Nottingham Lunchtime Choir

www.music-for-everyone.org | 0115 9589312

10 Goose Gate | Hockley | NG1 1FF

https://www.classicfm.com/lifestyle/quizzes/answer-only-music-notes/

#MfEMonday – 25th March 2024

25th March 2024 Music for Everyone

Well March has been a musical marathon at MfE, but PHEW, we made it!!!

West Bridgford felt more like the West End on Saturday after a wonderful day of singing at our musicals workshop. Rachel Parkes put the Nottingham Community Voices through their paces and we welcomed Open Voices who stole the show with a wonderful selection of their favourite hits. We were delighted to welcome Simon Theobald as soloist and compere for the event. Thanks to everyone who came along!

Enrolments have now hit 100 for the Big Youth Music Experience coming up in April! We still have spaces left for all string, woodwind and especially BRASS instruments so please encourage any young musicians to join in.

Bandwise – April 20th & 28th. Sign-Up Here: https://www.music-for-everyone.org/event/byme-bandwise-apr24/

Stringwise – April 21st & 28th. Sign- Up Here: https://www.music-for-everyone.org/event/byme-stringwise-apr24/

Thank you to those members who attended our AGM last Wednesday, it was lovely to see you there. We said a fond farewell to a couple of long-standing trustees, Angela Smallwood and Matt Lax – they are not disappearing completely and we will still see them around at events! We are delighted to welcome three new trustees on to the board: Gary Ackrill, Catherine Hocking and Josie Tanvir.

A presentation was made to Andrew James (ex-chairman of MfE) for the enormous contribution he has made to supporting Music for Everyone through the setting up and running of the Bookwise shops. We are extremely grateful for everything you have done Andrew!

I’m sure many of you will be looking forward to the giving and receiving of Easter eggs next weekend! But have you heard of “Easter eggs” in music?

For centuries composers have weaved secret messages or cryptograms into their works, from J.S. Bach to Shostakovich and this idea is still used today by songwriters such as Taylor Swift!

Find out more in this fun video: https://youtu.be/1GuJ-mFNauo?si=Tmg_mLDyhNUC06fN

Or why not test your ability to recognise words in musical notation?! Try this quiz:

Can you answer these quiz questions using just music notes?

You can read music, but can you READ music…?

www.classicfm.com

Can you spare a minute to nominate us for the chance to win £1000?! Click on the banner below.

Nominate now! – Movement for Good awards

We could receive £1,000 in the Movement for Good draw.

movementforgood.com

An exciting upcoming concert by Melodic Fanfare, a Nottingham based brass ensemble. They will be holding their first live performance : A relaxing lunchtime debut concert featuring a variety of classical music. The concert will be held at University Hall, Nottingham on Friday 5^th April with all proceeds going to Mind. Book tickets here.

Have a great week!

Your friends at MfE

25/03/2024

www.music-for-everyone.org | 0115 9589312

10 Goose Gate | Hockley | NG1 1FF

https://youtu.be/X69P_Vce9vw?si=rMKwOYS4udiJGv_i

#MfEMonday – 19th February 2024

19th February 2024 Music for Everyone

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!

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

#MfEMonday – 15th January 2024

15th January 2024 Music for Everyone

Greetings MfE followers!

This week sees Music for Everyone back into full swing with all of our regular rehearsing groups starting up again with brand new repertoire to sink your teeth into. If you haven’t been along to Daytime Voices in a while or have been meaning to get a long-neglected instrument out of the cupboard, January is the perfect time to dust it off and get playing and singing!

Our groups are warm, friendly and fun, so what are you waiting for?! Bring a friend and come along.

For more information on our current groups click here: Adult Music Groups & Courses | Music for Everyone (music-for-everyone.org

We also have a host of exciting concerts and events coming up including Blow the Dust and the Nottingham Festival Chorus Glorias! course and concert. Both events are a chance to work with Alex Robinson, MfE’s new Artistic Director, who brings a fresh approach and new enthusiasm and skill to Music for Everyone’s Artistic team, it’s going to be great working with him.

There are still spaces to join up, and we urge you to get involved if you’ve been apprehensive or putting it off. Last week, Rachel worked with the singers for the Gloria’s concert in sectionals, and we had the beginnings of some extremely exciting sounds. Participants are loving the programme and pieces, so if you’ve never sung these pieces before, it’s an opportunity not to be missed. It may seem challenging, but we know it’s going to be barnstorming.

