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Contemporary Chroal Academy Choruses:
• One BIG Sing - Community Choir
• The Lost Sound Chorus
• Singingandbreathing - Choir Skills/Harmony singing Course
'One BIG Sing' Choir
Buckfastleigh's 'very own' Community Choir
Wednesday evenings ,7:30pm -9pm, weekly from 14th Sept
at the Methodist Church Vestry, Chapel St.
A brand new choir - started by demand after our 'One BIG Sing' concert! A relaxed, very friendly place to meet new people in our community and sing some great harmonies! Easy songs taught by ear and music. Beginners VERY welcome - we have experienced singers too, so you are well supported as you learn the ropes!
WE DO NEED MEN!!!
JUST COME ALONG AND HAVE A SING WITH US
Call Sandra for more details and/or encouragement!
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The Lost Sound Chorus
Autumn term now underway – email or phone to find out more
Over the last 6 years Sandra Smith has coached many different choirs of diverse styles and experience, from youth and adult mixed choruses to all male and all female groups. She has of course watched and listened to many more.
There is a one particular sound, a true, resonant ring, that is an elusive quality in choral singing – it takes a special group of people to sing in a way that is truly unified and resonant, and it’s that sound that lights up an audience with the sheer quality of the singing. Tuning, timing, articulation and vowel shape all play a part in creating it.
It is rare, but it’s attainable – and Sandra wants to create it!
When an embodied voice sings with honesty and emotion, people really listen and are deeply moved. It is a sad fact that if we lose the power to project ourselves both vocally and personally, our audiences lose the ability to listen. The Lost Sound chorus works with developing both vocal and listening skills.
With the Lost Sound Chorus, Sandra is exploring the dynamics and the relationship between the different vocal ranges that are embedded in exciting choral singing.
How can we blend our voices in an exciting, integrated way?
How can each singer be both truly autonomous and sing collectively?
How do we balance the different characters of male and female, and bring out the authentic qualities and strengths in both?
What's in a name?
The name 'Lost Sound' relates to the quality of singing that is archaic and deep in our ancestry – and sings regardless of the style of the music. It’s the sound behind the singer! It is a quality of pure, full-bodied, conscious singing that seems to be on the decline in today’s overly microphoned world. Even many of our young people have lost the ability to naturally project their sound in a positive, free way. Schools are increasingly dependant on amplification for their students to be heard. What’s happened to our vocal power?
The name also clearly relates to each individual chorus member's commitment to finding their own 'lost sound' on a personal and choral level, and each singer has experienced the development of many different aspects of their sound-making through our training. (See quotes to the right >>>)
Interested in joining us?
Joining 'The Lost Sound Chorus' is by audition and is dependent on where we have spaces in the choirs sections. Find out more about us and how we work by coming to one of our Choir Skills Workshops prior to auditions.
The singingandbreathing Choir skills course and Community choir are open to all singers. Both these offer the perfect training opportunity to prepare you to the level required for the Lost Sound Chorus as well as other local choral groups.We will only take singers who are open to ‘discovery’. Voices we are happy to train-minds are harder to change!
Become a friend of the choir on Facebook and keep in touch with upcoming gigs
All singers work within these guidelines:
• We rehearse every Tuesday evening (7.30-9.45pm), and extra rehearsals will be commonplace leading up to performances.
• We require excellent attendance for rehearsals (a maximum of 3 absences per term) and that you will continue to learn and practice the pieces at home.
• All singers pay subscriptions to take part in rehearsal sessions and to be part of the chorus. The 'subs' are payable in half-term installments, which will work out at about £8 per session.
• We are only interested in singers who work easily as part of a team and who are happy to fit the vision we have for the chorus and its sound.
• The ability to easily sing in tune and in harmony is essential.
• The choir is for adult members only, i.e., over 15 years-old.
Autumn term now underway – email or phone to find out more
Choir Skills/Harmony Singing Course
Mondays 7:30-9:00pm, Buckfastleigh
NEXT COURSE STARTS JAN 9TH 2012
THIS Term dates: September 12th - December 12th
A mixed voice course - we need basses, tenors, altos and sopranos
A course for singers or people working with music (workshop leaders) who want to improve their voices. Particulaly useful for preparation for auditioned choirs and those wanting to sing in quartets and small ensembles and close harmony backing. This is a very user friendly course packed with singing exercises, top tips, feedback and information!
We will cover: -
- Blending of voices,
- Synchronization
- Getting accurate tuning of chords
- Dynamics
- Interpretation
- Expression
- Vocal and Breathing techniques
The following video helps explain how we breathe
There seems to be keen interest in this explorative workshop format, where there is time to discover and experiment as we learn. It is ideal for anyone wanting to make a first step (or those needing a 'refresher') before going on to join one of the many local choirs and choruses in the area.
So, to give more people the chance to 'test the water' with this innovative choral training, Sandra has set up ‘singingandbreathing’ - a choir skills training course.
It will restart September 12th 2011. This training course offers ongoing weekly sessions through a term, and does require an attendance commitment for the whole of the term. You are welcome to join us and discover how much more you can do with a little help, both vocally and chorally. We keep the songs at an accessible level. We are there to build your confidence and show you that you can do it too!
The aim of the singingandbreathing training is to build your vocal and technical awareness, and to improve the listening skills and tuning accuracy that harmony singing requires. Through various exercises you will have time to explore and play – all the while developing your understanding and experience of how and why choirs do what they do; why things works one way and not another! You can ask questions and have time to fully understand!
De-mystifying musical elements is an important process for many singers who haven’t had any formal musical training – but re-mystifying the whole music making process by re-engaging the magic can be of equal importance. It has proved to be a thrilling and evocative process for the Lost Sound singers, so there's every chance this will also be true for you!
Other areas that will be explored:
• Holding harmonies: strengthening the ‘holding’ and tuning the ‘blending’ to create the ‘ring’
• Breathing techniques
• Fully engaging with the joy of expression
• Dealing with the ‘you’ in singing – getting out of the way and letting it happen!
Whether you go on to sing World music, Barbershop, Community, Gospel (or whatever style you love!), we feel you will have so much more confidence and skills to offer after training with us.
Course dates: NEXT COURSE STARTS JAN 9TH 2012 Mondays 7:30-9:00pm, Buckfastleigh from Cost: £10/session. Payment per half-term in advance. £20 non-returnable deposit required to secure your place. Please book early as numbers are limited.
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