Dear friends,
I was just wondering to myself: What should I do in the morning? I quickly imagined getting together with 60 or 70 of my friends and singing beautiful music and having a blast and sharing it all with a church-full of people. WOW! That would be cool. We should try it...tomorrow as a preview for the 2011-12 Plymouth Choir season. Everyone's invited! Bring a friend. Come on along!
Grace and peace, and many thanks for all you are and all you do!
TT
Sunday, August 21, 2011
August Choir News 8.8.2011
Dear friends,
The only good part of summer being closer to over is that choir season is closer to beginning! I look so forward to seeing you all soon! Here is a quick reminder of some things coming up as we get the year started:
Hope to see you on the weekend!
Grace and peace,
TT
The only good part of summer being closer to over is that choir season is closer to beginning! I look so forward to seeing you all soon! Here is a quick reminder of some things coming up as we get the year started:
- Sunday, August 14: we will sing for the 10:30 a.m. service. Rehearsal will be in the choir room at 9:30 a.m. Let's have an awesome turn-out as we tune-up to sing AMAZING GRACE, THE LORD BLESS YOU and some favorite hymns. (You may remember I am asking you to leave your summer choral hibernation because my parents will be in worship with us, visiting from Ohio, and they did not want to miss hearing our awesome choir!)
- Wednesday, August 24: our first Wednesday evening rehearsal, 7:15-9:30 p.m. We will have the blessing of welcoming many new faces to our choir. YAY!
- Saturday, August 27: our annual choir retreat here at First-Plymouth from 10:00 a.m.- 3:00 p.m. RSVP by August 24 to reserve your spot for the retreat.
Hope to see you on the weekend!
Grace and peace,
TT
Choir Season Coming Soon... 7.20.2011
Dear friends,
It is exciting to think that we are just a month away from the beginning of a new Plymouth Choir season. Rejoining the routine of our Wednesday and Sunday gatherings will be a welcomed addition to my week, and I can't wait to reconnect with our choir family! As we embark upon our third year together, I am grateful for all that we have discovered in our shared mission and ministry thus far, and I am amazed to consider the possibilities of what beautiful opportunities await us. Our service together enriches our spirits. Even as we give our time and energy to our ministry through music, we receive countless blessings for our offerings. I often sense that I leave choir rehearsals with more energy than I brought into them! The space we share has become holy ground-- true sanctuary. This year, we can grow in our commitment to making our choir a safe place to find our voice and to sing our faith.
I was talking with Jack Levick on the phone yesterday, and we both talked about how amazing it is that people sing in choirs in churches. No other volunteers within the church invest as much time in a ministry as a choir member does. No groups in the church meet weekly-- or more than once per week. No other groups within the church have such faithful worship attendance. No other groups within the church have as many longterm, longtime members. Thank you for accepting your call to our choir, and thank you for the many ways you commit to the mission and ministry we share. Fewer and fewer churches have choirs in our time-- less than 40% last I heard. This is, in large part, because of the commitment that is required by members to create a beautiful choir. By contrast, our First-Plymouth Choir is growing year by year, and that is because your commitment, enthusiasm, and spirit have inspired others to come to support and sustain you. Everyone feels welcome to give the best they can. The work we do is holy work-- true sanctuary. This year, we can grow in our commitment to making our choir a true instrument of the amazing grace and unceasing love of God.
Attached to this e-mail, you will find a copy of our First-Plymouth Choir Calendar for the 2011-12 season. There are many exciting services, concerts, and collaborations for us to engage in this year. I am very excited, also, that Donna Harler Smith is coming back to teach voice class this fall-- both for men and women this time. I would encourage you to give yourself the gift of allowing yourself to participate in these energizing and motivating and illuminating sessions. As each of us grows into the full beauty of our individual voice, so does our whole choir grow into its full possibility of beauty. We all come together with confidence in the gifts we have and their value to the group. We also come with humility for all that we can become. The work we do is holy work-- true sanctuary. This year, we can grow-- individually and collectively-- in our commitment to sing our best in praise and thanks to our God.
Not a day goes by that I do not give thanks to God for bringing us here together. May God continue to guide our journey together through a new calendar...and always...
Grace and peace, and many thanks for all you are and all you do.
TT
It is exciting to think that we are just a month away from the beginning of a new Plymouth Choir season. Rejoining the routine of our Wednesday and Sunday gatherings will be a welcomed addition to my week, and I can't wait to reconnect with our choir family! As we embark upon our third year together, I am grateful for all that we have discovered in our shared mission and ministry thus far, and I am amazed to consider the possibilities of what beautiful opportunities await us. Our service together enriches our spirits. Even as we give our time and energy to our ministry through music, we receive countless blessings for our offerings. I often sense that I leave choir rehearsals with more energy than I brought into them! The space we share has become holy ground-- true sanctuary. This year, we can grow in our commitment to making our choir a safe place to find our voice and to sing our faith.
I was talking with Jack Levick on the phone yesterday, and we both talked about how amazing it is that people sing in choirs in churches. No other volunteers within the church invest as much time in a ministry as a choir member does. No groups in the church meet weekly-- or more than once per week. No other groups within the church have such faithful worship attendance. No other groups within the church have as many longterm, longtime members. Thank you for accepting your call to our choir, and thank you for the many ways you commit to the mission and ministry we share. Fewer and fewer churches have choirs in our time-- less than 40% last I heard. This is, in large part, because of the commitment that is required by members to create a beautiful choir. By contrast, our First-Plymouth Choir is growing year by year, and that is because your commitment, enthusiasm, and spirit have inspired others to come to support and sustain you. Everyone feels welcome to give the best they can. The work we do is holy work-- true sanctuary. This year, we can grow in our commitment to making our choir a true instrument of the amazing grace and unceasing love of God.
Attached to this e-mail, you will find a copy of our First-Plymouth Choir Calendar for the 2011-12 season. There are many exciting services, concerts, and collaborations for us to engage in this year. I am very excited, also, that Donna Harler Smith is coming back to teach voice class this fall-- both for men and women this time. I would encourage you to give yourself the gift of allowing yourself to participate in these energizing and motivating and illuminating sessions. As each of us grows into the full beauty of our individual voice, so does our whole choir grow into its full possibility of beauty. We all come together with confidence in the gifts we have and their value to the group. We also come with humility for all that we can become. The work we do is holy work-- true sanctuary. This year, we can grow-- individually and collectively-- in our commitment to sing our best in praise and thanks to our God.
Not a day goes by that I do not give thanks to God for bringing us here together. May God continue to guide our journey together through a new calendar...and always...
Grace and peace, and many thanks for all you are and all you do.
TT
Women's Day in the Choir Loft 7.16.2011
Dear friends,
This is a friendly reminder that all sopranos and altos (whether ever before spotted in choir or not!) are invited to sing in the morning for worship. We will meet at 9:45 in the choir room, then sing for the 10:30 service. We will not wear robes, so dress comfortably in something you wouldn't mind being seen wearing on TV! : )
It will be fun to see you in the morning. And, by the way, thanks to the men who came to sing so beautifully last Sunday!
Grace and peace,
TT
This is a friendly reminder that all sopranos and altos (whether ever before spotted in choir or not!) are invited to sing in the morning for worship. We will meet at 9:45 in the choir room, then sing for the 10:30 service. We will not wear robes, so dress comfortably in something you wouldn't mind being seen wearing on TV! : )
It will be fun to see you in the morning. And, by the way, thanks to the men who came to sing so beautifully last Sunday!
Grace and peace,
TT
A few good men 7.8.2011
Dear tenors and basses,
If you are around Lincoln this weekend and do not have alternate plans this Sunday morning, we need you to come to sing for worship. We plan to meet in the choir room at 9:45 to prepare to sing for the 10:30 service. We will not wear robes, so wear something sorta nice in case they put you on TV. : ) We will sing RISE UP, O MEN OF GOD and I HEARD THE VOICE OF JESUS SAY.
Looking forward to seeing and hearing you soon!
TT
If you are around Lincoln this weekend and do not have alternate plans this Sunday morning, we need you to come to sing for worship. We plan to meet in the choir room at 9:45 to prepare to sing for the 10:30 service. We will not wear robes, so wear something sorta nice in case they put you on TV. : ) We will sing RISE UP, O MEN OF GOD and I HEARD THE VOICE OF JESUS SAY.
Looking forward to seeing and hearing you soon!
TT
Answer: This Sunday 6.17.2011
Question: When do we all get to come together for the last time this season to sing in worship, meeting in the choir room at 9:30, ready to fully immerse ourselves in singing the awesome GOSPEL MASS?
Grace and peace,
TT
Grace and peace,
TT
Culminations and Commencements 6.13.2011
Dear friends,
Even as we are finishing up this choir season, plans are well underway for an awesome 2011-12! This message will serve as an invitation to what remains for us this June, over the summer, and then to initially communicate about our launch in the fall. The full season schedule will be coming your way soon! : ) If you want a sneak peak at the Abendmusik season lineup, take a look at our website, www.abendmusik.org We have a lot to look forward to!
JUNE
Wednesday, June 15-- we have rehearsal for those attending the choir tour to Minneapolis, 7:15-9:30 p.m.
Sunday, June 19-- Plymouth Choir will sing our excerpts (Credo and Agnus Dei) from the Gospel Mass by Robert Ray. We will also sing "Lay Me Low." Call time is 9:30 in the choir room. This is our final choir Sunday of the season.
Wednesday, June 22, we have rehearsal for those attending the choir tour, 7:15-9:30 p.m.