Click here to sign-up for the gloria course and concert: NFC Singing Weekend Course & Concert (music-for-everyone.org)

However, if we can’t persuade you to sing, we hope we can encourage you to sell tickets. If every member of MfE sold 2 tickets for our concerts, it would ensure an incredible audience for our performers who work so hard, and help towards safeguarding the future of MfE and the arts. We know times are tough, a ticket may be the price of 4 coffees, 2 glasses of wine, or a pizza…. but the benefits of immersing yourself in live music for two and a half hours can far outlast those short-term treats. Maybe take a friend who hasn’t heard much classical music, or a teenager who you think could do with a bit more culture. The music we will be performing is youthful and colourful, with shining brass, noisy percussion and sumptuous strings. It’s going to be incredible.

Book now and don’t miss out! – Tickets available here: Gloria! Concert (music-for-everyone.org)

Last week members of our Open Voices Sherwood group went to the Panto to see Cinderella! The choir members and their carers had front row seats and absolutely loved the performance. One member was even given a red rose by one of the ugly sisters! Here are some photos that capture the fantastic day they had at the Nottingham Playhouse.

Want to test your knowledge of French composers? Rachel and Alex are here to provide obscure facts and questions about Poulenc, Debussy and Rameau which all featured in our upcoming concert ‘Gloria!’ on Saturday 3rd February, Albert Hall, Nottingham – not to be missed! Watch the video here:

· As Daytime Voices are starting this week, we have been thinking what films they would be! Which films do you like the look of?

Have a great week!

Your friends at MfE.

15/01/2024

www.music-for-everyone.org | 0115 9589312

10 Goose Gate | Hockley | NG1 1FF

https://www.music-for-everyone.org/event/byme-bandwise-2023/

#MfEMonday – 18th September 2023

18th September 2023 Music for Everyone

It’s going to be a busy week for MfE, with not one, not two, but EIGHT Daytime groups starting their new term. Plus there is the beautiful Chamber Singers concert to look forward to on Saturday evening at St Barnabas Cathedral, 8pm start – tickets on the door!

For more information see the attached flyer, or click here: https://www.music-for-everyone.org/event/ncs-concert/

The youth groups, all Open Voices groups, Sunday Afternoon Big Band and Flute Choir and Nottingham Chamber Singers have all started their new seasons, with the World Drumming starting next week (26th Sept). See a full weekly schedule below.

To find out more about any of these groups and how to join, please contact the office.

The next BANDWISE & STRINGWISE workshop is open for young musicians to join! We’re so excited to see many young wind, brass, percussion and string players taking part this November. Over the last few years the combined concert has been a magnificent affair with more than 150 young players all coming together to share the music making.

Bandwise: 11 & 19 November, young wind, brass and percussion grade 2+

Stringwise: 12 & 19 November, young string players from beginners

We’ve been ‘musing’ on the fantastic music chosen for the NFC workshop day in October with Sam Evans. Interesting fact about the operetta by Franz Lehár The Merry Widow – did you know Lehár was not the first choice to compose the music? Richard Heuberger was asked first, but his draft was deemed ‘unsatisfactory’ and he left the project.

The Vilja Song is one of the most well-known pieces from the score, if you’re not familiar, take a listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4366WDO3jhU

Something a bit different… Pachelbel’s Canon performed by… TRAIN HORNS! This is both brilliant and hilarious and is a must-watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cD3QlR98–A&t=158s

Have a great week!

Your friends at MfE.

18/09/2023

www.music-for-everyone.org | 0115 9589312

10 Goose Gate | Hockley | NG1 1FF

#MfEMonday – 17th April 2023

17th April 202317th April 2023 Music for Everyone

Introducing Laura, the newest member of the MfE office team! Laura started work as our new administrator at the beginning of April and will be based in the office on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday mornings. She studied Music at the University of Nottingham and has taken part in a few MfE activities before so is excited to be involved with more of the organisation. Welcome Laura!

Nottingham Lunchtime Voices starts back this week. If you work in Nottingham City Centre, take your Thursday lunch break at the Concert Hall (Level 4 Foyer) for an hour of singing, 12.30pm – 1.30pm with Rachel, details on the attached flyer.

