member resources

We continue to be guided by “Making Music”, our national membership organisation for music groups and promoters.

The previous mandated restrictions have, of course, been ended, but that does not mean that Covid has been conquered, rather that the impact of contracting Covid is now much reduced following the vaccination programme, increased immunity after having had the disease and mutations in the virus itself.

However, that is a general statement of the “on average” type and we need to remember that some people still get Covid very badly indeed whilst others are more vulnerable to catching the disease. Similarly we can remind ourselves that some of our members have more vulnerable people at home or for whom they are carers and I believe we each owe them a moral duty not to knowingly expose them to the disease as the consequences for them and their loved ones may be significantly worse than any symptoms we experience ourselves.

Making music therefore advise a set of “safer behaviours” which I would strongly recommend we each adopt, please :

1. Getting vaccinated – including all available boosters.
2. Letting fresh air in if meeting indoors, or meeting outside. We will have windows open at rehearsals so please dress appropriately
3. Wearing a face covering in crowded and enclosed spaces, especially where you come into contact with people you do not usually meet, when rates of transmission are high.
4. Trying to stay at home if you are unwell.
5. Taking a test if you have COVID-19 symptoms, (if available) and staying at home and avoiding contact with other people if you test positive; and
6. Washing your hands and following advice to ‘Catch it, Bin it, Kill it’.

The single most important point is that no one should come to rehearsals if they have the slightest symptoms or if you suspect you have been in contact with someone who is carrying the disease. Can we each, please, adopt this as a personal obligation to our fellow choir-members.

I hope you will agree that these are a reasonable set of clearly-stated behaviours and that you can personally commit to their adoption.

Rehearsals for our Summer 2025 concert

Rehearsals are on Tuesdays between 8 and 10pm at Walthamstow Hall Junior School, Bradbourne Park Road, Sevenoaks, TN13 3LD and will run from 8 April to 24 June, with the joint concert with Sevenoaks Symphony Orchestra taking place at 7.30pm at Stag Theatre, Sevenoaks on on Saturday 28 June.

Scores

Brian Shirreff has hire scores available at £1.50 each – correct money please.

Rehearsal Aids

The following links are available to support your learning :

Cyberbass (free online usage) : Cyberbass Click Here

John Fletcher (subscription of £4.40 for four months) : John Fletcher Click Here

Choraline (buy CD or download files) : Choraline Click Here

Choral Tracks (buy downloadable MP3 files, $2.99 per track (4 tracks for complete work) – professional singer singing your part) : Choral Tracks – Click Here

Recording

To help you get the shape of the work and the “feel” of the performance we have in store with Sevenoaks Symphony Orchestra one of our members has recommended the following YouTube performance  for you to follow along with your score. Once it opens, if you scroll down a little you will find that a kind follower has added the start times so you can find the individual sections if you just want to focus on them one at a time :

Performance – Click Here