June 24-26: The Choir tour to Minneapolis
Wednesday, June 29 at 7:30 p.m. Abendmusik is sponsoring a Summer Sing of Handel's Messiah. Everyone is invited to this all-community event. No preparation or practice is necessary, just a fun gathering to share in singing some wonderful music! Invite your friends. Soloists include Enoch Ulmer, Becky Shane, Becky Lowe, and Rob McMaster
JULY
Sunday, July 10- Men's Chorus-- we will try to gather as many male singers as possible to sing on this Sunday for the 10:30 a.m. service. Come at 9:30 for rehearsal.
Sunday, July 17- Women's Chorus-- we will try to gather as many female singers as possible to sing on this Sunday for the 10:30 a.m. service. Come at 9:30 for rehearsal.
Wednesday, July 27 at 7:30 p.m.- Abendmusik is sponsoring a Summer Sing of Fauré's Requiem. Everyone is invited to this all-community event. No preparation or practice is necessary, just a fun gathering to share in singing some wonderful music! Invite your friends. Soloists are Jay Colwell and Zuri.
Saturday, July 30 TBA-- Choir room cleaning and painting party! Laurel Muff, our choir liaison, will be in touch with you soon to recruit volunteers to help!
AUGUST
Sunday, August 14- Plymouth Choir sings for 10:30 service. Warm-up beforehand at 9:30. Friends and family are welcome to come sing! (You may wonder why we are singing over the summer-- well it's a bit selfish on my part...My parents and aunt and uncle will be in town that morning, and I hope you will come to sing for them so that they and the whole congregation can have a true First-Plymouth experience! : )
Wednesday, August 24-- Plymouth Choir rehearsals begin!
Saturday, August 27-- Plymouth Choir retreat, 10:00 a.m.- 3:00 p.m.
Grace and peace, and many thanks for the ways you contribute to the music and ministry of our church. As we conclude our second year together and begin our third, I am grateful that God has called us together, and I pray that the spirit will continue to guide us in beautiful ways in the days ahead.
Grace and peace,
TT
Even as we are finishing up this choir season, plans are well underway for an awesome 2011-12! This message will serve as an invitation to what remains for us this June, over the summer, and then to initially communicate about our launch in the fall. The full season schedule will be coming your way soon! : ) If you want a sneak peak at the Abendmusik season lineup, take a look at our website, www.abendmusik.org We have a lot to look forward to!
JUNE
Wednesday, June 15-- we have rehearsal for those attending the choir tour to Minneapolis, 7:15-9:30 p.m.
Sunday, June 19-- Plymouth Choir will sing our excerpts (Credo and Agnus Dei) from the Gospel Mass by Robert Ray. We will also sing "Lay Me Low." Call time is 9:30 in the choir room. This is our final choir Sunday of the season.
Wednesday, June 22, we have rehearsal for those attending the choir tour, 7:15-9:30 p.m.
June 24-26: The Choir tour to Minneapolis
Wednesday, June 29 at 7:30 p.m. Abendmusik is sponsoring a Summer Sing of Handel's Messiah. Everyone is invited to this all-community event. No preparation or practice is necessary, just a fun gathering to share in singing some wonderful music! Invite your friends. Soloists include Enoch Ulmer, Becky Shane, Becky Lowe, and Rob McMaster
JULY
Sunday, July 10- Men's Chorus-- we will try to gather as many male singers as possible to sing on this Sunday for the 10:30 a.m. service. Come at 9:30 for rehearsal.
Sunday, July 17- Women's Chorus-- we will try to gather as many female singers as possible to sing on this Sunday for the 10:30 a.m. service. Come at 9:30 for rehearsal.
Wednesday, July 27 at 7:30 p.m.- Abendmusik is sponsoring a Summer Sing of Fauré's Requiem. Everyone is invited to this all-community event. No preparation or practice is necessary, just a fun gathering to share in singing some wonderful music! Invite your friends. Soloists are Jay Colwell and Zuri.
Saturday, July 30 TBA-- Choir room cleaning and painting party! Laurel Muff, our choir liaison, will be in touch with you soon to recruit volunteers to help!
AUGUST
Sunday, August 14- Plymouth Choir sings for 10:30 service. Warm-up beforehand at 9:30. Friends and family are welcome to come sing! (You may wonder why we are singing over the summer-- well it's a bit selfish on my part...My parents and aunt and uncle will be in town that morning, and I hope you will come to sing for them so that they and the whole congregation can have a true First-Plymouth experience! : )
Wednesday, August 24-- Plymouth Choir rehearsals begin!
Saturday, August 27-- Plymouth Choir retreat, 10:00 a.m.- 3:00 p.m.
Grace and peace, and many thanks for the ways you contribute to the music and ministry of our church. As we conclude our second year together and begin our third, I am grateful that God has called us together, and I pray that the spirit will continue to guide us in beautiful ways in the days ahead.
Grace and peace,
TT
Choir Tour Rehearsals 6.8.2011
Dear friends,
We look so forward to beginning rehearsals tonight to prepare for our upcoming choir tour to Minneapolis! We will meet in the choir room from 7:15-9:30 p.m. tonight and the next two weeks as well. We have a lot of beautiful music to prepare, and we are excited to share it together. : ) For those choir members not attending the trip, though we don't rehearse tonight, we do sing this Sunday for the 10:30 service, and I will meet you for rehearsal at 9:45 in the choir room.
Grace and peace, and many thanks to you all!
TT
We look so forward to beginning rehearsals tonight to prepare for our upcoming choir tour to Minneapolis! We will meet in the choir room from 7:15-9:30 p.m. tonight and the next two weeks as well. We have a lot of beautiful music to prepare, and we are excited to share it together. : ) For those choir members not attending the trip, though we don't rehearse tonight, we do sing this Sunday for the 10:30 service, and I will meet you for rehearsal at 9:45 in the choir room.
Grace and peace, and many thanks to you all!
TT
What a May 5.25.2011
Dear Friends,
You have been such loyal, faithful servant musicians these last few weeks of May, and I am so thankful for your continuing commitment as worship leaders in our congregation. Your concert last week was remarkable! Music Sunday was spectacular! I know this Sunday will be very meaningful as well as we will sing SPEAK, O LORD and PRAISE THE LORD. I will see you in the choir room at 9:45. Jeremy is away this weekend, so I will do my best to be there on time, finishing up from the 9:00 service. If I'm late, start humming and sighing on 'oo'!
I look so forward to another beautiful Sunday Plymouth morning!
Grace and peace,
TT
You have been such loyal, faithful servant musicians these last few weeks of May, and I am so thankful for your continuing commitment as worship leaders in our congregation. Your concert last week was remarkable! Music Sunday was spectacular! I know this Sunday will be very meaningful as well as we will sing SPEAK, O LORD and PRAISE THE LORD. I will see you in the choir room at 9:45. Jeremy is away this weekend, so I will do my best to be there on time, finishing up from the 9:00 service. If I'm late, start humming and sighing on 'oo'!
I look so forward to another beautiful Sunday Plymouth morning!
Grace and peace,
TT
Abendmusik To-Do List 5.16.2011
1. Practice LAUDES ORGANI
2. Practice EVENING HYMN
3. Stream music from our blog so that it may creep in your ears:
4. Buy tickets for your family and friends (buy one get one free if you purchase them on Wednesday night!)
5. Come for rehearsals on Wednesday and Thursday so that we can be fully prepared.
6. Invite all your friends (both real and facebook)
7. Read the translations of both pieces that are printed in your scores.
8. Re-familiarize yourself with the Latin pronunciation, particularly our 5 pure vowels A=AH, E= eh, I=ee, O=AW, U=oo
9. Read this e-mail
10. Stop doing your e-mail, and return to step 1. : )
Grace and peace,
TT
2. Practice EVENING HYMN
3. Stream music from our blog so that it may creep in your ears:
4. Buy tickets for your family and friends (buy one get one free if you purchase them on Wednesday night!)
5. Come for rehearsals on Wednesday and Thursday so that we can be fully prepared.
6. Invite all your friends (both real and facebook)
7. Read the translations of both pieces that are printed in your scores.
8. Re-familiarize yourself with the Latin pronunciation, particularly our 5 pure vowels A=AH, E= eh, I=ee, O=AW, U=oo
9. Read this e-mail
10. Stop doing your e-mail, and return to step 1. : )
Grace and peace,
TT
Coming Attractions 5.11.2011
Dear friends,
Thanks so much for all your good energy tonight as we continued our preparations for next week's concert and also opened up some of the scores for this weekend's Music Ministry Spectacular for the first time. We tend to do such a good job of being fully prepared for worship and performances throughout the year, but this big weekend always seems to catch me a bit by surprise. I apologize that we will be 'on the edge' on Sunday morning more than usual. Having said that, we will have a beautiful and wonderful time together, and we can enjoy sharing with the orchestra and all the other singing and ringing choirs at First-Plymouth. As a reminder, this Sunday, May 15, we will:
Two additional musical events coming up at First-Plymouth that may interest you:
I have been working intently the last few days on my sermon for this Sunday. I want to thank you that you have given me so many chances to 'preach to the choir' in preparation. I pray that the message I will offer in worship Sunday will be even half as meaningful as the message you all bring to our worship each and every week. Thank you, as always, for extending to me the honor, privilege and blessing of sharing in ministry with you. We have a lot to celebrate on Sunday...and always!
Grace and peace,
TT
Thanks so much for all your good energy tonight as we continued our preparations for next week's concert and also opened up some of the scores for this weekend's Music Ministry Spectacular for the first time. We tend to do such a good job of being fully prepared for worship and performances throughout the year, but this big weekend always seems to catch me a bit by surprise. I apologize that we will be 'on the edge' on Sunday morning more than usual. Having said that, we will have a beautiful and wonderful time together, and we can enjoy sharing with the orchestra and all the other singing and ringing choirs at First-Plymouth. As a reminder, this Sunday, May 15, we will:
- gather in the choir room at 8:00 sharp for warm-up and to review some of the hymn arrangements and Come Thou Fount
- sing Climb to the Top of the Highest Mountain with the Choristers, Chorale, and Orchestra at 8:30 in the sanctuary, then practice procession
- sing for the 9:00 service
- eat breakfast in Mayflower and celebrate with Paula Nicholls on the occasion of her retirement from choir (Thank you for your donations tonight towards her Campbell's Nursery Gift certificate)
- sing for the 10:30 service
- Wednesday rehearsal, 7:15-9:30 p.m.
