Facing The Elements

Neighbourhood Schools, Image: James Berry

Over the past four weeks, workshop leaders Sam Glazer and John Webb have been working with children from Osmani and Kobi Nazrul Primary Schools to compose their own songs that they will perform at the Royal Academy of Music next Monday as part of our Elements project.

Join us on Monday 4 February, 1.05pm at the Duke’s Hall, Royal Academy of Music for the premiere performance of Elemental Songs and Dances.

Here’s a sneak preview of the children’s songs:

Kobi Nazrul Primary School
Year 4 Class – Rita Bach
Sam Glazer

Clear as a Crystal

whispered:  p, p, p, p,
pitter, patter,
p, p, p, p,

You drip like beads, falling from a string (whispered: splish splash)
Rushing through pipes, flowing all around, (whispered: splish splash)
Clear as a crystal  (whispered: splish splash)

You drip like beads, falling from a string, (whispered: splish splash)
Rushing through pipes, flowing all around, (whispered: splish splash)
Falling like diamonds from the sky,
Falling like diamonds from the sky.
Refreshing everywhere!

Grey clouds, purple sky,
Angry like a volcano,
Fierce like a tiger

whispered:  p, p, p, p,
pitter, patter,

Osmani Primary School
Saffron Class – Clare Hooper
John Webb

Air Song

Whoosh!
I glide with the sea and dance with the clouds

Shhh/ssss
Have a nice day I say to the world

But I’m bored

I want to steal trousers from washing lines and balloons from little children

I want to steal skin to sleep in, eyes to see, food to eat
And the happiness of the world

If I don’t get what I want I’ll huff and I’ll puff
I’ll become a tornado
And steal your mind.

Neighbourhood Schools, Image: James Berry

An Unexpected Journey

Prior to their performance of Vivaldi’s Gloria in Vivaldi’s Angels at Christ Church Spitalfields, one of our Women sing East members reflected on the journey on which putting the work together has taken them.

Working towards our performance of Vivaldi’s Gloria has been, for this member of Women sing East at least, a series of small shocks. The first of these occurred when the idea was mooted towards the end of the Summer term – it felt rather like a tunnel into which we would enter at the beginning of the Autumn term with no way out until it ended with a concert, and the tunnel felt narrow… just one piece of music? For some the unfamiliarity of baroque music has caused anxiety or even temporary departure. For me it has been a return to ‘safer ground’, a sound world more familiar than that of much of the music we have sung in the past. I have been unsure, though, about defecting from the choir’s perceived strength of delivering stomping performances of jazz and blues with a folk tune or two thrown in and perhaps a classical number when pushed, all of which I have so loved being part of.

Women sing East perform Vivaldi’s Glora. Image: James Berry

More recently I was startled to tears by a brief recording of one of our rehearsals made on an iPhone at which we sang the Cum Sancto Spiritu for the first time, albeit in Christ Church Spitalfields and accompanied by Jonathan Williams. Although the timings were a little muddy, the purity of sound – the one voice – was literally overwhelming.

Just last week I migrated from practising at home on Dropbox to plugging headphones into the CD deck and playing the Andrew Parrott recording with the volume turned right up straight into my head. I was thrilled anew by this glorious music that so lifts the spirits and no longer seems quite so impenetrable.

Finally last night’s rehearsal with Christian Curnyn drew us all upright and removed us from the security blanket of the score for most of the evening, releasing a much more confident, positive sound in all four parts.

The final shock will come at the performance when accompanied by trumpets and confronted by a full church but whatever the outcome, the singing will be the wholehearted culmination of a term’s committed energies on the part of everybody, not least Laka, Jonathan, Becks and all the Spitalfields Music team urging us on!

Women sing East member

On the twelfth day of the Winter Festival…

Spitalfields Music sent to me… twelve images from the Winter Festival.

It’s the last day of the Festival today which  means its our last ‘gift’ post sent to you. We’ll be bringing you more pictures, reviews and sounds from the Winter Festival soon, but in the meantime you can always revisit the 12 days of the Winter Festival here on the blog.

But who knows the East End? An Exploration – credit James Berry

Musical Rumpus

But who knows the East End? An Exploration credit James Berry

Shoreditch Church credit James Berry

The Little Match Girl Passion credit James Berry

Scottish Reels & Winter Riffs credit James Berry

Scottish Reels & Winter Riffs credit James Berry

Musical Rumpus

Toujours et près de moi credit James Berry

Toujours et près de moi credit James Berry

But who knows the East End? An Exploration credit James Berry

The Little Match Girl Passion credit James Berry

A Glorious Revelation

My first reaction was NO! No, No, No, NO, NO!!! even. I had been missing Women sing East all over the long summer break (three months) and although I had a vague notion we would be singing something very different this term – I hadn’t fully appreciated the fact that we would be singing Vivaldi’s Gloria which was new to me. Not only that – but we would be singing ONLY the Gloria for the WHOLE TERM!!!

Women sing East in rehearsal. Image: James Berry.

Gone were the lovely, diverse and fun selections of songs that usually make up our Women sing East concerts. I became distraught – what to do? Back out? I called Kathryn, one of Spitalfields Music’s Learning & Participation managers. I talked to Laka D – our inspirational and genius musical director. With their support and encouragement I decided to give it a go – after all – was I man or  mouse?

I loved the first part of the Gloria. Then I struggled with the harder parts – but loving harmony as I do I just started marvelling at the actual music and when Jonathan accompanied us on the piano at that special rehearsal at the Barbican Centre – well – I just fell in love with it. And then, last week, we rehearsed in Christ Church Spitalfields on Commercial Street and almost raised the beautiful refurbished roof. I believe I may be the only member of the choir to wear hearing aids so I get an even more acute sense of the acoustics and we sounded so, so good. I was very happy. I felt the fear – and did it anyway. Taking a trip out of my usual comfort zone seems to have really inspired me and I am so glad I am in this special choir and took a chance on the glorious Gloria.

Women sing East member

On the ninth day of the Winter Festival…

Spitalfields Music sent to me… recordings and pictures from last week’s Winter Wonderland project at Toynbee Hall.

Winter Wonderland brought together young people with special educational needs from across Tower Hamlets. Working together with Spitalfields Music, Drake Music, Map Squad and Toynbee Hall alongside music leaders Roshi Nasehi and Gary Day the participants devised, workshopped and put together a series of performances that were presented live as part of our Winter Festival programme.

Below you can listen to the rehearsal of one of their pieces, Dreams, along with some images from the devising process including the lyrics they put together.