5 March Update
- 3 days ago
- 4 min read
Week 2 of 5 (Half Term 2)
In this week's bulletin, we have:
Coffee Notices with new dates for the diary
A rehearsal recap, including notes on Flight
☕ Coffee Notices
There are now several events lined up for the coming months. In addition to West Norwood Feast, we also have the opportunity to collaborate with Jess Blake, a local Musical Director and leader of Penge Chamber Choir. Some of you will remember we worked with Jess at the Penge Music Festival a couple of years ago.
Penge Music Festival 2026 On April 24th we've been invited to take part in Festival Friday at Penge Congregational Church. This event will take place as part of the festival launch and will be a celebration of local talent, including a selection of soloists and groups. We will have a 10-minute slot, so we'll sing around 3 songs. This will be a relaxed evening, and you are encouraged to bring your own drinks and snacks as you enjoy the friendly atmosphere.
It starts at 19.30 with our performance time tbc. This is an event for charity so performers and attendees are asked to pay a £5 contribution. More details and event registration will follow.
7th June - Winsford Garden Party
We have also been invited to sing at the Winsford Garden party - an event that will include other vocalists and musicians. Our performance will be some time between 12.15 -1.30pm. More details to follow.
West Norwood Feast Registration reminder
It's not too late to register for West Norwood Feast on Sunday 5 April. You can register here or look for the link in the WhatsApp Community Announcements group.
Additional note - Singing Along With Golden Oldies (SAWGO) We received an invitation to sing with this group. It's not an event that we will be organising as a COTH (as it takes place close to our other arranged events) but you are very welcome to contact the organisers if you would like to be involved.
We’d love to invite your singers to join a joyful pop-up choir this June!
We’re SAWGO (Sing Along With Golden Oldies) choir, and for the past 9 years we’ve been bringing joy through song in care homes and local community events for the elderly.
We are now bringing together 30 voices to sing favourite hits from the 50s-70s at a Rotary Community Outreach lunch for 90-100 community elderly in Sanderstead. It's a short-term commitment with meaningful impact - an opportunity for your singers to connect with other local voices, share the joy of music, and help create a truly uplifting afternoon for the Golden Oldies.
Rehearsals: Fridays 5, 12 & 19 June (7.30-9.30pm) at Avenue Road Baptist church hall, Avenue Road, Penge BR3 4RX
Performance: Saturday 20 June (afternoon) Rehearsal & performance at All Saints Church Hall, Onslow Gardens, South Croydon CR2 9AB
No auditions. No long-term commitment. Just great songs, great company, and a chance to make someone’s day.
If this would resonate with your choir members, please do share or put interested singers directly in touch.
To take part or ask questions contact me via:
Email: teamsawgo@yahoo.com
WhatsApp: 07877 035230
Tarnya
The SAWGO Team
🎤 Rehearsal Recap
Warm-up:
Those of you who have been practising Flight will know that it sits a little higher than many of our usual songs. With this in mind, Elena reminded us how important it is to keep the throat relaxed so that we don’t strain the vocal cords. Vocal hygiene is key – warm honey and lemon, scarves when the weather is chilly, and always taking time to warm up before singing.
We started by relaxing the body with shoulder rolls, backwards and forwards, followed by slow and gentle head and neck rotations. There was quite a lot of cracking as the tension began to release!
Next, we practised pulling the widest (and slightly uncomfortable) grins we could manage while singing a single note through the vowels E–A–I–O–U.
We finished the warm-up with arpeggios – chord notes sung on the word ‘me’. The pitches climbed very high, but importantly, we reached them without straining our voices, one of the most effective ways to produce a strong, healthy sound without strain.
Song 1 -Flight
This week we worked through the final page of this beautiful song. Being able to sing the whole piece from beginning to end was fantastic – it sounded absolutely lovely.
The final three boxes on page two are slightly different from the original recording so please refer to Elena's version. For the altos especially, but really for everyone, clear pronunciation becomes very important as there are lots of words in this section. Strong consonants will help the lyrics carry clearly.
Altos
Box 12 (page two)
There are more words to sing over the same amount of time here, so the notes will feel shorter and more bouncy.
‘All I know is’ – shorter notes
‘Somewhere’ – long
‘Through a clearing’ – ascends quickly
‘There’s a flickering of’ – shorter notes
‘Wide’ – drops low; keep the jaw relaxed and the throat low
‘Inside’ – drops across two notes: ‘in-si-ide’
Box 13
Line 2 ascends
‘Soul’ stretches across two notes: ‘so-ul’
Line 4 undulates and slides down to the word ‘sea’, which then lifts on the ‘ee’ sound
Box 14
The tempo slows significantly, so take time to watch the MD closely for cues.
After ‘spill’ – one-beat pause
After ‘hill’ – four-beat pause
‘Travelling upon’ – the up-and-down note pattern is repeated in 'before I am gone'
The final line is spoken more than sung. Watch the MD carefully:
Be-fore ~ I ~ Am ~~ Gone
Sopranos
Box 12 (page two)
Your cue comes from the altos singing the word ‘clearing’.
‘Somewhere there’s sunlight’ should run together as the notes ascend
If you need an extra breath, you can drop the word ‘and’
Keep the throat relaxed and lowered to maintain clear diction
This section adds emotional weight to the song. ‘Pathos’ is the quality that stirs feeling in the listener.
Box 13
This is the highest section of the piece.
Use the nose and soft palate rather than pushing the voice
Keep the sound delicate and supported – avoid strain or raspiness
The word ‘sea’ descends, creating a suspended and poignant effect
Box 14
Line 1 slides gently down
Line 2 sits an octave higher than usual
‘Travelling upon’ follows an up-and-down phrase
The final line is spoken more than sung – watch the MD for cues
Be-fore ~ I ~ Am ~~ Gone
