Promoting Male Voices
From a great musical. I think it was Len who had this as part of our repertoire. I can\’t remember it being one of our better pieces. I recall back in 1994, rehearsing at one of the schools in New Mill. It was a difficult time for the family and I just used to fill up.
Over 20 years ago I joined a singing evening class at Holmfirth High. The tutor was a Welsh tenor called Len Williams. It wasn\’t a step too far to move across to New Mill Male Voice Choir.
Len was a legend with his stories and his irritability, but he got a choir going from the dubious resource of The Duke of Leeds taproom. We performed concerts and went on tour and became attractive to new and seasoned singers alike. We improved.
The Skye Boat Song was a practice piece in the evening class. He obviously imagined and expected too much when he and Catherine visited the West of Scotland. Over the sea to Skye was not an uncertain distant destination, fraught with danger. His face fell as he described the road bridge from the Kyle.
Len was the founder of the choir and jealous of others who wished to influence its running and direction, for example the committee. Eventually he left, but a great legacy.
soul music radio 4 music that stirs the emotions
Queen Anne – CD recording QEGS, Wakefield
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| Elsecar winners |
For someone with little or no religion, can I have permission to say that this is my favourite hymn? We sang it at the Town Hall with Aled Jones on the solo and emotional it was. Elvis does it wonderfully. I did have thoughts about asking our MD if I could train up for the solo, but he then went and did his own arrangement.
soul music radio 4 music that stirs the emotions
This was my mum\’s favourite hymn. It was and still is the Rugby League hymn. Me and my brother took her to the 1980 Hull derby cup final (Hull KR 10 – Hull FC 5) where the royal guest was Queen Mother. Goodness knows what she thought of the game. Same weekend as the Iranian embassy siege, brought to an end by the SAS. Mum left school at 14, shorthand typist, shop assistant (confectioner, photographer), secretary to catering dept. HRI. She died in 1995, aged 75.
Our current version was arranged by MD Alan Brierley. We sang it in Flanders, at the Menin Gate. I think his mum likes it too.
soul music radio 4 music that stirs the emotions
The choir doesn\’t sing this as often as we used to. It was in every concert at one time. I remember an excellent performance in Wrexham, where we shared the stage with Cantorion Colin Jones. A massive round of applause which was no mean feat in N. Wales with an elite Welsh Choir.
Clic on the link to hear more
Soul Music Radio 4, music that stirs the emotions
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| Recorded 1970. Their final album and biggest hit single. |
Both born 1941. New York Jews. Started singing together aged 11/13 years. Each married several times with children. Strongest early influence – The Everley Brothers.
Anticipation written all over me
Thank you Howard
(won a weekend with this beast in a raffle – BMW 4series: diesel, automatic, convertible)
Programme includes, Those Magnificent Men, No arms can ever hold you, My dearest dear, Crazy little thing called love, Gwahoddiad, He ain\’t heavy, Can\’t take that away from me, Carrickfergus, Just George, American trilogy, Bridge over troubled water, The lost chord
This is the debut gig for DCM (Dave, Chris and The Dovester) otherwise known as Don\’t Come Monday. The song was written and sung by Labi Siffre in the 1970s and today has had a new life with Madness. It was played at our wedding evening bash, 44 years and 1 month ago.
In other words, the AGM. Always a tricky time as guys leave the committee after several years of hard and often unappreciated work. Even trickier is the resignation of the two key people: chairman and secretary.
We had a great Christmas period: Low Moor, Penistone Paramount and Christ Church, New Mill. Then an enjoyable weekend rehearsal in Scarborough. Our new material includes Sound of Silence by Simon and Garfunkel and Alexander\’s Rag Time Band.
Our programme for the first part of the year is as follows:
Our Laurel and Hardy tribute.
Overheard in Scarborough.
\’See yon lad, he\’s our youth policy\’ pointing to a thirty something.
\’Where does he work?\’
\’Morrisons\’
\’Which section is he in?\’
\’Fruit and veg.\’
For the unitiated, neither fruit nor veg are accepted as singing parts in a male voice choir.
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| Weekend Scarborough workshop What does beer do that is good for you? |
Fresh from their success at the Heckmondwike Palladium, the group were a big hit at The Red Lea Hotel, Scarborough where they appeared in from of their home crowd, New Mill Male Voice Choir. Their rendition of Lonesome Pine was accurate and mostly in tune.