- Thursday dress rehearsal, 7:15-9:00 p.m.
- Friday concert at 7:00 p.m., warm-up at 6:30 p.m.
- Sunday service, May 22 at 10:30 a.m. (warm-up at 9:45 a.m.)
Two additional musical events coming up at First-Plymouth that may interest you:
- An incredible young pianist, Anna Larsen, will play a free concert on Sunday, May 22 at 3:00 p.m.
- Lyric Baritone, Paul Tipton, who was "Jesus' in our recent St. John Passion will sing a recital on Tuesday, May 24 at 7:00 p.m.
I have been working intently the last few days on my sermon for this Sunday. I want to thank you that you have given me so many chances to 'preach to the choir' in preparation. I pray that the message I will offer in worship Sunday will be even half as meaningful as the message you all bring to our worship each and every week. Thank you, as always, for extending to me the honor, privilege and blessing of sharing in ministry with you. We have a lot to celebrate on Sunday...and always!
Grace and peace,
TT
Merry Month of May 5.6.2011
Dear friends,
Thank you for your continued commitment and devotion to our music ministry even during the "temptation-filled" month of May, when many church choirs are abandoned for spring endeavors. It is such a blessing that we can continue to gather together these next few months, still looking forward to a very awesome concert, our music ministry Sunday, and our fun "mission trip" to the Twin Cities in June. It is also a time to treasure our final days in sharing music (at least week by week) with Jeni, Bryce, and Zach, and it was so good to have a chance to celebrate their gifts among us this past Wednesday. Please see below about our coming celebration with Paula.
As we close in on the Organ Plus concert when we sing the Kodaly LAUDES ORGANI and Gardiner EVENING HYMN, I encourage you to spend some time with the blog to get those harmonies and sonorities in your head:
Here are a few updates on events in our choir calendar for you to consider. (You will notice that a few of our pieces have changed from the choir calendar):
Tonight-- Friday, May 6-- Our beloved baritone Charles Muff is featured artist in the First Friday art walk from 7-9 p.m. in the Burkholder Project, Basement, Studio E-- 719 P Street
Sunday, May 8-- Mothers' Day--- we will sing Jack and Deanne's beautiful ALLELUIA and Duruflé UBI CARITAS for the 10:30 service. Please be ready to rehearse in the choir room at 9:45 a.m. (...and, yes, the Plymouth Brass will play "Just a closer walk...")
At 7 p.m., also on Sunday, the Lincoln Lutheran Choir will sing the Fauré REQUIEM as well as a premiere by Lincoln composer Kurt Knecht at Grace Lutheran Church. I look forward to hearing that program. Our friend Josh Norris is the conductor, and Jane and Tami sing with that group. Becky Shane and Bill Shomos will be the soloists.
Wednesday, May 11- rehearsal as usual, 7:15-9:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 15- Music Ministry Sunday-- we will sing for both services, arriving at 8:00 a.m. to prepare. We will sing CLIMB TO THE TOP OF THE HIGHEST MOUNTAIN and COME THOU FOUNT OF EVERY BLESSING. At the breakfast between services we will honor Paula Nicholls who will be retiring from many years of faithful service to our Plymouth Choir. We will take up a collection on Wednesday, the 11th, and if each of us can give $1-$2, we will be able to give Paula a small token gift of our appreciation.
At 3 p.m., also on Sunday, May 15, the Lincoln Civic Choir and many organists from the Lincoln community (me included!) will be performing works of Louis Vierne at St. Paul's United Methodist Church.
Wednesday, May 18-- rehearsal as usual, 7:15-9:30 p.m.
Thursday, May 19-- dress rehearsal in sanctuary with guest organist Andrew Kotylo for concert, 7:15-9:00 p.m.
Friday, May 20-- Organ Plus Concert-- we sing LAUDES ORGANI and EVENING HYMN as the second half, 7:00 p.m. (warm-up at 6:30 p.m.) We will wear bright color tops and black bottoms.
Sunday, May 22-- we will sing A REPEATING ALLELUIA and CHRIST HAS ARISEN for the 10:30 a.m. service (warm-up at 9:45)
Wednesday, May 25-- rehearsal as usual, 7:15- 9:25 p.m. (IOU five minutes from last Wednesday!)
Sunday, May 29-- sing SPEAK O LORD and PRAISE THE LORD for the 10:30 a.m. service (warm-up at 9:45)
Then, there is the Jolly Month of June!...more on that later.
Looking forward to a meaningful and memorable conclusion to a truly beautiful season. Thank you for all you are and all you do.
Grace and peace,
TT
Thank you for your continued commitment and devotion to our music ministry even during the "temptation-filled" month of May, when many church choirs are abandoned for spring endeavors. It is such a blessing that we can continue to gather together these next few months, still looking forward to a very awesome concert, our music ministry Sunday, and our fun "mission trip" to the Twin Cities in June. It is also a time to treasure our final days in sharing music (at least week by week) with Jeni, Bryce, and Zach, and it was so good to have a chance to celebrate their gifts among us this past Wednesday. Please see below about our coming celebration with Paula.
As we close in on the Organ Plus concert when we sing the Kodaly LAUDES ORGANI and Gardiner EVENING HYMN, I encourage you to spend some time with the blog to get those harmonies and sonorities in your head:
Here are a few updates on events in our choir calendar for you to consider. (You will notice that a few of our pieces have changed from the choir calendar):
Tonight-- Friday, May 6-- Our beloved baritone Charles Muff is featured artist in the First Friday art walk from 7-9 p.m. in the Burkholder Project, Basement, Studio E-- 719 P Street
Sunday, May 8-- Mothers' Day--- we will sing Jack and Deanne's beautiful ALLELUIA and Duruflé UBI CARITAS for the 10:30 service. Please be ready to rehearse in the choir room at 9:45 a.m. (...and, yes, the Plymouth Brass will play "Just a closer walk...")
At 7 p.m., also on Sunday, the Lincoln Lutheran Choir will sing the Fauré REQUIEM as well as a premiere by Lincoln composer Kurt Knecht at Grace Lutheran Church. I look forward to hearing that program. Our friend Josh Norris is the conductor, and Jane and Tami sing with that group. Becky Shane and Bill Shomos will be the soloists.
Wednesday, May 11- rehearsal as usual, 7:15-9:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 15- Music Ministry Sunday-- we will sing for both services, arriving at 8:00 a.m. to prepare. We will sing CLIMB TO THE TOP OF THE HIGHEST MOUNTAIN and COME THOU FOUNT OF EVERY BLESSING. At the breakfast between services we will honor Paula Nicholls who will be retiring from many years of faithful service to our Plymouth Choir. We will take up a collection on Wednesday, the 11th, and if each of us can give $1-$2, we will be able to give Paula a small token gift of our appreciation.
At 3 p.m., also on Sunday, May 15, the Lincoln Civic Choir and many organists from the Lincoln community (me included!) will be performing works of Louis Vierne at St. Paul's United Methodist Church.
Wednesday, May 18-- rehearsal as usual, 7:15-9:30 p.m.
Thursday, May 19-- dress rehearsal in sanctuary with guest organist Andrew Kotylo for concert, 7:15-9:00 p.m.
Friday, May 20-- Organ Plus Concert-- we sing LAUDES ORGANI and EVENING HYMN as the second half, 7:00 p.m. (warm-up at 6:30 p.m.) We will wear bright color tops and black bottoms.
Sunday, May 22-- we will sing A REPEATING ALLELUIA and CHRIST HAS ARISEN for the 10:30 a.m. service (warm-up at 9:45)
Wednesday, May 25-- rehearsal as usual, 7:15- 9:25 p.m. (IOU five minutes from last Wednesday!)
Sunday, May 29-- sing SPEAK O LORD and PRAISE THE LORD for the 10:30 a.m. service (warm-up at 9:45)
Then, there is the Jolly Month of June!...more on that later.
Looking forward to a meaningful and memorable conclusion to a truly beautiful season. Thank you for all you are and all you do.
Grace and peace,
TT
Singing on Saturday 4.28.2011
Dear friends,
This is just a friendly reminder from your neighborhood choir guy that we sing for the Saturday service this week to help celebrate Confirmation. Warm-up time in the choir room begins at 4:30. The service begins at 5:30. It will be no longer than an hour. We will sing THIS JOYFUL EASTERTIDE and A REPEATING ALLELUIA.\
Thanks again for a magical Easter week. I look forward to all that awaits us as we complete the season!
Grace and peace,
TT
Thank you 4.24.2011
Dear friends,
You made today's Easter worship as joyful and blessed and holy and whole as anyone could imagine. Thank you for offering your abundant gifts to our choir and our congregation. Thank you for discovering your calling to our shared ministry as servant musicians-- as leaders in the worship of our church. Thank you for the ways you support, inspire, and encourage one another and the congregation. What we do together is much more than singing. Thanks for believing that and making it so. Thank you for bringing all that you are to all that we do. Easter is the culmination of Holy Week, but it is the commencement of all that follows.
Easter means...there is another Wednesday coming! AMENNNNNNN! ALLELUIA!
