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Preston Orpheus Choir has put a call out for new members ahead of its autumn restart.
The choir, which rehearses at St Pius X Catholic Preparatory School, will be trying something new when it kicks off again on Tuesday 3 September.
Speaking to Blog Preston, choir member Mick Gardner said: “We’re trying out a slightly different structure for the 2024-25 season.
“We’ve decided not to do a concert in autumn because it’s always a bit of a rush getting performance-ready after only a few weeks of rehearsals.
“This means our first concert will be at Christmas. Rather than launching straight into Christmas music when we resume – I know some people like to start Christmas early but September really is far too early – we’ll start to work on the major piece we’ll be performing at our spring concert, Brahms’ Requiem.”
The Christmas concert will take place on Saturday 7 December, and will be followed by carol singing in the Great Hall at Rufford Old Hall on Saturday 14 December.
“We’ll probably start work on Christmas music sometime mid-October ready for the two events,” said Mick.
“The carol singing Rufford Old Hall is always a lovely, relaxed occasion. Members of the public drop in and listen as they tour the house, which is always so beautifully decorated specially for the festive period.
“After this, we’ll have a break until early January and then we’ll resume work on Brahms’ magnificent Requiem for the spring concert on Saturday 5 April. The summer concert is set for Saturday 31 May, although we’re not sure what we’re doing as yet.
“As I say, it’s an experiment and we may tweak it for future seasons.”
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Keen to encourage people to sign up, Mick explains what newbies can expect from a rehearsal.
“We’re led by our Music Director, Dan Adams, with the aid of our accompanist, Paul Greenhalgh. Dan takes us through a short vocal warm-up to get us ready to sing then, guided by Dan, with the help of Paul, we work through the music we’re learning.
“Sometimes we sight-read, sometimes we note-bash – it all depends on how Dan thinks we’re doing on whatever piece we’re tackling.
“We work on until about 8.30pm when we have a 15-minute break for a breather, a chat and a raffle. We resume at around 8.45pm and work on until 9.30pm.
“We’re encouraged to work though music at home in between rehearsals and resources are available via our website to help with this.
“If you’d like to try us out but don’t want to commit immediately, you can come to three rehearsals free of charge and then decide. All the details are in the ‘Join us’ section of the website with a contact form you can use to let us know you’re coming. We hope to see you soon!”
Preston Orpheus Choir rehearses at St Pius X Catholic Preparatory School in Garstang Road, Fulwood, on Tuesdays at 7.30pm. To find out more, visit the Preston Orpheus Choir website.
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