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  • A day in the life of a concert

    Added December 22, 2011 by Chris Rowbury - 1726 views - 0 comments
    [this is a version of a post which first appeared on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   This is a busy concert time for most choirs.     I thought I'd give an account of a typical concert by one of my community choirs. This is a description of one particular spring concert some years ago, but the pattern is very simil... read more

  • Why I don't like "a cappella"

    Added December 8, 2011 by Chris Rowbury - 5345 views - 3 comments
    [this is a version of a post which first appeared on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   A while back I was asked if I would like to conduct an interview on my blog with a well-known singing group who had just released a new CD.     I had to be honest and say that I didn’t actually like their singing! I said: &ld... read more
    3 comments

  • Leaving the back row - stepping out of our comfort zone

    Added December 1, 2011 by Chris Rowbury - 1852 views - 0 comments
      [this is a version of a post which first appeared on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   If you’re not a confident singer, your impulse will be to stand at the back and hide.     But this is the worst possible place for you!   life in the back row Unless you’re in a fairly small choir which ... read more

  • There’s nothing interesting to see at concerts, so why go?

    Added November 24, 2011 by Chris Rowbury - 1461 views - 0 comments
    [this is a version of a post which first appeared on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   Not being a regular concert-goer myself, I often wonder why people make the effort to go to concerts.     'A Choral Voyage' concert by dithyrambic.singers   What is it that they look at?   I went to an orchestral conc... read more

  • Songs of the Republic of Georgia and the origins of polyphony

    Added November 17, 2011 by Chris Rowbury - 2215 views - 4 comments
    [this is a version of a post which first appeared on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   I love Georgian songs and singing.     Not songs from the Georgian era in British history, not songs from the state of Georgia in the US, the Georgia Sea Islands or even South Georgia in the southern Atlantic Ocean.   I... read more
    4 comments

  • A choir is greater than any individual singer but needs 'em all

    Added November 10, 2011 by Chris Rowbury - 1480 views - 0 comments
    [this is a version of a post which first appeared on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   Obvious really, but a choir is a large organism made up of lots of individuals who are working together.     The Tenor by Amyn Kassam   Part of the joy is to be part of something greater than oneself.   all for one an... read more

  • Getting on with it even when you’re feeling rough

    Added November 3, 2011 by Chris Rowbury - 1037 views - 0 comments
    [this is a version of a post which first appeared on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   I’ve been rather under the weather lately.     I’m not after sympathy, but I did want to write about how we struggle with our work when we’re not feeling 100%.   time ‘off’ I had a short break ... read more

  • Low women vs. tenor men

    Added October 27, 2011 by Chris Rowbury - 9552 views - 0 comments
    [this is a version of a post which first appeared on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   There is a lack of men in many community choirs (Why men won’t sing).     The Tenor by Paul Helm   One of the results of this is that the so-called ‘tenor’ section is mainly populated by women, or ‘lo... read more

  • Why my choir doesn’t sing songs from India

    Added October 20, 2011 by Chris Rowbury - 1565 views - 2 comments
    [this is a version of a post which first appeared on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   The simple reason is that India doesn’t have a harmony singing tradition, and I specialise in harmony singing.     Photo by willsfca   The same goes for most other countries in Asia.   I’m also asked why we do... read more
    2 comments

  • Flash, bang, wallop! Photographing choirs

    Added October 13, 2011 by Chris Rowbury - 4551 views - 0 comments
    [this is a version of a post which first appeared on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   One of the many bees in my bonnet is the photographs of choirs.     Photo by sludgeulper   I have yet to see a photo of any reasonably sized choir (say, over 30 members) which is of any interest to me whatsoever.   boring... read more