The Vocals course is coming up this weekend! (22/23 April) It’s not too late to take part if you know any young singers, age 5 – 14 who would like to take part, find out all the details and sign up online here: https://www.music-for-everyone.org/event/vocals-apr-2023/

With our journey around the world coming up at vocals and the steel pan and world drumming groups starting this week, we’ve been looking at different types of world percussion sounds, some of which we’ll be hearing this week!

The Steel pan ensemble starts this evening in Beeston. Their distinctive sound originates from Trinidadian culture, traditionally using paint pots, dustbins and oil drums with a series of dents hammered into the metal surface to create different notes. It has become popular to play familiar songs on steel pan, see the link below for a well-known song from The Lion King.

Find out more here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-18903131

Here is a school band playing ‘The Lion Sleeps Tonight’! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=woBZME7sN3E

Callout to all MfE alumni. Do you know someone who used to sing or play in one of MfE’s youth groups? To help us celebrate our 40th anniversary, we’d love for as many alumni of the youth choirs, youth string orchestra and youth bands to join us on Saturday 1st July at the Albert Hall, Nottingham for a celebration event! Ask them to email by the end of April to admin@music-for-everyone.org if they would be interested in joining us.

Have a great week!

Your friends at MfE.

17/04/2023

www.music-for-everyone.org | 0115 9589312

10 Goose Gate | Hockley | NG1 1FF

https://youtu.be/VviWab5J2ao

#MfEMondays are Music for Everyone’s weekly emails designed to keep you up to date with MfE events & to circulate interesting finds, special features, and musical musings for your Mondays! We are aiming to send out something new each week.

#MfEMonday – 9th May 2022

9th May 2022 Music for Everyone

If you follow MfE on social media (Facebook, Instagram and Twitter) you may have seen a lot of activity last Thursday when we spent a ‘Day in the Life of…’ following Josh on his busiest day working for MfE. Josh conducts the Daytime Orchestras, Thursday youth bands, Strictly Strings groups and accompanies the Lunchtime Voices – a total of six groups! Four of these groups meet on a Thursday and we posted regular updates so everyone can see a typical day in the MfE world!

Here is a recap of his pictures for those that missed it or were not able to see it. In between many rehearsals, Josh pops into the office for an admin catch up and a trip to Windblowers to collect some music!

If you don’t already follow us, all the links to join Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are at the bottom of this e-newsletter.

As we move into May with the first glimmers of summer on the horizon, surely we should have a spring in our step and joy and hopefulness in our hearts? Unfortunately with the cost of living crisis, the various debacles in Westminster and ongoing situation in Ukraine, you might be feeling less than positive at the moment!

However, here at MFE, we firmly believe in the life changing and affirming power of music, and it would seem that we are not alone in this thinking –

“Life seems to go on without effort when I am filled with music”. – George Eliot

“Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything”. – Plato

“Music produces a kind of pleasure which nature cannot do without”. – Confucius

“As long as we live, there is never enough singing”. – Martin Luther

Most of us will have experienced a situation when listening to music or participating in music-making has brought much-needed relief or sense of perspective back into our lives. When we came across this video of the Kiev Symphony Orchestra playing Ukrainian composer Maksym Berezovsky’s Symphony No. 1, it certainly blew away some of the storm clouds away and let the warmth of the sunshine appear again. Enjoy!

If you have a spare few minutes, why not try your hand at this Guess the Classical Composer quiz? Let us know if you get them all correct. Good luck! https://youtu.be/H2H0IoBB5os

Have a good week!

Your friends at MfE.

09/05/2022

www.music-for-everyone.org | 0115 9589312

10 Goose Gate | Hockley | NG1 1FF

#MfEMondays are Music for Everyone’s weekly emails designed to keep you up to date with MfE events & to circulate interesting finds, special features, and motivational moments for your Mondays! We are aiming to send out something new each week.

#MfEMonday – 25th April 2022

25th April 2022 Music for Everyone

Greetings after yet another wonderful weekend of MfE music-making!

Saturday and Sunday saw the massed forces of the Nottingham Community Voices (featuring singers from our various daytime voices groups plus members from the Lunchtime Voices, Nottingham Chamber Singers and various other community choirs around the county), combining in a truly stunning ‘chorus line’ for our West End to Broadway musicals course.

