Wasn’t it good to be back singing yesterday evening?  The scientists amongst us might comment on the free flow of endorphins induced by the heightened collaborative socio-neuro-emotive-physical activity of singing.  Most of us would just say that we had a good time and felt much the better for it.

It was really good to catch up with colleagues after the break from rehearsals, to see some folk who have returned after a year or so’s lapse, and to see some new faces in our ranks.

Jim Abraham, standing in for Carlos, master minded a rehearsal which saw us focus on just two items, and finish with singing How lovely are thy dwellings fair quite creditably and very satisfyingly.

Brahms is a very interesting character, as his Wikipedia entry shows.  ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johannes_Brahms )  It is intriguing that he called the piece A German Requiem, not The German Requiem.  He almost called it A Human Requiem, which would fit very well with his unusual choice of Biblical extracts for the libretto.  It is also intriguing that he uses German words to indicate the nature of each piece, in and amongst the usual Italian.  For example, No 4 has the indication Massig bewegt, meaning moderately expressively, presumably not too much, not too little – just in the middle. This is reminiscent of Karl Jenkins in Stella Natalis – do you remember Piously and Quirkily?

At the end of the rehearsal, I had decided that Brahms was not just beckoning.  This music, and all it represents, sucks the chorister – and eventually the audience – into a spiritual world of deep meaning and resonance.  This session promises to be one full of  enjoyment and satisfaction in equal measure.

Our Concertmaster of 13 years, Alexandra Loukianova, sadly died on Friday December 16th after a long and courageous battle with cancer.  Her funeral was held today (December 22nd) at Wollongong.  Forty members of MWC joined a large number of other mourners for the funeral service at St Francis Xavier’s Cathedral.  A small party attended her interment, following which we all re-assembled in the Church Hall where Alexandra used to teach, for refreshments, more memories of Alexandra and more music.

Members of Alexandra’s various orchestras and ensembles played throughout the service and later in the Church Hall.  Her pupils played as the coffin entered the Cathedral.  The choir, comprising members of MWC and Cantares, sang a number of motets conducted by Carlos.

The tributes to Alexandra were warm and fulsome.  Richard Griffiths gave an Appreciation of Alexandra on behalf of members of the Choir.  (Click here to read it.)

During the service, Carlos said on a number of occasions how lucky he felt to be living here in Australia.  At the Church Hall, Margaret Chaffer commented that she thought the equation worked the other way round:  how lucky Australia is to have Carlos and to have had Alexandra with us.

Whilst acknowledging that we will miss Alexandra enormously, today was about giving thanks for all she has contributed to our lives as an artist and as an individual.  It was a sombre day, lightened by insights into Alexandra’s high sense of humour, and by glimpses of Carlos’ deep love for her and all she stood for.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Carlos, Alexander, Maria and members of Alexandra’s family in Russia.

Our President, Roger Pratt, experienced a curious circularity on Thursday night when attending a talk given by astronomer Professor Fred Watson.  He writes:

“I knew that Fred is very knowledgeable and experienced in musical matters and had a chat with him after the talk, hoping to steer the conversation towards music, with which I’m more familiar than astronomy.

“Fred astounded me by pulling a CD of Karl Jenkins’ Stella Natalis from his pocket. He had been to our concert on Saturday, and was blown away by it, both by the work itself, which he’d not heard before, and by the quality of the performance. He has been to our concerts before, and was particularly impressed by the St John Passion earlier this year.

“Fred is an exceptional character, who manages to combine being the foremost astronomer in Australia with an active interest in music. He is accomplished on the guitar, and has cooperated with various Australian composers in writing and producing musical works. Amongst other things, he worked with Ross Edwards to provide the libretto for Edwards’ Fourth Choral Symphony.

“It is high praise indeed from such a musical aficionado that he was so impressed by our Stella Natalis that as soon as he got home after the performance he went straight to his computer and downloaded a CD of it to get to know it better”.

There have been many complimentary comments following our concerts last weekend. Perhaps the most pertinent and succinct came from Brian Sample, “That was indeed a triumph!”

Brian could have critiqued the score, the Choir, the soloists and the orchestra individually, not to mention our conductor, Carlos.  But his choice of words summed up the essence both of playing Tchaikovsky and of singing Karl Jenkins – it is a joint effort.  Everyone has to learn, to practice and to concentrate, to give of their own best whilst being sensitive to all that is going on around them.  It seems that is exactly what we did, led by the ever inspirational Carlos.

In the Nutcracker Suite, it seemed that the orchestra hit exactly the right combinations of fun and seriousness, levity and weight.  The carols, as always, were well received by an attentive and vocal audience.  From within the Choir, Stella Natalis went well right from the first “Celebro”.  Entries were mostly firm; there was much light and shade; we all ended sustained notes together following Carlos’ direction.  The mood of the music changed noticeably from movement to movement. It was easy as a singer to be totally absorbed in communicating the music and its message to the audience.  The standing ovations brought the reverie to a climax and then let us down back into the real world.

Special mention must be made of our soloists Anita Kyle and Anthony Aarons; Angela our accompanist; and of course the man at whose baton the buck stops – Carlos.  His relentless energy and enthusiasm at such a difficult time have been an example to us all.  He said that his driving force is the belief that music has the power to lift lives beyond the everyday.  These concerts have demonstrated such power beyond doubt.

Yesterday was December 1st.  It was quite an important day.

Firstly, December 1st marks the start of our summer, and by the look of the forecast for the next few days, it will prove an accurate marker.

Secondly, the eagerly anticipated December edition of Limelight Magazine was published, so now we can all have our own copy of Naomi’s wonderful article on community choirs and the Manly Warringah Choir in particular.

Thirdly, the final rehearsal for this weekend’s concerts went like a breeze, which was such a relief after the stresses and strains of Tuesday’s session in the unhelpful acoustic of the big school hall.  What happens between two such rehearsals cannot be explained.  Somehow all the loose parts which had been flailing around separately in space came together and slotted each into its own place with precision and no small degree of aplomb.  We made Stella Natalis sound like music – music with a message.  The message alternates around themes which are appropriate to the time of year and to our times in general; those of joy, wonder, peace and love.

However, it was sad that, for only the second time since Carlos took up the baton for MWC, his beloved wife Alexandra was not leading the orchestra.  Her place was ably taken by Catrina Hughes, Alexandra’s friend and colleague in a number of prestigious Australian orchestras and ensembles.  The themes of peace and love were very apparent as we presented Carlos with a DVD of the Choir and orchestra performing Lullay from Stella Natalis to take for Alexandra with our love and very best wishes.  Along with the practical assistance which members of the Choir have offered them recently we wanted to send a message reflecting the esteem in which we hold her and expressing our love for her and for all she means to us.

This weekend, Alexandra may not physically be with us, but we know that she will be with us in spirit. For our part, as we perform Jenkins’ quirky music with its profound message, we will certainly all be thinking of her and sending her our love.