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Dear Choir/Singer, Antiphon, the Tynedale based chamber choir, would like to invite you to take part in an exciting singing project to be held on Saturday, October 3rd at the lovely medieval churches of Bywell Saint Peter and Bywell Saint Andrew in the heart of the Tynedale countryside. The event is taking place to mark the 40th birthday of the Churches Conservation Trust, the national charity that cares for England’s finest historic churches, no longer required for regular worship, such as Saint Andrew’s, Bywell. Forty choirs will be performing in 40 churches cared for by the trust, enabling visitors to experience these ancient spaces and how they can be used. A Tynedale Community sing – the Cantata of the Creatures. Our main project for the day is to put together, with your help, a cantata for our Tynedale community based on Saint Francis of Assisi’s great hymn of praise for Creation, the Canticle of the Creatures which he wrote just two years before he died, to be sung by ordinary people he met on the roads in the Italian countryside. The piece is for soloist, (Francis), and various choirs and instruments, who will represent a cross section, old and young, of the people of Assisi. The piece will have a strong medieval flavour, and incorporate some existing medieval tunes, and is currently being written by a number of local musicians /composers. We will be joined for the day by the lively medieval instrumental duo, Misericordia, who play an array of different medieval instruments. This is for all ages and all abilities. We are tailoring the piece to suit everyone. Saint Francis is one of the most popular medieval saints and his festival day is October 4th. This year is the 800th anniversary of the Franciscan movement which he founded. Apart from having a great love of animals and all elements of the natural world, which he saw as his brothers and sisters, he also had a wonderful sense of community and how singing in particular can help to bring people together to share enjoyment of music. By an interesting coincidence one of Francis’ early spiritual experiences took place in a redundant church just outside Assisi and, as a result, he felt inspired to rebuild that church and others for the use of his local rural community. This echoes very strongly the main theme of the Birthday Song Event - reclaiming disused churches for community use! We are asking representative singing groups drawn from the Tynedale community and beyond, to join us in a morning workshop, to work with Misericordia and members of Antiphon, in their groups on parts of the cantata written for them, and to explore some other medieval songs/ tunes. This will take place from 10am to 12.30pm. Please come in time to make a prompt start at 10am. You will need to bring with you a packed lunch or make other arrangements. We will be able to provide soft drinks only. After lunch, at 1.30pm all groups will come together start to put together the whole piece. After a short break we will join with members of the public who have come along to listen, in the singing of a ‘birthday song’ for the Churches Conservation Trust, yet to be chosen by a popular vote (This is likely to be something well known, like ‘Jerusalem’, and will be sung at every redundant church venue across the country where the 40th birthday of the CCT is being marked). Antiphon and friends will then give a performance of a short piece involving several choirs. Then, at around 4.30pm we will all join together to give the first performance of the cantata, finishing by 5.15pm We want to hear from any Tynedale choir, or individual singer would like to take part. We will provide you with music in advance and would be pleased for you to come to one of our rehearsals in advance of the event if you would like a ‘dry run’ at some of it. We are hoping for widespread support from different groups to make this an authentic ‘Tynedale’ event and a fitting celebration of our community. To cover the expenses of producing the music, organising the event, involving Misericordia, to help run the workshop and make the performance as authentic a sound as possible, and pay a modest fee to participating composers and our own music teacher members for any additional support we might be asked to give to school groups before the day we are charging a fee of £12 per adult or £5 per child or £30 per family of 2 adults & up to 3 children for the workshop day at the time of enrolling. We need people to enrol for the workshop by September 14th by completing and returning the application form (click here). Please would you let us know asap if you would like to participate. Workshop places will be allocated on a first come first served basis. We believe this will be a really exciting and powerful way of bringing together Tynedale singers of many different ages, backgrounds and abilities to celebrate the beauty of our valley, and the power of music to bring people together and promote a sense of community and well being. Please click here if you would like to print out a handbill to publicise the event to more singers. The national organisers of the event have expressed considerable interest and enthusiasm for this project and would hope to make it a main focus for their publicity for the work of the Churches Conservation Trust in reopening currently disused churches to community use. Email Judy Lloyd on duncan@photas.com or phone 01434 606293 for further information Send form and fee to Judy Lloyd at 24A Hallgate, Hexham, NE46 1XD by Sep 14th, 2009 NB We are hoping to work with school groups. Smaller groups of children and young people are very welcome to take part but we would ask that, if they are under 14, that you confirm adult supervision arrangements at lunch and other breaks as we will not be able to take on that role For a printable version of this information please click here ---------------------------------------------------- Directions to St Peter’s & St Andrew’s Bywell, Stocksfield, Northumberland, NE43 7AD. Take the A69 Newcastle – Hexham road and turn off south to Bywell and Stocksfield on the B6309. Follow the road until you come to a crossroads where the B6309 turns sharp left. At this point follow the road ahead to find the two Bywell churches. If you go over the river to Stocksfield you’ve gone too far!
Antiphon Judy Lloyd, 24A Hallgate, Hexham NE46 1 Tel: 01434 606 293 Email: duncan@photas.com www.antiphonchoir.co.uk
The Churches Conservation Trust is the national charity that protects historic churches at risk. We’ve saved over 340 unique buildings which attract more than a million visitors a year. With our help and your support, they are kept open, in use and free to all – living once again at the heart of their communities.
The Churches
Conservation Trust, Tel: 020 7213 0660 or visit www.visitchurches.org.uk Registered Charity No: 258612
For a printable version of this information please click here |
