Intern Diaries: Meet Alex

Alex is our brand new Learning & Participation Intern who joins us for next few months and for the excitement of our upcoming Summer Festival. She tells us what she been up to during her first few weeks as a part of the Spitalfields Music team. 

Despite having just passed the one month mark, the initial week of my Learning & Participation internship induction seems awfully far away. But I suppose that’s what happens when you join an organisation with less than two months to go before the annual Summer Festival…

For the most part, my first week was dedicated to getting acclimatised to the office and the upcoming festival events. In purposely withholding a wave of Learning & Participation tasks, I was free to explore the area, the ongoing projects with community members and neighbourhood schools, and ground myself in the vibrantly eclectic culture of Tower Hamlets. As a Canadian living in a new city, this was a perfect opportunity for me to integrate myself into a rich musical community, engage with some remarkable local residents, and familiarise myself in an amazing city.

Now, after five weeks of ongoing project sessions – some for toddlers, some for children with learning disabilities, some attended mostly by seniors, to name a few – I understand the breadth of involvement and presence that Spitalfields Music has in this community. Almost instantly, I became aware of the importance of catering to as many local music lovers as possible and offering anyone and everyone a chance to explore their creative potential, and every single project session I’ve attend has reinforced this objective.

Alex has been working with our all-women choir, Women sing East

In terms of my responsibilities, I seem to have struck a balance between shadowing various organisation members and managing specific Learning & Participation projects myself. One community choir in particular, Women sing East, is sort of my baby. Over the past month, I’ve overseen choir practices and cared for the singers, and during the Summer Festival concert itself, I’ll actually be project managing the event! I’m really looking forward to experiencing its full development – from initial choir practice to polished performance.

As we gear up for the annual Summer Festival kick off in a matter of weeks, the office is buzzing with energy. Everyone is busy, but ready and willing to dedicate their time and energy to producing the best series of festival performances possible. Everything that Spitalfields Music does – from office meetings to community workshop sessions to choir practices to festival planning – is grounded collaboration and interplay.  I feel incredibly lucky to be involved in such a dynamic process.

Alex Lepinski
Learning & Participation Intern 

A ‘Fire’ starter

If you passed by the Attlee Youth & Community Centre last week you may have wondered – as did the guys who turned up for their usually quiet Tuesday evening football match – what was going on as scores of people poured in through the door. This was the first gathering of the “Fire choir”, coming together for some fun singing, to meet the composer David Bruce, and to give a section of his new commission Fire a whirl.

Sam Chaplin and the 'Fire' singers

The 96 amateur singers in attendance were in fine voice and quickly built up into part singing under the direction of chorus leader, Sam Chaplin. After a break to catch up with faces old and new it was time to tackle Fire. This they did with admirable ease, the section worked on coming together quickly and sounding very fine – which bodes well for the performances in June and July!

The more experienced in the group ably supported those new to choral singing, including one young woman who’d turned up for something else but got gathered into the fold. Her parting remark was “I never thought music could be fun; but I’ll be back!”

If you’d like to join her in giving at a whirl there are still places available, especially for male voices. To find out how to get involved contact Natalie Ellis on 020 7377 0287 or send an email.

Cathy Birch
Programme Manager: Learning & Participation 

Intern Diaries: Community choirs, Christmas songs & back to school

Two months have passed since my last post and I’m now just over half way through my internship. The L&P calendar for Spring 2012 is super busy, full of really interesting and enjoyable projects.  I was recently at a session in Osmani Primary School with a Year 3 class and they were starting work on a joint project with the Royal Academy of Music. I’m enjoying the variety of work that I’m experiencing as part of my internship and all the lovely people I’m getting to meet!

Neighbourhood Songs at the Spitalfields Music Winter Festival 2011

Recruitment has started once again for the two community singing groups, Spitalfields Singers and Women sing East.  I’m really looking forward to working with both these choirs again and will be very sad to say goodbye to them at the end of this term!  The Women Sing East concert in our Winter Festival was a definite highlight for me.  With the support of Clare I was project managing this concert.  As a musician I have played in many concerts, but this was the first time that I had been on the other side – managing the musicians! The concert was a huge success – the choir sounded absolutely fantastic and Laka sang a wonderful arrangement of the ‘Christmas Song’ to get us all in the Christmas spirit.  This was a truly magical concert – my face muscles ached from smiling so much!

