A message from Bookwise:
Bookwise need your help! They are planning some furniture moving around this week and would appreciate any help if anyone can come in any time this week to help.
There will be heavy lifting involved so please bear this in mind!
For more info, contact Gary Directly on 07818423536. Many thanks!
Hello Eveyone,
We hope you’re all feeling energised and ready for some more music-making!
A spotlight on our Musicals workshop and cabaret for adults on Saturday 23rd March at the Rushcliffe Spencer Academy.
Enjoy the glitz and glam of the theatre with our special guest compere and baritone soloist Simon Theobald, conducted by MfE’s Assistant Artistic Director, Rachel Parkes, and accompanied by Angela Foan.
Come along and sing a selection of foot tapping numbers from Oliver and Guys and Dolls, unforgettable melodies from West Side Story and Chess, and moving songs from hit musical Blood Brothers.
The day will finish with an informal cabaret-style concert and we are really excited that singers from our Open Voices choir will be performing their favourite musical hits for us!
To sign up for the workshop visit: https://www.music-for-everyone.org/event/ncm-come-and-sing/
If you would like to come and watch, tickets are £8 and include a free pre-concert glass of wine or soft drink from 4pm. For tickets visit: https://www.music-for-everyone.org/event/from-west-end-to-broadway/
There is still time for any younger singers to sign up for our next Vocals ‘at the Movies’ event on 9th & 10th March. Music packs have now left the building and the excitement is building for this special weekend! https://www.music-for-everyone.org/event/vocals-mar-24/
Continuing the Musicals theme here are some fun facts about a couple of the shows which will feature in our workshop:
Chess – It’s written by the boys from ABBA and Sir Tim Rice!
What’s it about? Cold War, East vs West. In today’s era of Russia’s cyber-threat to Western Democracies, that seems more relevant than ever. Chess takes the rivalry, subterfuge and political plotting of two global super-powers and transfers the action to the World Chess championships, where defection, gamesmanship and espionage are as rife as in the corridors of power. It’s a love story between characters whose lives are torn apart by powers they cannot control. Chess is probably best summed up as “The Thinking-Person’s Musical.”
According to The Guinness Book of Records, the single “I Know Him So Well” remains the most successful ever by a female duo, retaining the No.1 spot in the UK Singles Charts for 4 weeks. It may also have broken the world record for the most cans of hairspray used on the video!! https://youtu.be/s2SDInk6voA?si=wsor_qnbPdt5wvGz
Guys and Dolls – A modern classic that explores the lives of two seemingly mismatched couples. It premiered on Broadway in 1950 and ran for 1,200 performances. In the smash-hit 1955 film adaptation of Guys and Dolls, the swingin’ and swoonin’ Frank Sinatra took on the role of powerful gambler Nathan Detroit. This was his first major film role, and the gamble paid off, he received critical acclaim for his performance!
The songs from the musical are total bangers and have been covered and adapted by numerous artists over the years, including Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, and Barbra Streisand. ‘Luck Be a Lady’ in particular gained widespread popularity and recognition and has even made appearances in shows such as The Simpsons, Family Guy and can even be heard in the family favourite movie Mrs. Doubtfire!
https://youtu.be/X69P_Vce9vw?si=rMKwOYS4udiJGv_i
- String players! The Villiers quartet are about to launch their next online string quartet course this Sunday studying Haydn’s Emperor Quartet. The course is for amateurs who love to study their music in greater depth and want to explore the art of string quartet playing. For more information and booking visit: http://villiersquartet.com/vqdiscovery
Have a great week!
Your friends at MfE.
19/02/2024
www.music-for-everyone.org | 0115 9589312
10 Goose Gate | Hockley | NG1 1FF
2024 is well underway and all of our regular groups are back to rehearsals. Have you ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes to get these groups up and running? For the Daytime Voices groups alone we prepare 430 packs with 6 pieces of music. A massive thank you to our volunteers for coming into the office to help prepare and stuff music folders!
A random one this week! We have been contacted by one of our members who sent us a picture of a lace bobbin with an inscription ‘Blow the Dust’ etched into it. This got us thinking about the importance of lacemaking locally as our office is on the edge of the Lace Market, once the heart of the worlds lace industry.
selling point of MfE is that we are able to give people the chance to be part of a large-scale musical event, accompanied by our fabulous full orchestra, without asking for vast time commitment in the run-up. Singers have been busily learning their notes from our carefully curated ‘CD practise tracks’, whilst some came along in person to our friendly sectional rehearsals in deepest darkest January. This past weekend saw the massed chorus meeting at NTU Clifton to look at their notes in detail with Angela Kay and Rachel Parkes, and we can tell you that the results were stunning. Much fun was had, and many different muscles – singing, brain and body (!) were stimulated. There were also many biscuits consumed!
