Blog - Men United In Song 2024
Welcome to the Men United In Song blog!
Here, we aim to tell the story of the choir's journey over the next few weeks. We hope you will find it interesting learning about the process of reaching our goal, and sharing in some individual stories about this journey in song!
Please consider supporting us via our JustGiving page. Let's raise as much as we can for Prostate Cancer UK, and support our guys on their musical journey!
Week 10 - Ready to roll...
Well, this is it! You've done all the practice, learned all the words, memorised the music, and all to do now is look forward to the concert!
You should be proud of your achievement, and the sound of you all in song is fantastic. Go wow them at Weston!
Thanks to John, Hugh, Cass, Michelle and all the support team for your encouragement.
Remember to tell people about our JustGiving page and keep the donations flowing - £7,400 and growing!
The Rose
Tell My Father
Week 9 - The final countdown...
We're nearly there! 10 days to Weston, and to wow our audience.
Here are some words from Cass: "First of all, I want to say what an immense privilege it has been to lead you through this project. I've enjoyed getting to know you all and your progress throughout the weeks has brought me so much professional pride and personal enjoyment. It is a wonderful project to be part of, and you have all contributed wholeheartedly to it. I enjoy your enthusiasm, commitment and dedication each week - you are a fabulous group to spend time with!"
Thanks to John, Hugh, Cass, Michelle and all the support team for your encouragement.
Remember to tell people about our JustGiving page and keep the donations flowing - £5,000 and growing!
Shenandoah
Week 8 - Singing to a T!
Maybe it was because everyone was wearing their Prostate Cancer T-shirt, or maybe it was because you are all just so good, but this week felt like performance went up a notch.
Be proud of your efforts and work that you are doing!
Thanks to John, Hugh, Cass, Michelle and all the support team for your encouragement.
Remember to tell people about our JustGiving page and keep the donations flowing - £3,900 and growing!
Danny Boy
Week 7 - Bringing it home...
Into the final laps!
It's all coming together, and the sing out at the end of rehearsal showed how well you have accomplished the songs.
"Bring Him Home" and "Tell My Father" sounded great!
Now we can really start polishing these numbers! Keep up with your homework!
Thanks to John, Hugh, Cass, Michelle and all the support team for your encouragement.
Remember to tell people about our JustGiving page and keep the donations flowing - £1,700 and growing!
Tell My Father
Bring Him Home
Week 6 - Crossing the bar...
You are the choir that keeps on giving and learning!
Fantastic first effort at "Crossing the Bar" and managing to really get the "flow" between the different sections and timing, holding the long notes and finding your pilot's fez!
Only 4 weeks to go - DON'T PANIC! - you are doing great, and it will be fine.
Just remember to keep up with your ____work and _____ tracks!
Thanks to John, Hugh, Cass, Michelle and all the support team for your encouragement.
Remember to tell people about our JustGiving page and keep the donations flowing - £1,700 and growing!
Crossing that bar...
The Rose reprise...
Week 5 - break and refresh...
Welcome back everyone!
After an interesting warm-up, it was great to hear everyone in good voice.
Excellent work on "Bridgwater Fair" - a bridge fairly crossed!, and bringing home "Bring Him Home"!
The singing gets better, even if the puns don't!
Really well done with your learning, and you should be proud of what you are achieving.
Thanks to John, Hugh, Cass, Michelle and all the support team for your encouragement.
Remember to tell people about our JustGiving page and keep the donations flowing - £800 and growing!
Week 4 - and...breathe...
Well done everyone for working so hard. We enjoyed the "battle of the sections" during the sectional rehearsals with the Tops/Seconds in one room and the Baritones/Basses next door. After this friendly competition, a draw was declared!
A couple of weeks' break for everyone until after Easter - but the work doesn't stop!
In between eating Easter eggs, remember it's an opportunity to keep listening to the teach tracks and getting those words fixed in your brain!
Look at the learning techniques page for inspiration.
Thanks to John, Hugh, Cass, Michelle and all the support team for your encouragement.
Remember to tell people about our JustGiving page and keep the donations flowing.
Week 3 - Keeping the vibe going...
Great to see you all again this week, and hearing how the music is coming together.
Well done on conquering "Shenandoah" and getting through the whole song!
Singing out with "The Rose" was very impressive, and shows how well everyone is doing.
We were back at the bowls club for the post-rehearsal "social", and to relax after the evening's hard work.
Remember to do your homework boys, I hope you can sense that it is really paying off!
Thanks to John, Hugh, Cass, Michelle and all the support team for your encouragement.
Remember to tell people about our JustGiving page. We are well on our way to the first £500!
Week 2 - Another "Bridge" to cross!
Great to see you all again this week, and well done for keeping to the challenge!
"Shenandoah" and "Bridgwater Fair" were this week's pieces. Great work everyone, really impressive learning.
Nice to have a few of you joining for the post-rehearsal "social" as well.
Remember to do your homework boys!
Thanks to John, Hugh, Cass, Michelle and all the support team for your encouragement.
Remember to tell people about our JustGiving page.
Week 1 - From Nerves to Harmony!
A great turnout for the first rehearsal, and very quickly the sound of 70 plus voices singing together fills the air. Amazing what people can do when they come together with a purpose!
"The Rose" and "The Wellerman" were the challenge - successfully accomplished, guided by Cass, our MD.
Remember to do your homework boys! Memory test next week!
Thanks to John, Hugh, Cass, Michelle and all the support team for your encouragement.
Read on for the "MD blog!"
MD's blog...From Nerves to Harmony: our first rehearsal!
March 6th - our very first time together. I was filled with trepidation as I stepped into the rehearsal room. Would any of you show up? Could we master eight songs in just ten weeks? The questions swirled around my head, but what unfolded was nothing short of miraculous!
Seventy-three men, each with your own blend of nerves and determination, gathered for our inaugural rehearsal. We'd previously performed the intricate process of assigning voice parts; our musical version of the sorting hat ceremony! Now we would see if everyone was in the right section...
Finally, the moment we'd all been waiting for, when your voices sang in harmony for the very first time. In just half an hour, your faces transformed from apprehension to pure joy as four-part harmony filled the room. For many of you, it was a debut into the world of choir singing. By the break, the room buzzed with excitement and camaraderie. As I chatted with members, the energy was palpable.
By the end of the rehearsal, when we triumphantly performed 'The Rose' and 'The Wellerman.' my heart was brimming with happiness and song! Listen to the remarkable results of our first gathering - it's truly breathtaking what we achieved in such a short time!
I'm looking forward to Wednesday, when we'll tackle 'Shenandoah' and 'Bridgewater Fair.' I hope you've all found the teach tracks and completed your homework, ready for session 2!
Here's to the magic of music and the journey ahead.
Cass
Anticipation...
Warm up....!
Result...