Grace and peace,
TT
You made today's Easter worship as joyful and blessed and holy and whole as anyone could imagine. Thank you for offering your abundant gifts to our choir and our congregation. Thank you for discovering your calling to our shared ministry as servant musicians-- as leaders in the worship of our church. Thank you for the ways you support, inspire, and encourage one another and the congregation. What we do together is much more than singing. Thanks for believing that and making it so. Thank you for bringing all that you are to all that we do. Easter is the culmination of Holy Week, but it is the commencement of all that follows.
Easter means...there is another Wednesday coming! AMENNNNNNN! ALLELUIA!
Grace and peace,
TT
Thank you 4.21.2011
Dear friends,
Tonight you sounded a lot like the choir I conduct in my dreams. Thank you for being fully present in our offerings to a truly holy worship service, and know that I feel blessed indeed that we have been called together to share in ministry this Holy Week and always.
I look forward to continuing our choir journey Saturday morning. I will be in the choir room at 9:40 if anyone would like a vocal warm-up. We will begin promptly in the sanctuary with the orchestra for our combined Easter rehearsal at 10:00 a.m.
I also hope that many of you can come to experience the St. John Passion tomorrow evening. Our soloists from tonight will be the Evangelist (Brian) and Jesus (Paul), and you will also recognize Pilate (Jeff Keele) from our recent Mozart/Henderson concert. If you have never heard this work, you must not miss this opportunity. If you have heard it before, you will not need any encouragement to experience it again.
Grace and peace, and thank you for being a channel of wondrous, amazing love. Deus ibi est. : )
TT
Tonight you sounded a lot like the choir I conduct in my dreams. Thank you for being fully present in our offerings to a truly holy worship service, and know that I feel blessed indeed that we have been called together to share in ministry this Holy Week and always.
I look forward to continuing our choir journey Saturday morning. I will be in the choir room at 9:40 if anyone would like a vocal warm-up. We will begin promptly in the sanctuary with the orchestra for our combined Easter rehearsal at 10:00 a.m.
I also hope that many of you can come to experience the St. John Passion tomorrow evening. Our soloists from tonight will be the Evangelist (Brian) and Jesus (Paul), and you will also recognize Pilate (Jeff Keele) from our recent Mozart/Henderson concert. If you have never heard this work, you must not miss this opportunity. If you have heard it before, you will not need any encouragement to experience it again.
Grace and peace, and thank you for being a channel of wondrous, amazing love. Deus ibi est. : )
TT
Holy, Holy, Holy Week 4.20.2011
Dear friends,
What a beautiful week of worship services we will experience at First-Plymouth- thanks, in many ways, to your offerings. As a reminder, here is our agenda for the week.
Wednesday (today), 7:15-9:30 p.m. rehearsal in choir room (to prepare all music for Maundy Thursday and Easter)
Maundy Thursday worship (tomorrow), assemble in choir room at 6:30 to warm-up; service at 7:00 p.m.
choral anthems include CALVARY and UBI CARITAS; service music to be distributed this evening
Good Friday worship including Bach's St. John Passion at 7:00 p.m. (sung by ABENDCHOR and Lincoln Symphony Orchestra)
Saturday, Easter Dress Rehearsal, 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. in sanctuary
Holy Saturday, Easter Vigil at 5:30 p.m. (sung by Cantorei)
Sunday Easter Services-- assemble in choir room by 7:30 a.m. to sing for 8:00, 9:30 and 11:00 services.
choral anthems include WORTHY IS THE LAMB and CHRISTUS PARADOX; service music to be distributed this evening
I look forward to sharing in all of this with each of you. Thank you for the many ways you contribute to this meaningful, holy season.
Grace and peace,
TT
What a beautiful week of worship services we will experience at First-Plymouth- thanks, in many ways, to your offerings. As a reminder, here is our agenda for the week.
Wednesday (today), 7:15-9:30 p.m. rehearsal in choir room (to prepare all music for Maundy Thursday and Easter)
Maundy Thursday worship (tomorrow), assemble in choir room at 6:30 to warm-up; service at 7:00 p.m.
choral anthems include CALVARY and UBI CARITAS; service music to be distributed this evening
Good Friday worship including Bach's St. John Passion at 7:00 p.m. (sung by ABENDCHOR and Lincoln Symphony Orchestra)
Saturday, Easter Dress Rehearsal, 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. in sanctuary
Holy Saturday, Easter Vigil at 5:30 p.m. (sung by Cantorei)
Sunday Easter Services-- assemble in choir room by 7:30 a.m. to sing for 8:00, 9:30 and 11:00 services.
choral anthems include WORTHY IS THE LAMB and CHRISTUS PARADOX; service music to be distributed this evening
I look forward to sharing in all of this with each of you. Thank you for the many ways you contribute to this meaningful, holy season.
Grace and peace,
TT
New Beginnings in Plymouth Choir 4.4.2011
Dear friends,
Thank you all for taking us to the mountaintop on Sunday for a once-in-a-lifetime-kind of experience. Your passionate and spirited commitment to the process and to the project was inspirational to me and to the many who came to share in our special day. I could see and feel you each pouring your heart and soul into the performance. I was sweating by the end of the "Kyrie" from your sheer energy and connectedness (and, by the way, I don't remember ever sweating in a performance before...unless it was hot in the church, I mean!). I realized I stopped breathing for a while near the end of the Lacrymosa and had to bring myself back to earth. Thank you for bringing and being such light to my life! I am overwhelmed with gratitude today for each of you, for Jeremy, for the soloists, for the instrumentalists, and for each person who made FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT on April 3, 2011 a singular event in the history of the world. Thank you for being a gift to treasure!
The exciting thing about a liturgical choir, though, is that once we culminate one thing-- even an incredibly, extraordinary one thing, we commence the next...and so it is. We will gather this first Wednesday in April to begin our preparations for the journey from Holy Week to Easter. I look forward to sharing some new (and some much-beloved!) music together. As a reminder, the women of the choir will sing worship this Sunday, gathering at 9:30 in the choir to prepare their pieces. Thanks to the men for a beautiful morning yesterday!
Also this week, we have the opportunity to hear our own Jeni Houser perform her masters recital on Friday evening, April 8 at 7:30 p.m. at UNL's Kimball Recital Hall. Don't miss this unique opportunity to enjoy and celebrate Jeni's presence in our community. She has been a bright light among us these last few years, and she knows she will always have a chair with a post-it note anytime she would stop by to visit once she moves this summer! : )
Finally, if you would like to gather together to hear a recording of our performance from Sunday, we will play Mozart this Wednesday in the choir room beginning around 6:30, and we will play the Ruth Watson Henderson piece next Wednesday at the same time. I will be honest that the recordings are glorious-- and make me feel even more confident about what we achieved 'in the moment' on Sunday.
We hope to see Russ and John and Emily and Michelle and Stephen and Sadie and and Lori and Karin and Linda and Dennis and Julie, and Joan and Jon and Paula and Bryce and Seth back in the choir this week. We look forward to welcoming Penny and Ayndrea to the choir this week as well! Thanks be to God that our family grows!
Grace and peace, and many thanks for all you are and all you do!
TT
Thank you all for taking us to the mountaintop on Sunday for a once-in-a-lifetime-kind of experience. Your passionate and spirited commitment to the process and to the project was inspirational to me and to the many who came to share in our special day. I could see and feel you each pouring your heart and soul into the performance. I was sweating by the end of the "Kyrie" from your sheer energy and connectedness (and, by the way, I don't remember ever sweating in a performance before...unless it was hot in the church, I mean!). I realized I stopped breathing for a while near the end of the Lacrymosa and had to bring myself back to earth. Thank you for bringing and being such light to my life! I am overwhelmed with gratitude today for each of you, for Jeremy, for the soloists, for the instrumentalists, and for each person who made FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT on April 3, 2011 a singular event in the history of the world. Thank you for being a gift to treasure!
The exciting thing about a liturgical choir, though, is that once we culminate one thing-- even an incredibly, extraordinary one thing, we commence the next...and so it is. We will gather this first Wednesday in April to begin our preparations for the journey from Holy Week to Easter. I look forward to sharing some new (and some much-beloved!) music together. As a reminder, the women of the choir will sing worship this Sunday, gathering at 9:30 in the choir to prepare their pieces. Thanks to the men for a beautiful morning yesterday!
Also this week, we have the opportunity to hear our own Jeni Houser perform her masters recital on Friday evening, April 8 at 7:30 p.m. at UNL's Kimball Recital Hall. Don't miss this unique opportunity to enjoy and celebrate Jeni's presence in our community. She has been a bright light among us these last few years, and she knows she will always have a chair with a post-it note anytime she would stop by to visit once she moves this summer! : )
Finally, if you would like to gather together to hear a recording of our performance from Sunday, we will play Mozart this Wednesday in the choir room beginning around 6:30, and we will play the Ruth Watson Henderson piece next Wednesday at the same time. I will be honest that the recordings are glorious-- and make me feel even more confident about what we achieved 'in the moment' on Sunday.
We hope to see Russ and John and Emily and Michelle and Stephen and Sadie and and Lori and Karin and Linda and Dennis and Julie, and Joan and Jon and Paula and Bryce and Seth back in the choir this week. We look forward to welcoming Penny and Ayndrea to the choir this week as well! Thanks be to God that our family grows!
Grace and peace, and many thanks for all you are and all you do!
TT
Monday, April 4, 2011
Rehearsal Notes 4.2.2011
Dear friends,
Your spirits were beginning to inhabit our music making today, and what an inspiration that is! : ) Our ongoing challenge (and opportunity!) is to stay within the ensemble and to allow the energy of our singing to emerge from within. As you practice in these final hours, reflect mostly on the spirit of each movement and what the chorus is called to convey and communicate. Allow your imagination to inspire your body to inspire your spirit to sound these wildly contrasting and meaningful phrases. Think about all the scope and sequence of this drama we enact through the colour of the vocal and spiritual space we paint:
Domine Jesu Christe...REX GLORIAE
Libera eas... DE ORE LEONIS
exAUdi
osanna eeen eckshelsis!