Kathryn Allnutt                                                                                                    Learning and Participation Intern

My first two weeks as an Intern: Stacey

Joining the vibrant team at Spitalfields Music during the month leading up to the Summer Festival is an experience like no other.  I have been able to observe, and participate in, the final yet critical stages of the work that goes into finalising this massive musical event.  Many of the projects that are happening at the festival have been going on for a long period of time and are finally coming to the pinnacle of performance, as is the case with the premiere of the opera We are Shadows, which has been in the making for two solid years.

Wednesday evenings and Thursday lunchtimes are the times for choirs to be tended to, and of course, also participate in as well.  Women sing East and Spitalfields Singers each have their own very distinct style, and both are wonderful examples of flourishing community choirs where the participants can create music whilst having a lot of fun.  My time in the office has been one of learning more about the ‘’ins and outs’’ of running various education projects, with all of them at different stages in their development.

While the days here at Spitalfields Music are underlined by the constant and almost inaudible hum ‘Festival, Festival, Festival, Festival’, I also find it very exciting that several of my projects focus on what happens after the Festival ends. Being involved in the work that allows the Festival the flourish, as well as the projects that are sustained throughout the year has been the highlight of my time so far at Spitalfields Music.  I can tell that each day gets more intense and exciting and I am eagerly anticipating my first Summer Festival; experiencing the events from the inside out.  I’ll see you there!

Stacey Kurtz
Learning & Participation Intern

Image credit: Women sing East by Suke Driver

What makes you think that you can sing?

Arlene Adair shares her experiences of being a singer, performing in Women sing East and rehearsing for the world premiere of our community opera We are Shadows:

“Do you honestly think that you can sing?” The words of my eldest, my first born, daughter pierced my brain bringing what I believed to be the “song of a nightingale” to an abrupt and premature end!  Children can be so cruel and, some may say, truthful!

I had always considered my singing voice to be, at least, worthy of airing at home.  Perhaps I was just a bit rusty!  Perhaps, on the other hand, my parents had been very loving, tolerant and tone-deaf!

“Join a choir, a women’s choir, Women sing East,” the kind words of a concerned colleague rang happily in my ears.  She knew that I had observed with nostalgic jealousy my youngest daughter, my fourth and last born, singing like an angel with the Hackney Borough Youth Choir.  Could it be that simple for me to join Women sing East?  What about my voice?

So, in September 2010 “stepping gaily arm-in-arm” with a fellow Scot (a bonnie wee lassie with blonde curls and an awfully good voice!) I tentatively approached the assembled throng of women confidently waiting in the foyer of the Brady Arts Centre.   We were “the new girls”.  Were there any other “new girls”?  Who knows?

The arrival of the director Laka D brought with it a big warm cosy welcome like a soft tartan blanket (not a horrible old scratchy one!).  “New girls” or not we were part of a 40-strong smiling, laughing, rocking, popping, madrigal women’s choir.   This all happened within two hours of leaving my six strong family at the kitchen table.  This was heaven!  Within eight months, we had performed two public performances and were feeling very happy.

Today, as I rehearse with the chorus of We are Shadows, an opera in pieces, I am reminded of a time when I could only dream of singing opera.   Twenty eight years ago, I was a costume maker in the wardrobe department of Scottish Opera. With a mouth full of dressmakers’ pins I could only hum along  as I listened  in awe to singers rehearsing pieces by Mozart, Puccini, Bizet and many other wonderful composers.

So, as I strive to reach the high notes of this world premiere opera, the words of my daughter haunt me “Do you honestly think you can sing?”  The simple answer is, “I really do not know but, so far, nobody has asked me to mime!”

Arlene Adair

Always wanted to sing? Why not join one of our community choirs! For more information click here. We are also looking for local people to perform as part of We are Shadows. Email cathy.birch@spitalfieldsmusic.org.uk or give us a call on 020 7377 0287 for more information.