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Dear friends of Chor Leoni,
Fall fashions, falling leaves, fall schedules – September is here already! Though some lions may be in denial after our later-than-usual tour, we begin rehearsals next week for a jam-packed 2007/2008 season. We invite you to check our web site calendar to help keep track of where the lions are. In this issue you will find the following news items: 1. Tour memories. 2. At Home with Chor Leoni. An invitation to our re-branded (and fabulous) fund-raising evening. 3. HOPE, PEACE, LOVE, FUN: Chor Leoni's 2007/2008 season. 4. Circle of Compassion CD has arrived. 5. Other upcoming Chor Leoni performances. 1. Tour memories. Chor Leoni's ten-day visit to Quebec and Ontario has come and gone. The plethora of digital photos streaming into my inbox (destined eventually for the Chor Leoni flickr stream on-line) induced many smiles and memories. Here are just a few numbers that you may find interesting: Montreal - audience of 150.
Lachute - audience of 500. Quebec City - audience of 250. Ottawa - audience of 750. Kitchener workshop - 110 participants. Stratford - audience of 1000. Throughout the tour a veritable brigade of erstwhile bloggers found ways to write about their personal tour experience. Our bloggers ranged from singers relatively new to the choir to founding members, and they posted at all hours of the day, from laptops, hotel lobbies, and internet cafes. Their writings can be found here (at the bottom of the page) and they offer a unique glimpse into the life of a choir on tour. We'd like to officially recognize and thank the men who took on this task: John Wyness, Bob Rankin, Cliff Reinhardt, Greg Martin, Philip Jack, Byron Hanson, Spencer Cripps, Nicolas Bermudez, Anton Donkersloot, Steve Castle, Stephen Baker, Mark MacDonald, and David Love. To compliment the work of our bloggers, bass Paul Birch added this wrap-up of the tour which captures so beautifully our collective experience. A Thousand Impressions
The dust has settled, the echoes are dying out of the corners of the churches where we sang, and we’re back to the routines of real life again. Now is the time to sort out a thousand impressions and take stock of the Chor Leoni 2007 summer tour of Central Canada. My strongest memory is summed up in one word: harmony. Our main goal in taking our music to a part of the country where we had not sung before was to share the beauty of vocal music, the harmony of men’s voices in strong yet sensitive renditions of wonderful music. This, I believe, was achieved. At times in both rehearsals and public presentations I was so carried away by the sheer beauty of the sound surrounding me that I found it hard to keep singing. Tears came to my eyes and a lump to my throat so that I was swept up in the grandeur of what I was hearing. This harmony of sound was a blessing in itself, but it was also a symbol of the harmony that I feel we established with our audiences. In every place where we sang there seemed to be an almost instant oneness with the people who had come to listen. Who will ever forget the electric atmosphere in the church at Lachute where people were totally tuned in before we had even opened our mouths? Which of us will not continue to treasure the warm handclasps from beaming audience members in Stratford, where reserve had been the dominant tone when we walked in but hilarious enthusiasm had been reluctant to let us leave at the end of the evening? Not one audience anywhere left us with the impression of anything less than rapture – for both them and us – by the time a concert had finished. I feel strangely one with people that I had never known before and I am more solidly united to that part of the country that had formerly been just ‘them.’Finally, and perhaps at the root of this overarching impression from the trip, was the remarkable and treasured harmony among the men of the choir and the others who traveled with us. I was not aware of any friction, jealousy, or bitterness that developed as we lived and traveled together. This is no small miracle. Considering the diversity of tastes and backgrounds that we represent I am endlessly grateful for the warmth that exists among us as a group. Our spouses and friends that shared the journey with us, and those who listened as we sang, unanimously remarked on the fact that we appeared to enjoy one another so much. Such harmony cannot be faked. I believe that it is founded on the respect and love that Diane shows to each singer, the meticulous care that David Carpenter put into the tour preparations, and the genuine consideration that each member of the choir showed to everyone else on the trip. What can be said but ‘thank you all’? Where do we go from here? Every mountain top leads to a descent, but I have a feeling that this time we will not descend to a valley, but rather to a new plateau. We have established a bond and a standard of performance that will certainly inspire us to aim higher. There are always new heights to scale and I believe that we have proven to ourselves that we are capable of what we had formerly not imagined. We have also learned that the work required of each of us is well worthwhile because we do it together, ‘we happy few, we band of brothers.’ 2. At Home with Chor Leoni The lions are looking forward to spending an evening with their friends At Home with Chor Leoni on October 3. This is your opportunity to support the choir as we act as suave and charming hosts, entertainers, and servers of a gourmet stand-up dinner. The evening's focus is Chor Leoni's PROMYS (PROgram for Mentoring Young Singers). Your presence will support this exciting educational outreach, which aims to introduce young men to the power and sheer joy of singing with a world-class men's choir. To read more about At Home with Chor Leoni and to order tickets on-line, please visit our web site. 3. HOPE, PEACE, LOVE, FUN: Chor Leoni's 2007/2008 Season Were you left scrambling for tickets to No Holds Bard? The easiest way to ensure you're in your seat for FUN, next year's cosmic outer-space experience, as well as our other three main concerts, is to become a subscriber, and we've made it even easier to do so! This year you may purchase your season tickets (including tickets to At Home with Chor Leoni) through our secure web site. By purchasing season tickets you save all surcharges and taxes and are ensured of having tickets in hand well before concert dates. Our web site calendar lists details of our upcoming season and we encourage you to browse through to catch a glimpse of what Diane and the lions have in store for you. HOPE, PEACE, LOVE, FUN promises to deliver more of what you have come to expect from Chor Leoni: superb singing, adventurous programming, and stunning entertainment. We look forward to seeing you in our audience! 4. Circle of Compassion has arrived.Our new CD, Circle of Compassion, is a choral tour de force and is available now on-line. Diane says it is our best yet and we are sure you'll agree. Works range from classics by Mendelssohn and Schubert to newer compositions by Stephen Chatman and Larry Nickel. The CD also includes the premiere recording of Pensive on Her Dead Gazing by Stephen Smith. We're also very proud that almost half of the tracks (7 out of 16) were either written or arranged for Chor Leoni. Achingly beautiful, its controlled power will entrance and move you. This recording is Chor Leoni at its finest and is offered as compassion and consolation to all those who have suffered loss. Playlist
Chor Leoni is lending its collective voice to several events outside of our HOPE and PEACE concerts this fall. They include our first-ever collaboration with the Vancouver International Writers & Readers Festival (Oct 21), an appearance as part of a fund-raising event for the Callanish Society (Oct 27), and our annual performances for the CBC's Food Bank Day (Dec 7) and Sounds Like Canada (Dec 24). You'll find more details on our web site. |