LacrymAWsah...qua..re...sur...
ad vi-----tam
quantus tremor est futurus (I'll get you my pretty....)
salva me!
CONFUTATIS.... voca me cum benedictis
TIBI... dawmeeneh
A few general housekeeping items:
1. Concert dress is ALL black from horn to hoof. LONGsleeve. No gawdy, distracting jewelry. Please do not smell fragrant or bad...just be clean.
2. Please do not turn pages as you listen to the solo movements. Allow the audience to stay focused on the action in front of you.
3. We will meet downstairs in Mayflower Hall at 3:00 p.m. Please be on time so that we can make the most of our final preparation and focusing time.
A few musical ideas to process in your personal practice:
REQUIEM movement 1:
1. around letter C-- the consonants of Caro and Veniet are invisible so far. Can you share them with conviction and intention?
2. At the KYRIE (Allegro), please know that when you concentrate on projecting your beginning Ks and CRs and your concluding N's, it is SUPER EXCITING and AWESOME! Other entrances are ordinary, so let's accept the opportunity to make them all extraordinary. These are the ones I had trouble hearing today: Altos at F, tenors at 4 after F, sopranos 4 after G, tenors at H, Altos 1 after K, altos 3 after M
3. Altos and tenors-- please bring out your Ks and your dotted rhythms (sing like brass instruments with incisive energy) 2 before M and 4 after N)-- TURBO altos and tenors here, please! These must be dynamic and fully- engaged. GO FOR IT! PUT IT ALL OUT THERE!
DIES IRAE movement 2
1. saecluMIH-- capital M! Just DO IT!
2. At O, tenors, can you sing out more with solo colour (remember when I asked you to be real tenors later in the rehearsal?-- well, like that!) in the melodies you have here (when you are singing in canon with the sopranos) TURBO TENORS!
3. sopranos-- 3 before R, STRicte-- be careful not to have a bright, puny vowel. Have a deep, rich, full EEEEE.
4. ALL-- your consonants in this movement are close to AWESOME... Let's get there tomorrow! An example of something improvable-- Quantus or Quando-- the KW at the start is often invisible.
5. Football cheer between S and T is JUST RIGHT!
REX TREMENDAE movement 4
1. PLEASE do not underestimate the power of an intense RRRRRRRRR at the beginning of each REX--- particularly when you have them in ms. 15 (3 before W) and tenors and basses in the section at V, sopranos and altos in the section at U-- we miss them most when we have them on our individual SATB lines. ALWAYS do more than you think is enough. Be generous! Gracious! Overflow with consonants!
2. In the last 3 measures-- use more air for the consonant F-- "fons", then more P (the f-sounding p) for the consonant to start "pietatis"-- this phrase wants to sound desperate, pathetic...
CONFUTATIS movement 6
1. Women at A and C, your Vs are invisible. Sing them beautifully and simply to begin the flowing lines.
2. Men at the beginning and at B-- please feed your small notes. Be sure they have sonic space and generous tone.
DOMINE JESU, movement 8
1. Hooray for the Turbo tenors at M-- sing on your hind legs here. Then come the turbo Altos AWESOME! Great Ts in the section at N-- thank you!
2. Practice your dynamics in the "quam olim abrahae" fugue.
HOSTIAS movement 9:
1. Practice your vowels-- the most gorgeous imaginable tone. Practice your phrasing and expression of each and every phrase. It's all there for you. Make those markings come to life. Be willing to sing true-- not just loud.
2. Sopranos and tenors-- 4 after Z, please start your pitch softer, and let it grow over the barline, beginning on beat 3. We need to hear the moving lines in the alto and bass beneath you more here.
3. Remember how it feels to sing the last two notes as a luminous, glowing phrase.
SANCTUS movement 10
1. 1 bar before F, I will promise not to mess up. I will show you the eighth note release here for your T.
2. At F, can "Pleni sunt coeli et terra" be joyful rather than serious. CELEBRATE-- confetti coming on "GLORIA."
3. Osanna fugue-- sunny vowels-- SAHNNNNNNNNAH. Dance!
AGNUS DEI, movement 12
1. 7 after N-- sopranos and tenors, please hold off on your crescendo until the next measure. Let the altos and basses cresc. first
2. 7 after N- altos and basses, please crescendo more (all the way to mf) in the first measure of your cresc. The sopranos and tenors will crescendo later. Altos bring out your moving notes (G-flat, F- E natural) in the most elegant and glorious way!
3. 4 after O-- Cum sanctis-- the Cs are invisible. Please contribute more generously to our consonant fund drive! : ) Qui-- KW-- consonants!
4. At the fugue-- check your vowel colour on tuis-- tew-ees or TOOOOOOees. You know! : ) Capital C at each entrance. Write them all in! Be your cheerleader!
Thanks again one and all for your extra time and energy which culminates in our program tomorrow. I can't wait to see you soon!
Grace and peace,
TT
Your spirits were beginning to inhabit our music making today, and what an inspiration that is! : ) Our ongoing challenge (and opportunity!) is to stay within the ensemble and to allow the energy of our singing to emerge from within. As you practice in these final hours, reflect mostly on the spirit of each movement and what the chorus is called to convey and communicate. Allow your imagination to inspire your body to inspire your spirit to sound these wildly contrasting and meaningful phrases. Think about all the scope and sequence of this drama we enact through the colour of the vocal and spiritual space we paint:
Domine Jesu Christe...REX GLORIAE
Libera eas... DE ORE LEONIS
exAUdi
osanna eeen eckshelsis!
LacrymAWsah...qua..re...sur...
ad vi-----tam
quantus tremor est futurus (I'll get you my pretty....)
salva me!
CONFUTATIS.... voca me cum benedictis
TIBI... dawmeeneh
A few general housekeeping items:
1. Concert dress is ALL black from horn to hoof. LONGsleeve. No gawdy, distracting jewelry. Please do not smell fragrant or bad...just be clean.
2. Please do not turn pages as you listen to the solo movements. Allow the audience to stay focused on the action in front of you.
3. We will meet downstairs in Mayflower Hall at 3:00 p.m. Please be on time so that we can make the most of our final preparation and focusing time.
A few musical ideas to process in your personal practice:
REQUIEM movement 1:
1. around letter C-- the consonants of Caro and Veniet are invisible so far. Can you share them with conviction and intention?
2. At the KYRIE (Allegro), please know that when you concentrate on projecting your beginning Ks and CRs and your concluding N's, it is SUPER EXCITING and AWESOME! Other entrances are ordinary, so let's accept the opportunity to make them all extraordinary. These are the ones I had trouble hearing today: Altos at F, tenors at 4 after F, sopranos 4 after G, tenors at H, Altos 1 after K, altos 3 after M
3. Altos and tenors-- please bring out your Ks and your dotted rhythms (sing like brass instruments with incisive energy) 2 before M and 4 after N)-- TURBO altos and tenors here, please! These must be dynamic and fully- engaged. GO FOR IT! PUT IT ALL OUT THERE!
DIES IRAE movement 2
1. saecluMIH-- capital M! Just DO IT!
2. At O, tenors, can you sing out more with solo colour (remember when I asked you to be real tenors later in the rehearsal?-- well, like that!) in the melodies you have here (when you are singing in canon with the sopranos) TURBO TENORS!
3. sopranos-- 3 before R, STRicte-- be careful not to have a bright, puny vowel. Have a deep, rich, full EEEEE.
4. ALL-- your consonants in this movement are close to AWESOME... Let's get there tomorrow! An example of something improvable-- Quantus or Quando-- the KW at the start is often invisible.
5. Football cheer between S and T is JUST RIGHT!
REX TREMENDAE movement 4
1. PLEASE do not underestimate the power of an intense RRRRRRRRR at the beginning of each REX--- particularly when you have them in ms. 15 (3 before W) and tenors and basses in the section at V, sopranos and altos in the section at U-- we miss them most when we have them on our individual SATB lines. ALWAYS do more than you think is enough. Be generous! Gracious! Overflow with consonants!
2. In the last 3 measures-- use more air for the consonant F-- "fons", then more P (the f-sounding p) for the consonant to start "pietatis"-- this phrase wants to sound desperate, pathetic...
CONFUTATIS movement 6
1. Women at A and C, your Vs are invisible. Sing them beautifully and simply to begin the flowing lines.
2. Men at the beginning and at B-- please feed your small notes. Be sure they have sonic space and generous tone.
DOMINE JESU, movement 8
1. Hooray for the Turbo tenors at M-- sing on your hind legs here. Then come the turbo Altos AWESOME! Great Ts in the section at N-- thank you!
2. Practice your dynamics in the "quam olim abrahae" fugue.
HOSTIAS movement 9:
1. Practice your vowels-- the most gorgeous imaginable tone. Practice your phrasing and expression of each and every phrase. It's all there for you. Make those markings come to life. Be willing to sing true-- not just loud.
2. Sopranos and tenors-- 4 after Z, please start your pitch softer, and let it grow over the barline, beginning on beat 3. We need to hear the moving lines in the alto and bass beneath you more here.
3. Remember how it feels to sing the last two notes as a luminous, glowing phrase.
SANCTUS movement 10
1. 1 bar before F, I will promise not to mess up. I will show you the eighth note release here for your T.
2. At F, can "Pleni sunt coeli et terra" be joyful rather than serious. CELEBRATE-- confetti coming on "GLORIA."
3. Osanna fugue-- sunny vowels-- SAHNNNNNNNNAH. Dance!
AGNUS DEI, movement 12
1. 7 after N-- sopranos and tenors, please hold off on your crescendo until the next measure. Let the altos and basses cresc. first
2. 7 after N- altos and basses, please crescendo more (all the way to mf) in the first measure of your cresc. The sopranos and tenors will crescendo later. Altos bring out your moving notes (G-flat, F- E natural) in the most elegant and glorious way!
