Red Notes
Weekly Newsletter July 17, 2014
Welcome Valley Gals!
P O D
Chorus Business
The first order of business was the upcoming move. We must be out of the building by the end of the month. That means July 28, 2014 will be our last rehearsal at our present location. The following decisions were made:
· EVERYONE needs to help. It seems the same few people show up for all the work, but everyone wants to enjoy the results. We understand physical limitations exist for some of our members, but EVERYONE can do SOMETHING!
· Karen will find a storage facility and rent it this week.
· Monday we will pack up as much as we can and take a load to storage.
o Bring any large vehicles you might have. We will make one run to the storage facility and then come back to rehearse. If you have helpers with muscles, bring them as well!
· If you have personal items you have brought to the present location, please come get them and take them home. Preferably before rehearsal next week. We will have to have everything out and the building cleaned before July 31.
The next order of business was discussion of Committees. Melody sent out a survey asking what everyone was or was not interested in. She stated she had to improvise in some of the areas. If you are assigned to an area you absolutely hate to work on, please let Melody know so she can change your assignment. She also gave us an outline of what each committee is responsible for. Again, it was emphasized that there is a lot to do to keep everything going in the chorus. Please see both attachments.
If committee Chairs have information to share, please get it to me at rehearsal. Remember I have the memory of a tomato plant, so it is preferable if you write it down. You can easily send me a text of email. debiwedding@sbcglobal.net
A message from Mo Field, Vocal Performance Coach and Director of Stockholm City Voices
People often ask, "how do we get to the next level'? Here are a few things that come to mind...
people often ask, "how do we get to the next level?" ... a few things come to mind ...
1.) understand that you are already good enough..
2.) be relentless about finding out where you "cut corners" and stop doing that.
3.) know that life is a series of improving upon your compromises. there is no such thing as "the best" .. only "my best so far". live in the curiousity of potential, not the disappointments.
4.) a quitter never wins and a winner never quits. the only real competition is the one you are having with your brain when it wants you to give up.
5.) find out what your personal "X factor" is, and milk it for all it's worth.
6.) Never "dumb down" what is best about you in order to suit others - find a way to raise your bar on everything else. this is how you become sophisticated in your art..
7.) never, ever ever try to show how talented you are for talent's sake ... that's just plain shallow wanking. .. it is your ego trying to kill you. .. and audiences can see right through it.
8.) trust the right people to love you, teach you and challenge you.
9.) keep evolving. never stand still. be fearless. be generous.
10.) always know the history and social connection of your music. if you can't respect it and do it justice, don't do it. .. it just comes off as cheezy.
11.) always sing up to your audiences, never at them.. respect is key.
12.) absorb the details slowly. ....... first, imitate. then assimilate. ......... then innovate.
repeat as necessary
Mondah Night Madness
Monday night was very productive. First we watched a video of the Vocal Majority’s Gold Medal performance at the annual Competition. If you have never seen them perform, it was amazing! The video is probably on You-Tube if you would like to watch it.
We learned a new tag! Very nice part for the Bari’s
We had an opportunity to Perform Phone Call and American Medley. That was our POD for the week.
We then welcomed our guest Melody White. She came to show us the fiber eyelashes. We were very impressed. It was decided this would take the place of false eyelashes. The Chorus ordered enough for everyone to get the no shipping discount. The cost per member is $29. You will have your own set. It is not hygienic to share Mascara products. Please make arrangements to purchase a set. You need to be proficient by the show in October……that means PRACTICE!
We finished off with a evening by working Cohan Medley. It is trickier than it appears! There are some challenges, but that is what we like! We worked the rough spots over and made a few changes. You ladies that were not there need to get with your section leader and get the information be fore you get on the risers next week. We want to continue to move forward.
Music Assignments
POD for next week is Side by Side and Battle Hymn of the Republic. Have it Performance ready!
Work those rough spots and be ready to start the interp for Cohan Medley.
DON'T MISS THE BOAT!!
Important dates to remember:
· Richtone’s Show with Blaze August 23, 2014.
o Mel has tickets
o Advertising space is available in the Program
· Texas Harmony Show with Blaze October 15, 2012
· RVCC Fall Show October 25-26, 2014
· Region 25 Competition March 19-23, 2014
THAT'S ALL FOLKS!
I hope you have found this inaugural issue informative, entertaining, and motivating. Now that I have had time to complete the first one, I know the next one will be better. As you can see, there is a LOT of information here. The hope was to put all the information in one place rather than a bunch of little messages all week long. Because it is an "on line" newsletter, there are lots of options. I just have to learn how to use them!