Category: News

Community Fun Day/Rotary Club Lunch – Mansfield Civic Centre – Sunday 10 June 2018.

We have always considered ourselves to be very much a part of our community, providing, as we do, a very warm welcome to new singers to the Choir from diverse backgrounds and regardless of ability. We are also very active in sharing our music in our own town and surrounding areas by performing locally on a regular basis  ensuring that ticket prices are affordable to all and performing at many charity events.

As we look forward to our anniversary year in 2019, the Choir are also working hard to re-establish traditional links with our local Council and business leaders and re-enforcing our connection to all sections of our community. We were also very pleased to hear from our local MP Ben  Bradley who has written to the Choir congratulating us in representing Mansfield at the Royal Albert Hall. We appreciate the recognition.

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We are very proud of the Choir and are looking forward to the celebratory evening in March 2019 – Mayor Kate Allsop

 

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At the invitation of the Rotary Club of Mansfield the Choir performed a total of 9 songs at the Lunch organised by the Club. In attendance was Mayor Kate Allsop, who is a big supporter of the Choir. The programme included Stout-Hearted Men, Shenandoah, Comrades In Arms, Alexander’s Ragtime Band and Cwm Rhonda  from the Albert Hall repertoire. The Lunch itself was part of the Mayor’s Parade which unfortunately was cancelled to everyone’s disappointment. The Community Fun Day did take place however and was a great success, many local folk enjoying their day in such beautiful sunshine.

Watch this space for more details of the celebrations planned for 2019…

 

A Festival of Massed Male Voice Choirs – Saturday 19 May 2018 – Royal Albert Hall, London

This was a very special experience for performers and audience alike. 28 separate choirs and over 800 male choristers blending as one thrilling voice in celebration of music and masculinity in all of its diversity and beauty. The concert really did demonstrate the astonishing variety and depth of the repertoire.

We were privileged as a choir to join our voices, under one mother-hen of a roof, in celebration of Welsh culture and something which we all recognize as core to Welsh national identity namely, singing and especially choral singing. Of course, the love of singing and the love of music is core to our identity as well.

Let’s not get carried away by the idea that this event was all about the blokes. The contributions of the guest conductor, Meir Lewis, the female soloists Ffion Edwards and Samantha Oxborough and the girls choir ‘Bella Voce’ so lifted that wonderful auditorium to even further heights on this memorable evening.

We should also offer recognition and appreciation, once again, to all the ladies (and their male colleagues of course) as we re-call such warm expressions of gratitude from all choristers as MDs and accompanists took to the stage at the start of the second half to take the audience applause. This included our very own MD Ian Grice and accompanist Margaret Ball together with previous MD Meryl Chambers who have worked so hard to prepare our choir for this event.

“I think the concert was the best we have been involved in. Super songs and so well appreciated by the audience. I was so proud of our choir” said Ian.

The male soloist was Rhydian Jenkins. The festival accompanist was Caradog Williams and the festival organist was Huw Tregelles Williams. The festival conductor was the incomparable Alwyn Humphreys. Compere was Phil Lloyd.

It would be re-miss not to mention first tenor Timothy Bexon who, celebrating his 18th birthday, enjoyed a moment in the limelight and received special best wishes from the audience with an impromptu rendition of “Happy Birthday”.

It was truly a joy to applaud individual choristers across the generational span amongst the massed choir including the eldest chorister in his 90s, a grandson/grandfather first tenor team and the youngest chorister of 13 years of age.

Special appreciation on this blog also goes to all of our own choristers who have worked so hard, individually and collectively, to prepare themselves for the concert. Also to the committee and especially Geoff Mansfield who has worked tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure that the weekend ran smoothly.

It was a weekend when we were all so proud to have been there!

The Festival of Welsh Male Voices will take place at the Royal Albert Hall on Saturday 19 May 2018. The Choir for this very special event  will be made up of approximately 850 choristers drawn from 25 choirs from the Principality and three choirs from England including the Mansfield & District MVC.

The repertoire to be performed is a selection of traditional and modern songs arranged especially for Male Voice Choirs and the Choir will be led by the world famous Dr. Alwyn Humphreys MBE.

I know I speak for all of our choristers in expressing our  appreciation to our very own Ian Grice  and to Margaret for the way they have prepared the Choir for London. Our new Musical Director has demonstrated such huge amounts of passion and pride in his work in these last few months together with a real love and respect for, not only our own choir, but for choral singing generally. Ian also has such feeling for the Welsh choral traditions which are integral to the Royal Albert Hall event.

I caught up with Ian at the last but one practice before London and asked him firstly how he was feeling so close to the big day.

Ian: I’m really excited and I know the men are too. I‘m excited because I know the men are feeling confident and comfortable – I’m very happy! We have worked so hard and this has really borne  fruit and brought us on as a choir. I have also  been so pleased at the attendance levels at practice. We’ve gone from having 8 to 10 missing to probably having only a couple missing, usually for genuine reasons. The men have been arriving early so that we can start on time to start work.

I shared with Ian how I felt stronger as a singer as a result of working so hard on these challenging pieces.

Ian: Everybody seems stronger. The lads have improved technique and especially in breath control so that they can sing through the long phrases. In that respect some of the quieter pieces are actually more challenging than the louder sing-.out anthems. In learning this repertoire I feel that many have perhaps drawn on some inner strength that they perhaps didn’t think they had!

We went on to discuss some of the individual pieces. I was interested in Ian’s thoughts as to which of these “new” songs will become part of our established repertoire.

Ian: All of the English songs I would imagine. I would like to think we can turn Anfonal Angel into an English piece. The words are very beautiful in Welsh but also the English words match the song so perfectly. I have heard a Welsh Choir sing  this piece in English and they told me that they felt it sounds better in English than it does in Welsh.

And the Welsh ones?

Ian: Y Tangnefeddwyr is one we will keep singing. It has an excitement about it which I think will draw an audience along. If we were to sing the piece in Welsh, which I would want to do, we would need to find a way to explain the meaning of the song to an English audience but I’m sure we could do that. I think the song would be a winner with our audiences.

I was also interested in Ian’s favourite pieces in this programme.

Ian: I actually love Tangneffeddwyr. Having learnt this song some years ago it has stayed with me. Bugeilio’r Gweneth Gwyn is a beautiful song. I sang this many years ago as a young singer. We sang the English version “Watching the White Wheat” but the song in its original language seems to have an extra quality. Gorgeous

What is your special message to our choristers as we eagerly anticipate this event?

Ian: My special message is that this is a special concert. You are ready to sing. Go and enjoy it. Absorb every moment of the weekend. It will be gone in a flash but will always be there in your memory. Make friends while you’re there – it’s what male voice choirs do and it’s what makes being in one so special.

The Choir originally intended to present the programme to our own audience here in Mansfield at a special pre-RAH concert but, unfortunately this was not possible. Hopefully, however, many of these songs will become favourites with our audiences at future concerts.

The full programme for the Royal Albert Hall is:

In Welsh: Llanfair, Ar Lan Y Mor, Anfonaf Angel, Bugeilio’r Gwenith Gwin, Rachie, Y Tangnefeddwyr, African Prayer, Pokarekare Ana, Gwahoddiad

In English: Stout Hearted Men, There Is No Death, Fantasia on Famous Welsh Airs, Cwm Rhondda, With a Voice of Singing, Shenandoah, Morte Criste, Alexander’s Ragtime Band, Mansions of the Lord, Comrades In Arms

 

• Nick Shelley