3. 4 after O-- Cum sanctis-- the Cs are invisible. Please contribute more generously to our consonant fund drive! : ) Qui-- KW-- consonants!
4. At the fugue-- check your vowel colour on tuis-- tew-ees or TOOOOOOees. You know! : ) Capital C at each entrance. Write them all in! Be your cheerleader!
Thanks again one and all for your extra time and energy which culminates in our program tomorrow. I can't wait to see you soon!
Grace and peace,
TT
Friday, April 1, 2011
Mozarting 4.1.2011
Dear friends,
Thank you for all that you contributed to a wonderful gathering with dozens of singers, stringed instruments, winds, brass, timpani, and organ. There is a lot for each of us to adjust, process, and navigate when all the parts finally come together. Know that your focus, presence, stamina, energy are all appreciated. The Mozart excerpts we sang last night were mostly movements we had not rehearsed recently-- they were many of the first things we covered. It was enlightening to see how by the second-time-through we could achieve such a thoughtful and insightful performance. Hopefully we can start with the 'second-time-through' and continue to build upon all that we have experienced with, truly, each and every phrase of the piece. What you see below are mainly suggestions of things that can be improved. Keep in mind that there would be far longer list of things that are already beautifully communicated by our beautiful choir.
Here are a few thoughts for you to consider as you practice today. Please mark these into your scores before our rehearsal on Saturday morning. There are some things we need to address together, but these are suggestions that can be incorporated if all 120-some of us enable them to happen individually.
1. Please take some time to process how you will personally excel in singing the opening pitches for the movements that do not have introductions: Requiem into Dies Irae; Recordare into Confutatis (basses); Lacrymosa into Domine Jesu; Hostias into Sanctus
2. In LACRYMOSA-- take a look at the shape of all the phrases you can sing. Allow your body to sing them-- a lot of flow and shape is needed here.
3. in LACRYMOSA-- Also, please practice snapping on the releases to be sure if the final note in the phrase is an eighth note or a quarter. Please do not guess-- be specific, accurate, and also musical!
4. in LACRYMOSA-- from 2 after I to the end of the movment is a gradual, steady, intensification/crescendo, so please continue to spin the air, feeding the sound all the way to the final M in the 3rd bar to the end. Write some words in these measures to encourage yourself. FEED. SPIN. KEEP GOING. GROW. INTENSIFY. Be a cheerleader for yourself!
5. DOMINE JESU-- the downbeats of measure 9 and 11 are the end of a phrase. THESE NEED TO BE SOFTER, SWEETER, WARMER, AND MORE BEAUTIFUL. We are pouncing on them still. Draw in a slur over the barline, a diminuendo, whatever it takes.
6. DOMINE JESU-- at letter N-- please exaggerate your final "T" consonants at the end of ne cadanT-- imagine projecting these to the back wall of the sanctuary. This will help make the rhythmic energy of this section be even more exciting.
7. DOMINE JESU-- from letter O to the end-- let's be our own cheerleaders again. Give yourself some positive reminders about diction. TEXT! WORDS! CONSONANTS! DICTION! KW! PRRRRRRR! throughout this section-- not just at our opening entrances.
8. DOMINE JESU-- from O to the end-- figure out how you can be more aware of the dynamics from the annotations that are in your vocal line. While maintaining clarity and conviction in the consonants and in the rhythm, can we allow for more dynamic variety?
9. HOSTIAS-- How can you be more rhythmically present in this movement? How can we enable more beautiful and compelling dynamic contrasts? Can we really trust one another to sing piano that is far different from forte? Let's try! Practice this. Here is a place where we can be ordinary or extraordinarily sensitive.
10. HOSTIAS-- you have several markings encouraging you to have quiet 's' at the end of phrases. We achieved this in rehearsal by allowing a small space before the soft 's'. Practice this. Here is a place where we can be ordinary or extraordinarily sensitive.
11. HOSTIAS- from Andante con moto to the end: let's be our own cheerleaders again. Give yourself some positive reminders about diction. TEXT! WORDS! CONSONANTS! DICTION! KW! PRRRRRRR! throughout this section-- not just at our opening entrances.
12. your OSANNNA fugue at the end of BENEDICTUS-- AWESOME...just saying... keep thinking sunny, salad, watermelon, gazelle, etc.
13. AGNUS DEI-- can we once again really trust one another to sing piano in the 'dona eis requiem' sections at I, L and N. This will allow us to have room and space to make more beautiful phrases with your expression markings.
14. AGNUS DEI-- at the opening, let's continue to think about intensifying and keeping the center of energy in the tone on our diminuendos in phrasing and shaping the 'agnus dei....qui tollis' sections.
Tomorrow, we will review a few things from these movements, but we will also cover REQUIEM (movement 1), DIES IRAE, REX TREMENDAE, and SANCTUS. YAY!
We will again line up at 9:50 in the chapel (men) and choir room (women) and enter as we did yesterday. Please do your best to come on time so we can have a stress-free, relaxed opening to our day. If anyone would like to have a morning vocal warm-up, I will be in the choir room at 9:30. You do not have to come for this, but if you wish, I would be happy to help get us prepared and focused.
Grace and peace, and ongoing thanks for bringing all that you are to this moment!
TT
Thank you for all that you contributed to a wonderful gathering with dozens of singers, stringed instruments, winds, brass, timpani, and organ. There is a lot for each of us to adjust, process, and navigate when all the parts finally come together. Know that your focus, presence, stamina, energy are all appreciated. The Mozart excerpts we sang last night were mostly movements we had not rehearsed recently-- they were many of the first things we covered. It was enlightening to see how by the second-time-through we could achieve such a thoughtful and insightful performance. Hopefully we can start with the 'second-time-through' and continue to build upon all that we have experienced with, truly, each and every phrase of the piece. What you see below are mainly suggestions of things that can be improved. Keep in mind that there would be far longer list of things that are already beautifully communicated by our beautiful choir.
Here are a few thoughts for you to consider as you practice today. Please mark these into your scores before our rehearsal on Saturday morning. There are some things we need to address together, but these are suggestions that can be incorporated if all 120-some of us enable them to happen individually.
1. Please take some time to process how you will personally excel in singing the opening pitches for the movements that do not have introductions: Requiem into Dies Irae; Recordare into Confutatis (basses); Lacrymosa into Domine Jesu; Hostias into Sanctus
2. In LACRYMOSA-- take a look at the shape of all the phrases you can sing. Allow your body to sing them-- a lot of flow and shape is needed here.
3. in LACRYMOSA-- Also, please practice snapping on the releases to be sure if the final note in the phrase is an eighth note or a quarter. Please do not guess-- be specific, accurate, and also musical!
4. in LACRYMOSA-- from 2 after I to the end of the movment is a gradual, steady, intensification/crescendo, so please continue to spin the air, feeding the sound all the way to the final M in the 3rd bar to the end. Write some words in these measures to encourage yourself. FEED. SPIN. KEEP GOING. GROW. INTENSIFY. Be a cheerleader for yourself!
5. DOMINE JESU-- the downbeats of measure 9 and 11 are the end of a phrase. THESE NEED TO BE SOFTER, SWEETER, WARMER, AND MORE BEAUTIFUL. We are pouncing on them still. Draw in a slur over the barline, a diminuendo, whatever it takes.
6. DOMINE JESU-- at letter N-- please exaggerate your final "T" consonants at the end of ne cadanT-- imagine projecting these to the back wall of the sanctuary. This will help make the rhythmic energy of this section be even more exciting.
7. DOMINE JESU-- from letter O to the end-- let's be our own cheerleaders again. Give yourself some positive reminders about diction. TEXT! WORDS! CONSONANTS! DICTION! KW! PRRRRRRR! throughout this section-- not just at our opening entrances.
8. DOMINE JESU-- from O to the end-- figure out how you can be more aware of the dynamics from the annotations that are in your vocal line. While maintaining clarity and conviction in the consonants and in the rhythm, can we allow for more dynamic variety?
9. HOSTIAS-- How can you be more rhythmically present in this movement? How can we enable more beautiful and compelling dynamic contrasts? Can we really trust one another to sing piano that is far different from forte? Let's try! Practice this. Here is a place where we can be ordinary or extraordinarily sensitive.
10. HOSTIAS-- you have several markings encouraging you to have quiet 's' at the end of phrases. We achieved this in rehearsal by allowing a small space before the soft 's'. Practice this. Here is a place where we can be ordinary or extraordinarily sensitive.
11. HOSTIAS- from Andante con moto to the end: let's be our own cheerleaders again. Give yourself some positive reminders about diction. TEXT! WORDS! CONSONANTS! DICTION! KW! PRRRRRRR! throughout this section-- not just at our opening entrances.
12. your OSANNNA fugue at the end of BENEDICTUS-- AWESOME...just saying... keep thinking sunny, salad, watermelon, gazelle, etc.
13. AGNUS DEI-- can we once again really trust one another to sing piano in the 'dona eis requiem' sections at I, L and N. This will allow us to have room and space to make more beautiful phrases with your expression markings.
14. AGNUS DEI-- at the opening, let's continue to think about intensifying and keeping the center of energy in the tone on our diminuendos in phrasing and shaping the 'agnus dei....qui tollis' sections.
Tomorrow, we will review a few things from these movements, but we will also cover REQUIEM (movement 1), DIES IRAE, REX TREMENDAE, and SANCTUS. YAY!