Rod – guitar and vocals
Ann – vocals
Clive – vocals
Dave W – vocals and inflatable hammer.
New Mill welcomes back Anne Levitt as guest conductor for four rehearsals.
The choir are well into their Christmas repertoire, with one new song from conductor Alan Brierley – Calypso Carol.
Otherwise all the old favourites are there.
And an innovation. The audience will be able make a choice as to what we sing during the Christ Church concert.
The usual 3 concerts – Penistone Paramount (Denby Rotary), Low Moor, Bradford (BASF) and Christ Church, New Mill.
Details to come.
Irish Blessing – the priests WARMUP1
The Manchester Ballads broadcast WARMUP2
On my way home Joe Cocker madness
Over the rainbow Clapton fields of gold
Autumn Leaves Clapton
sound of silence Click here to listen
Half of Team Sheila working hard on the tombola, between face-painting and the tuck shop. Just out of sight is the bar, serving Blonde at £2.50 amongst a lot of other beers and things. It\’s the longest time I\’ve been so close to a drink and not indulged, though I eventually did at 6.15pm having been there since 11.30am.
The Boulodrome – Moor Bottom Road, Netherton.
The annual boules competition was held this week at the home of Ann and Dave Talboys. Teams of three battled it out in the traditional ladies\’ choir feisty style. Keeping the peace fell to two trusted adjudicators who managed the task with good humour.
The hostess sang several solos, illustrating questions contained within a quiz; a cerebral balance to the bouling, and no less competitive. She was then joined by an adjudicator (and kept him in tune) for World without Love by Peter and Gordon.
Alas, your correspondent had a date with Saints vs Giants on Sky and left before the final tie.
Saturday was chocolate cake day. New Mill Male Voice Choir had their annual stall in Holmfirth; to raise its local profile and advertise concerts. We chose a central spot, next to the butcher, so footfall was much greater than the market where we had been before. The weather was kind.
There were plenty of passers-by who got their heads down and tried to ignore us. Either lacking social skills or not wanting to do or give anything in exchange for our piece of chocolate cake. My response was \’You don\’t know what you\’re missing.\’ They didn\’t hang around long enough to discover the cake was free.
More sociable pedestrians smiled and touched their tummies or said one or all of the following:
\’I\’m on a diet.\’
\’I\’m trying to lose it.\’
\’Not with my weight.\’
\’I\’m diabetic.\’
\’I\’m gluten free.\’
\’No, I\’m dairy.\’
\’I\’ve just had my breakfast.\’
There was a smell of cooking bacon throughout the morning, to be replaced around 11.45am by notes of battered fish.
A good half of our custom had a piece of cake, laughed and said thank you. Many were from the Holme Valley, had heard of us and intended to come to a concert. Who knows? Our 100 programmes were gone by 11.30am
A dozen or more singers turned out. Some went round the shops where chocolate cake was more than welcome. The butcher was especially grateful, though we didn\’t get any free meat samples.
Some of our visitors wondered whether the cake was home made. Yes, thanks to Greg at the Bridge Bakery.
We still haven\’t worked out how to muster enough singers to perform a short set. Maybe next year.
Martin Carthy – Scarborough Fair – click for utube
BBC\’s Soul Music – click for podcast
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Click on to hear BBC\’s soul music\’s take on the piece
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\”Swing Low, Sweet Chariot\” has been sung by rugby players and fans for some decades,[6] and there are associated gestures, sometimes used in a drinking game, which requires those who wrongly perform the gestures to buy a round of drinks.[7][8] It became associated with the English national side, in particular, in 1988. Coming into the last match of the 1988 season, against Ireland at Twickenham, England had lost 15 of their previous 23 matches in the Five Nations Championship. The Twickenham crowd had only seen one solitary England try in the previous two years and at half time against Ireland they were 0–3 down. However during the second half England scored six tries to give them a 35–3 win. Three of the tries came in quick succession from Chris Oti making his Twickenham debut. A group of boys from the Benedictine school Douai following a tradition at their school games sang \”Swing Low, Sweet Chariot\” whenever a try was scored. When Oti scored his second try, amused spectators standing close to the boys joined in, and when Oti scored his hat-trick the song was heard around the ground.[6][9][10] The song is still regularly sung at matches by English supporters.[11]
