Nearly there?

[Merseysider]

Was feeling quite proud of myself: band parts written (to be delivered on Friday), glockenspiel borrowed (you can't have Silent Night without it), Midnight service sheet finished and printed, Christmas Day sheet just needs tweaking. All this and four days to go. Then....

It's just occurred to me that I have bought no Christmas presents, written no cards and the Christmas tree...? That will have to wait until Boxing Day.

Anyone better organised than me?

[docmattc]

Anyone better organised than me?

Only marginally. A unexpected summons to Switzerland last week for work didn't help things.
Have more or less everything sorted now for church, service sheet run off, trumpeter rehearsed, choir well drilled. The question from the children's Mass people "Can we just say the memorial acclamation?" has been answered. (No!) Just have to find out if the organist for Christmas morning knows any settings of the Gloria or if I have to stay around to play it. Much as Christmas morning is the 'low Mass' of the day, I think the Gloria needs to be sung. The PP tentatively suggested singing "Angels we have heard on high" instead, as it contains the word 'gloria' in the chorus. At least he admitted that maybe it wasn't adequate!

Very few presents yet bought and almost no cards sent out yet.

[TimSharrock]

Definitely behind here - master congregation sheets handed over to the parish office, but instrumental parts not started yet I have almost finished the cards, but presents still have gaps.

We went to see Maddy Prior and the Carnival Band last night (Carols and Capers...) we really could do with some bagpipes and a bassoon in the music group (but it might require musicians of their standard!)

Tim

[VML]

Hurray, I love Maddy Proir, and her voice is a lesson for many older women. (Does she count as an older woman-? she can't have been much less than 17 when I heard her at her first professional gig in 1965) Sorry- Off topic, except that her voice is more cantor than choral or operatic, and that's what I meant.

We sang Gaudete at our carol service last Sunday. The carol service is a new fixture(= extra work..) introduced by new PP.

[docmattc]

We sang Gaudete at our carol service last Sunday.

We're singing it tomorrow night. Its a piece that really suits our choir, I have to say though that the Bob Hurd phrasing (Ubi Caritas CD) is much better than the Steeleye Span version!

[contrabordun]

we really could do with some bagpipes

and you don't often see that

[docmattc]

we really could do with some bagpipes

and you don't often see that

Trouble with bagpipes is that you run the risk of luring haggises (haggi?) into the church. Just one wild haggis running round causes chaos

[contrabordun]

Are you speaking from experience?

[presbyter]

We sang Gaudete at our carol service .........I have to say though that the Bob Hurd phrasing (Ubi Caritas CD) is much better than the Steeleye Span version!

Ah - But the Bob Hurd version lacks the Black Country inflections, so necessary for this piece IMO

[docmattc]

Are you speaking from experience?

Absolutely! Once had one gate crash a wedding I was playing at on the Wirral (so the wee beastie was surprisingly far south). The couple were piped out by a lone piper, but the haggis in question mistook the pipes for the mating cry of another haggis. Who can blame it, the pipes were of course invented to imitate this and lure them out of the mountains.


The creature ran amok around the church, looking amorously for his mate but on discovering there wasn't another nubile young haggis present, our intruder turned quite vicious and gave the piper a nasty nip (but some quite nice tatties!)

[TimSharrock]

I did go as far as looking on ebay for bagpipes, as our eleven-year-old said he wanted to learn them (but it would be a long while before he caught up with his violin-playing). Cheap, allegedly playable, mini-scottish-bagpipes abound, but non-scottish ones are much rarer and more expensive, even though haggis is easily to be found in supermarkets down here.

[organist]

Silent Night without glockenspiel - why not no Silent Night at all!

[organist]

Apologies for the last comment - it's just that I don't really like "Silent night" at all - drunks lurching up to the high notes in the last line, twee gooey eyed version of the manger scene, singing it in the morning always seems crazy! And glockenspiels sound so sweet don't they? NOt much good at accompanying a congregation in full voice! But of course don't sing it and risk lynching so I dutifully choose it and play it. I know a Methodist church musician who thinks we should choose the items we hate. I choose them when I'm away and get the deputy to play them.

[Merseysider]

glockenspiels sound so sweet don't they? NOt much good at accompanying a congregation in full voice!

Er... glock wasn't playing alone. Main accompaniment was from brass ensemble, glock just added texture.

we should choose the items we hate. I choose them when I'm away and get the deputy to play them.

Surely our work is not about personal preference.

[Alan]

we really could do with some bagpipes

and you don't often see that

I have to go and record some bagpipes on Wednesday (don't ask).

Any advice (technical or otherwise)?