We will again line up at 9:50 in the chapel (men) and choir room (women) and enter as we did yesterday. Please do your best to come on time so we can have a stress-free, relaxed opening to our day. If anyone would like to have a morning vocal warm-up, I will be in the choir room at 9:30. You do not have to come for this, but if you wish, I would be happy to help get us prepared and focused.
Grace and peace, and ongoing thanks for bringing all that you are to this moment!
TT
The week ahead: WOW! 3.28.2011
Dear friends,
It is such a blessing that we are approaching this long-awaited weekend when we are invited to breathe out together to bring life to some of the world's most elegant, passionate, inspiring music. We will sing side-by-side with a beautiful college choir. We will be accompanied by a colorful orchestra and an awesome organ. We will luxuriate in the acoustics of our holy sanctuary. We will share all of this with hundreds of family, friends, and neighbors. All of our combined hours of preparation-- score study, individual practice, rehearsal, listening, advertising, marking scores, selling tickets, blogging, researching, proofreading programs, stage set-up, enrolling singers, and on and on-- come together in the fleeting moments we share Sunday afternoon. Our time Sunday will be a culmination but also a commencement. It will be the culmination of all that we have been so far. It will be the commencement of everything we can become. WOW!
I mentioned on Sunday morning as I drew your attention to our full schedule of gatherings this week that there is not one single bit of stress involved with any of it. If we had one rehearsal left, we might have a reason to be stressed-- that would not be enough time to be fully immersed in our ensemble or in the wholeness of this experience. We have several rehearsals here in this last week-- not to increase our stress-- but to decrease our tentativeness. Our time together will enable us to become more comfortable and connected with this repertoire so that, come Sunday, we can sing it freely and expressively with our body, mind, spirit, and voice to communicate the message that God has inspired the composers and poets to write for us to share. Mozart is revived by our breath. WOW!
I consider it an honor and privilege to have opportunities like this, and I believe it is a miracle that God has guided us to share in these extraordinary experiences together. Let's spend our extra time together this week with thankful hearts for the patience, grace, joy, hope, and peace that have unified and connected us. Let's spend our extra time together this week with gratitude for the many souls alongside us who have given themselves fully to our process and project. An event exactly like this has never happened before, and one will never happen again. It's God's gift just for us! WOW!
I hope to see you many of these times:
Tuesday: 3:15-4:30 p.m. optional rehearsal in choir room
Tuesday: 7:00-8:30 p.m. class on Mozart's REQUIEM (history, composition, etc.) in choir room
Wednesday, 7:15-9:30 p.m. choral rehearsal in Choir room
Thursday, 7:00- 9:30 p.m. combined choral/orchestral rehearsal in sanctuary (Please plan to come early to find your spots in the loft)
Saturday, 10:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m.- combined choral/orchestral rehearsal in sanctuary (Please plan to come early to find your spots in the loft)
Sunday, 9:45 a.m.- call for MEN of the Plymouth Choir to sing for 10:30 worship.
Sunday, 3:00 p.m.- call for 4:00 concert
WOW!
Grace and peace,
TT
It is such a blessing that we are approaching this long-awaited weekend when we are invited to breathe out together to bring life to some of the world's most elegant, passionate, inspiring music. We will sing side-by-side with a beautiful college choir. We will be accompanied by a colorful orchestra and an awesome organ. We will luxuriate in the acoustics of our holy sanctuary. We will share all of this with hundreds of family, friends, and neighbors. All of our combined hours of preparation-- score study, individual practice, rehearsal, listening, advertising, marking scores, selling tickets, blogging, researching, proofreading programs, stage set-up, enrolling singers, and on and on-- come together in the fleeting moments we share Sunday afternoon. Our time Sunday will be a culmination but also a commencement. It will be the culmination of all that we have been so far. It will be the commencement of everything we can become. WOW!
I mentioned on Sunday morning as I drew your attention to our full schedule of gatherings this week that there is not one single bit of stress involved with any of it. If we had one rehearsal left, we might have a reason to be stressed-- that would not be enough time to be fully immersed in our ensemble or in the wholeness of this experience. We have several rehearsals here in this last week-- not to increase our stress-- but to decrease our tentativeness. Our time together will enable us to become more comfortable and connected with this repertoire so that, come Sunday, we can sing it freely and expressively with our body, mind, spirit, and voice to communicate the message that God has inspired the composers and poets to write for us to share. Mozart is revived by our breath. WOW!
I consider it an honor and privilege to have opportunities like this, and I believe it is a miracle that God has guided us to share in these extraordinary experiences together. Let's spend our extra time together this week with thankful hearts for the patience, grace, joy, hope, and peace that have unified and connected us. Let's spend our extra time together this week with gratitude for the many souls alongside us who have given themselves fully to our process and project. An event exactly like this has never happened before, and one will never happen again. It's God's gift just for us! WOW!
I hope to see you many of these times:
Tuesday: 3:15-4:30 p.m. optional rehearsal in choir room
Tuesday: 7:00-8:30 p.m. class on Mozart's REQUIEM (history, composition, etc.) in choir room
Wednesday, 7:15-9:30 p.m. choral rehearsal in Choir room
Thursday, 7:00- 9:30 p.m. combined choral/orchestral rehearsal in sanctuary (Please plan to come early to find your spots in the loft)
Saturday, 10:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m.- combined choral/orchestral rehearsal in sanctuary (Please plan to come early to find your spots in the loft)
Sunday, 9:45 a.m.- call for MEN of the Plymouth Choir to sing for 10:30 worship.
Sunday, 3:00 p.m.- call for 4:00 concert
WOW!
Grace and peace,
TT
Monday, March 28, 2011
The week ahead: WOW! 3.28.2011
Dear friends,
It is such a blessing that we are approaching this long-awaited weekend when we are invited to breathe out together to bring life to some of the world's most elegant, passionate, inspiring music. We will sing side-by-side with a beautiful college choir. We will be accompanied by a colorful orchestra and an awesome organ. We will luxuriate in the acoustics of our holy sanctuary. We will share all of this with hundreds of family, friends, and neighbors. All of our combined hours of preparation-- score study, individual practice, rehearsal, listening, advertising, marking scores, selling tickets, blogging, researching, proofreading programs, stage set-up, enrolling singers, and on and on-- come together in the fleeting moments we share Sunday afternoon. Our time Sunday will be a culmination but also a commencement. It will be the culmination of all that we have been so far. It will be the commencement of everything we can become. WOW!
I mentioned on Sunday morning as I drew your attention to our full schedule of gatherings this week that there is not one single bit of stress involved with any of it. If we had one rehearsal left, we might have a reason to be stressed-- that would not be enough time to be fully immersed in our ensemble or in the wholeness of this experience. We have several rehearsals here in this last week-- not to increase our stress-- but to decrease our tentativeness. Our time together will enable us to become more comfortable and connected with this repertoire so that, come Sunday, we can sing it freely and expressively with our body, mind, spirit, and voice to communicate the message that God has inspired the composers and poets to write for us to share. Mozart is revived by our breath. WOW!
I consider it an honor and privilege to have opportunities like this, and I believe it is a miracle that God has guided us to share in these extraordinary experiences together. Let's spend our extra time together this week with thankful hearts for the patience, grace, joy, hope, and peace that have unified and connected us. Let's spend our extra time together this week with gratitude for the many souls alongside us who have given themselves fully to our process and project. An event exactly like this has never happened before, and one will never happen again. It's God's gift just for us! WOW!
I hope to see you many of these times:
Tuesday: 3:15-4:30 p.m. optional rehearsal in choir room
Tuesday: 7:00-8:30 p.m. class on Mozart's REQUIEM (history, composition, etc.) in choir room
Wednesday, 7:15-9:30 p.m. choral rehearsal in Choir room
Thursday, 7:00- 9:30 p.m. combined choral/orchestral rehearsal in sanctuary (Please plan to come early to find your spots in the loft)
Saturday, 10:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m.- combined choral/orchestral rehearsal in sanctuary (Please plan to come early to find your spots in the loft)
Sunday, 9:45 a.m.- call for MEN of the Plymouth Choir to sing for 10:30 worship.
Sunday, 3:00 p.m.- call for 4:00 concert
WOW!
Grace and peace,
TT
It is such a blessing that we are approaching this long-awaited weekend when we are invited to breathe out together to bring life to some of the world's most elegant, passionate, inspiring music. We will sing side-by-side with a beautiful college choir. We will be accompanied by a colorful orchestra and an awesome organ. We will luxuriate in the acoustics of our holy sanctuary. We will share all of this with hundreds of family, friends, and neighbors. All of our combined hours of preparation-- score study, individual practice, rehearsal, listening, advertising, marking scores, selling tickets, blogging, researching, proofreading programs, stage set-up, enrolling singers, and on and on-- come together in the fleeting moments we share Sunday afternoon. Our time Sunday will be a culmination but also a commencement. It will be the culmination of all that we have been so far. It will be the commencement of everything we can become. WOW!
I mentioned on Sunday morning as I drew your attention to our full schedule of gatherings this week that there is not one single bit of stress involved with any of it. If we had one rehearsal left, we might have a reason to be stressed-- that would not be enough time to be fully immersed in our ensemble or in the wholeness of this experience. We have several rehearsals here in this last week-- not to increase our stress-- but to decrease our tentativeness. Our time together will enable us to become more comfortable and connected with this repertoire so that, come Sunday, we can sing it freely and expressively with our body, mind, spirit, and voice to communicate the message that God has inspired the composers and poets to write for us to share. Mozart is revived by our breath. WOW!
I consider it an honor and privilege to have opportunities like this, and I believe it is a miracle that God has guided us to share in these extraordinary experiences together. Let's spend our extra time together this week with thankful hearts for the patience, grace, joy, hope, and peace that have unified and connected us. Let's spend our extra time together this week with gratitude for the many souls alongside us who have given themselves fully to our process and project. An event exactly like this has never happened before, and one will never happen again. It's God's gift just for us! WOW!