Our singers worked hard on their renditions of the romantic and sumptuous scores of My Fair Lady and The King and I, along with smooth and sensual excerpts by the legendary Irving Berlin, before rounding it all off with their riotous rabble of revolutionaries in Les Miserables! They were accompanied by the stunning Nottingham Concert Orchestra, who serenaded us with a string of Broadway hits, including a heart-rending suite from Bernstein’s West Side Story. It was an absolute treat. Adding a little extra shimmer and sparkle to all of this, were the fantastic talents of Simon Theobald and Kate Taylor, whose performances left us simultaneously rolling in the aisles and weeping into our programmes. It was a triumph – huge congratulations to everyone involved!

Our Vocals weekend is next. With expert tuition from Alison Bennett and Rachel Parkes, this is an absolute steal at only £15.00 for the entire event (two workshop afternoons and a concert afternoon). Please tell all the young people (of primary school age) in your lives that it will be a wonderful chance to learn some new and entertaining music, as well as some well-known Disney tunes from Moana. These massed musical events tend to be formative in our experiences and memories, so help us to spread the word. We know you will want to come and support them in their concert on Saturday 21^st May – tickets are available on our website.

Finally for those instrumentalists amongst you, our Summer Blow the Dust day is fast approaching. Tell your friends, or even bring someone along from out of town … it’s a wonderful day to relax, enjoy and bond with other like-minded orchestral players out there! If you fancy an extended chance to waggle those clarinet keys or refine your ‘ricochet’, then our Summer School is for you. More details available at www.music-for-everyone.org

With the sun shining, our minds at MfE are turning to our Summer School. We are really looking forward to returning to Trent College and hopefully enjoying their lovely grounds in the sunshine. If you haven’t yet decided whether to come along, let us motivate you with a few facts about Vaughan William’s, who’s music we will be exploring to mark the 150^th anniversary of his birth:

He was well connected; His great-uncle was Charles Darwin, and ceramics magnate Josiah Wedgewood was his great-great-grandfather.
During the Second World War, he is rumoured to have done a stint of cleaning at the local public toilets in Dorking.
The composer never took his privileged background for granted and worked all his life for democratic and egalitarian ideals. He viewed music as being part of everyone’s everyday life, rather than being the preserve of an elite. Something we wholeheartedly agree with at MfE!

As the French Presidential Elections closed yesterday, we found it fitting that the French national anthem was composed on this day in 1792, here is Berlioz’s arrangement ‘La Marseillaise’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZWabwLPUXc

Have a good week!

Your friends at MfE.

25/04/2022

www.music-for-everyone.org | 0115 9589312

10 Goose Gate | Hockley | NG1 1FF

#MfEMonday – 24th January 2022

24th January 2022 Music for Everyone

This week saw all of our regularly rehearsing groups spring back into action! Four Daytime Voices choirs, two Daytime Orchestras, three Open Voices groups, one Flute Choir, one Swing Band, one Lunchtime Voices choir, one Chamber Choir, two Youth String groups and three Youth Wind bands! That’s approximately 500 people in one week. And all of them delighted to be back making music together.

Perhaps you weren’t aware of the wide variety of groups that MFE run on a regular basis. Do have a look at our website www.music-for-everyone.org to see information about all these groups and the upcoming youth and adult events.

In last week’s MFE Mondays we mentioned the Nottingham Festival Chorus workshop on Saturday 5th February. At the end of the workshop there will be free concert starting at 4:30 featuring music by Mendelssohn, Handel, Haydn and Faure. If you would like to attend, please order your pass by following this link https://www.music-for-everyone.org/nfc-concert-passes/

Many of us make New Year’s resolutions and often fail to continue them beyond the end of January! However, some people choose to make a musical New Year’s resolution. Here are a few examples –

“My goal in 2022 is to dedicate myself to practicing regularly for my weekly keyboard class so I can expand my musical horizons!” Project Manager

“My 2022 New Year’s resolution is to sing better even if it’s only the car or the shower.” Designer

“My music resolution is to play my trumpet regularly again. It’s just sitting in the case right now collecting dust. Thus year I’m going to get it back out and play more often!” Office administrator

“I don’t play any instruments, but I’m an avid music listener. My goal is to find a new artist to listen to every month this year.” Web developer

What will your musical resolution be this year? Do let us know.

Why not start the year off by testing your musical knowledge? This online quiz is great fun but might have you scratching your head on some of the questions – http://classicaltest.net/ Congratulations if you manage 100%!

Have a good week!

Your friends at MfE.

24/01/2022

www.music-for-everyone.org | 0115 9589312

10 Goose Gate | Hockley | NG1 1FF