far the weakest area in our program, and we will spend significant time on it. This will take place during the last half an hour of Saturday’s rehearsal, at which time the sopranos and altos will be excused.
I want to also acknowledge the flurry of activity going on behind the scenes this week in preparation for our concert next week. You all need to know that there are “many hands“ working to make this a success, and I am eternally grateful!
Lastly, I want to let you know about a great experience I had last night at UConn working with singers from the gospel choir, Voices of Freedom. Their Director (Lisa Clayton – one of our guest sopranos) allowed me the opportunity to talk about the Genesis of the concert, as well as the composers. All of them were very interested in the project, and even those who won’t be with us next week sang along when we rehearsed “every pilgrim has a mountain.“ The experience was so positive, that we even got a few more singers to commit to the project on the spot! I will be making similar visits to the singers at Bloomfield high school on Friday afternoon, and to the Choir School of Hartford next week, all in preparation for them joining us on stage next week Thursday night. All told, there will be almost 30 additional singers joining us, ranging in age from middle school up to college. I look forward to you all giving these young people the warm welcome that our group is known for, and helping them all feel at home with us on stage.
If you haven’t figured this out yet, all aspects of this concert (organizationally and artistically) are about creating opportunities for collaboration and inclusion. Given that this is something Margaret Bonds was never afforded, our efforts here are completely intentional, and I am so proud of what this organization has decided to support. It’s time for us to be the model to show other organizations what is possible.
The end is near! With only two rehearsals left (2/18 and 2/20) before our dress rehearsal, we are in a very good position heading into production week for this concert! Much was accomplished this past Monday night in our rehearsal, and I continue to be very happy with our sound & progress. As we look to Saturday, I want to impress upon the tenors and basses to be looking at movement three of the credo. This is by far the weakest area in our program, and we will spend significant time on it. This will take place during the last half an hour of Saturday’s rehearsal, at which time the sopranos and altos will be excused.
I want to also acknowledge the flurry of activity going on behind the scenes this week in preparation for our concert next week. You all need to know that there are “many hands“ working to make this a success, and I am eternally grateful!
Lastly, I want to let you know about a great experience I had last night at UConn working with singers from the gospel choir, Voices of Freedom. Their Director (Lisa Clayton – one of our guest sopranos) allowed me the opportunity to talk about the Genesis of the concert, as well as the composers. All of them were very interested in the project, and even those who won’t be with us next week sang along when we rehearsed “every pilgrim has a mountain.“ The experience was so positive, that we even got a few more singers to commit to the project on the spot! I will be making similar visits to the singers at Bloomfield high school on Friday afternoon, and to the Choir School of Hartford next week, all in preparation for them joining us on stage next week Thursday night. All told, there will be almost 30 additional singers joining us, ranging in age from middle school up to college. I look forward to you all giving these young people the warm welcome that our group is known for, and helping them all feel at home with us on stage.
If you haven’t figured this out yet, all aspects of this concert (organizationally and artistically) are about creating opportunities for collaboration and inclusion. Given that this is something Margaret Bonds was never afforded, our efforts here are completely intentional, and I am so proud of what this organization has decided to support. It’s time for us to be the model to show other organizations what is possible.
Jack Anthony Pott
Message from the Executive Director
Dear Chorale,
I hope everyone has had a great week and is looking forward to production week!
Several members asked so I wanted to confirm that Saturday’s rehearsal will be scheduled as a regular rehearsal with a 15-minute break in the middle. Rehearsal runs from 11 AM – 2 PM.
An Important Announcement to all woman in the chorale-that we are looking for loaner dresses and jackets that have not made it back to Mary Ann’s closet! If anyone has an extra dress they can loan (another size too small or too big) PLEASE bring it to our Snow date rehearsal this Saturday!
If you still have not purchased your tickets, please do so! The member discount code is CHORALEFAN and the link is below.
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Discover upcoming shows and concerts at the Bushnell. Get your tickets today!
bushnell.org
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Thank you to everyone, both on stage and off stage, who are helping to make this show a success!
Emily