I hope to see you many of these times:
Tuesday: 3:15-4:30 p.m. optional rehearsal in choir room
Tuesday: 7:00-8:30 p.m. class on Mozart's REQUIEM (history, composition, etc.) in choir room
Wednesday, 7:15-9:30 p.m. choral rehearsal in Choir room
Thursday, 7:00- 9:30 p.m. combined choral/orchestral rehearsal in sanctuary (Please plan to come early to find your spots in the loft)
Saturday, 10:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m.- combined choral/orchestral rehearsal in sanctuary (Please plan to come early to find your spots in the loft)
Sunday, 9:45 a.m.- call for MEN of the Plymouth Choir to sing for 10:30 worship.
Sunday, 3:00 p.m.- call for 4:00 concert
WOW!
Grace and peace,
TT
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Free tickets and free reminders 3.17.2011
Dear friends,
Thanks for another wonderful Wednesday night! A few freebies for today:
FREE TICKETS
Kim Hinrichs, one of our terrific pastors, has 4 tickets for Sunday's Lincoln Symphony Orchestra concert (which includes a light show!) at 2:00 in Kimball Hall at UNL. If you would like to use these, please contact her at your earliest convenience. I should think there is time to go to the concert, have a quick dinner, and get to Doane College for our evening rehearsal! : )
FREE REMINDERS
Sunday morning we will meet in the choir room at 9:30 a.m. We will be singing Howells: Like as the Hart and Hobby: Psalm 121 (the first section).
Sunday evening we rehearse on the stage in Heckman Auditorium at Doane College. A sign-up sheet for a carpool is posted on the inside choir room door if you wish. Be sure to connect with your drivers or passengers on Sunday morning if you have not done so already. Our rehearsal there with the Doane Choir is from 6-9 p.m. It should be a very exciting time to galvanize our choirs for the last few weeks of our practice and preparation. YAY!
Sunday evening is the deadline for returning your "We're off to Minnesota" forms. Please let us know even if you are unable to attend the trip. EVERYONE who needs a scholarship will be granted one, so please do not allow the cost to dissuade your response. If we do not hear from you on Sunday, I will check in with you on Monday. We want to be sure no one is left behind!
Sunday's rehearsal will include: Domine Jesu Christe, Dies Irae, Lacrymosa, Confutatis, Requiem (p. 7-8), Kyrie fugue (p. 9)/ Cum sanctis fugue (p. 75 ) Benedictus fugue (p. 67) and From Darkness to Light (focusing on pgs. 12-25)
Grace and peace, and many thanks for all the joy your ministry brings to me and to many.
TT
Thanks for another wonderful Wednesday night! A few freebies for today:
FREE TICKETS
Kim Hinrichs, one of our terrific pastors, has 4 tickets for Sunday's Lincoln Symphony Orchestra concert (which includes a light show!) at 2:00 in Kimball Hall at UNL. If you would like to use these, please contact her at your earliest convenience. I should think there is time to go to the concert, have a quick dinner, and get to Doane College for our evening rehearsal! : )
FREE REMINDERS
Sunday morning we will meet in the choir room at 9:30 a.m. We will be singing Howells: Like as the Hart and Hobby: Psalm 121 (the first section).
Sunday evening we rehearse on the stage in Heckman Auditorium at Doane College. A sign-up sheet for a carpool is posted on the inside choir room door if you wish. Be sure to connect with your drivers or passengers on Sunday morning if you have not done so already. Our rehearsal there with the Doane Choir is from 6-9 p.m. It should be a very exciting time to galvanize our choirs for the last few weeks of our practice and preparation. YAY!
Sunday evening is the deadline for returning your "We're off to Minnesota" forms. Please let us know even if you are unable to attend the trip. EVERYONE who needs a scholarship will be granted one, so please do not allow the cost to dissuade your response. If we do not hear from you on Sunday, I will check in with you on Monday. We want to be sure no one is left behind!
Sunday's rehearsal will include: Domine Jesu Christe, Dies Irae, Lacrymosa, Confutatis, Requiem (p. 7-8), Kyrie fugue (p. 9)/ Cum sanctis fugue (p. 75 ) Benedictus fugue (p. 67) and From Darkness to Light (focusing on pgs. 12-25)
Grace and peace, and many thanks for all the joy your ministry brings to me and to many.
TT
Rehearsal Updates 3.13.2011
Dear friends,
In less than than three weeks we will have the unusual opportunity to sing two of the most beautiful choral/orchestral works in the literature-- one, a Requiem mass, left unfinished on the deathbed of one of the great genius composers in the history of the world; the other, a piece by one of the most prolific women composers (also one of the most significant Canadian composers) of our time to be performed in our state for the first time ever. It is an extraordinary opportunity to be called together to give voice to these profound masterworks. We have such abundant talent, rich experience, and bright intellect among our choir (and also within our orchestra)! We have been given all of the gifts necessary to effectively process and then communicate the message that these inspired composers have entrusted to us. There is no limit to our potential and possibility!...as long as...
As I have suggested many times before, no matter how talented, experienced, and intelligent we are, our ability to fully live into great music like this comes only from our willingness to offer it the discipline that it invites, requires, and deserves. It is our discipline and preparation (individual and collective) that make it possible for our (individual and collective) talent and experience and intellect to sound and soar. Our personal and communal preparation creates a space for the spirit to flow, helping us to engage in the music with more confidence, presence, and facility. We can then becomes servants of the music-- not just singing note by note-- but vessels open to become channels for communication with our audience and with one another. You must not practice to make me or Jeremy happy-- it's possible we won't ever know if you do or don't. You must practice in gratitude for the gifts you have been given-- the gift to sing, the gift to experience great music, and the gift to share all of that with a roomful of wonderful, amazing people. Allow the music to become a part of you-- fully immerse yourselves, swim in it, luxuriate in it, soak in it.
What are some ways to immerse yourselves in this piece, for example:
Frequent www.firstplymouthchoir.
For those who like to plan or who will need to miss upcoming rehearsals, here are the items which will be covered:
Tonight:
Dies Irae
Lacrymosa
Sanctus
Benedictus: Osanna fugue
From Darkness to Light--pgs. 12-25
Sunday:
Domine Jesu
Lacrymosa
Dies Irae
Benedcitus: Osanna fugue
Confutatis
Kyrie fugue, p. 9 (Cum sanctus fugue p. 75)
From Darkness to Light--complete
On a more practical note: tonight a carpool sign-up sheet will be posted, and directions will be available for our Sunday evening rehearsal with the Doane Choir in Heckman Auditorium at Doane. It is a rare opportunity to have the chance to gather our choral forces together before the 'last-minute.' Please do everything you can possibly do to take part in this experience. It has the potential of galvanizing (even transforming) us for the final push towards finish line! Realize that in the many years we have benefited from the collaborations with college choirs, we have rarely traveled to their turf. It is a great opportunity for us to 'make the trip' this time around.
Grace and peace, and many thanks for offering me the opportunity to be part of your community. You are (individually and collectively) a blessing!
TT
In less than than three weeks we will have the unusual opportunity to sing two of the most beautiful choral/orchestral works in the literature-- one, a Requiem mass, left unfinished on the deathbed of one of the great genius composers in the history of the world; the other, a piece by one of the most prolific women composers (also one of the most significant Canadian composers) of our time to be performed in our state for the first time ever. It is an extraordinary opportunity to be called together to give voice to these profound masterworks. We have such abundant talent, rich experience, and bright intellect among our choir (and also within our orchestra)! We have been given all of the gifts necessary to effectively process and then communicate the message that these inspired composers have entrusted to us. There is no limit to our potential and possibility!...as long as...
As I have suggested many times before, no matter how talented, experienced, and intelligent we are, our ability to fully live into great music like this comes only from our willingness to offer it the discipline that it invites, requires, and deserves. It is our discipline and preparation (individual and collective) that make it possible for our (individual and collective) talent and experience and intellect to sound and soar. Our personal and communal preparation creates a space for the spirit to flow, helping us to engage in the music with more confidence, presence, and facility. We can then becomes servants of the music-- not just singing note by note-- but vessels open to become channels for communication with our audience and with one another. You must not practice to make me or Jeremy happy-- it's possible we won't ever know if you do or don't. You must practice in gratitude for the gifts you have been given-- the gift to sing, the gift to experience great music, and the gift to share all of that with a roomful of wonderful, amazing people. Allow the music to become a part of you-- fully immerse yourselves, swim in it, luxuriate in it, soak in it.
What are some ways to immerse yourselves in this piece, for example:
Frequent www.firstplymouthchoir.
For those who like to plan or who will need to miss upcoming rehearsals, here are the items which will be covered:
Tonight:
Dies Irae
Lacrymosa
Sanctus
Benedictus: Osanna fugue
From Darkness to Light--pgs. 12-25
Sunday:
Domine Jesu
Lacrymosa
Dies Irae
Benedcitus: Osanna fugue
Confutatis
Kyrie fugue, p. 9 (Cum sanctus fugue p. 75)
From Darkness to Light--complete
On a more practical note: tonight a carpool sign-up sheet will be posted, and directions will be available for our Sunday evening rehearsal with the Doane Choir in Heckman Auditorium at Doane. It is a rare opportunity to have the chance to gather our choral forces together before the 'last-minute.' Please do everything you can possibly do to take part in this experience. It has the potential of galvanizing (even transforming) us for the final push towards finish line! Realize that in the many years we have benefited from the collaborations with college choirs, we have rarely traveled to their turf. It is a great opportunity for us to 'make the trip' this time around.
Grace and peace, and many thanks for offering me the opportunity to be part of your community. You are (individually and collectively) a blessing!
TT
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