End of 2023 letter from Deborah…..
Dear friends,
Our concert at Bottesford seems quite a while ago now but post concert jobs are still rolling on, almost all done now.
Firstly, I am very pleased to report that we raised £1,184.60 for Macmillan Cancer Support; this includes donations via Just Giving of £128.75. The total income from the concert was £2,007.46. Expenses were £822.86, £337.76 of which was for music hire. This was a brilliant result and I know that Macmillan are extremely grateful, this amount will make a difference; so, a big thank you to every one.
Musically, it was a marvellous occasion. I was particularly pleased with you, the choir, you were so professional, accurate (mostly) and most importantly produced a wonderfully warm sound. So many audience members commented on the choir, saying that they felt all encompassed by this “wonderful, rich wall of sound” floating over the top of the orchestra. Many said that thought it was the best they had heard the choir, that we were in top form. Someone asked me how I produce that quality of sound from you; all very flattering indeed. The Vivaldi was excellent (how I love that second movement), as was the Telemann. I thought the Lauridsen went better at the rehearsal, it was still fine (and the favourite piece for quite a few in the audience) but the out of tune organ did not help the overall effect. Finzi ‘In Terra Pax’ went very well despite a few slips here and there. I know that there were a few deviations from the score during the big ‘Glory to God’ bell-like section; however, this didn’t matter at all and did not detract from the effect that Finzi was looking for – “Make a joyful noise unto the Lord” – we all did that in abundance and that’s exactly what Finzi (and I) wanted. The other dramatic section ‘And Lo,….’ went extremely well and the quiet sections were beautifully sung. The whole performance was extremely moving. A few within the audience said that they just wanted it to go on longer as they loved it so much.
So, it looks like we are doing something right.
Many thanks everyone, it was a concert of which to be proud.
Love, Deborah x