• Holly M

    Ear Training - from the Directors viewpoint

    Added August 25, 2017 by Holly M - 1639 views - 0 comments

    (adapted from a post in The Stairwell Carollers Choir Blog) David Rain, tenor:  How on earth  do you hear everyone, including our mistakes, while singing along at full throttle?   Pierre: I'm not sure, but you're definitely right about my being able to hear everything.  It's not necessari... read more

  • Holly M

    Like "Big Bang"? Try it Renaissance style :)

    Added August 25, 2017 by Holly M - 980 views - 0 comments

    "Amor Vittorioso" was written in 1591 as part of a musical Commedia dell'arte. What could that have to do with half hour TV comedies? Well, I'll tell you. Did you know that Renaissance Madrigals helped birth Opera and Operettas? Yeah, I didn't either and it explains a lot. All those Fa la la la las and ot... read more

  • Holly M

    Katrina's Song

    Added August 25, 2017 by Holly M - 954 views - 0 comments

      Wow 40 years! Where did the time go? I've always been one of the oldest members of the Stairwell Carollers - if not the OLDEST - at our choir's 20th anniversary in 1997 I was 41, but still didn't look a day over 30. Pierre had HAIR - and I shampooed out my grey at home in 20 minutes. This was our 4th a... read more

  • Chris Rowbury

    Cheap and effective song arrangements for your community choir

    Added August 23, 2017 by Chris Rowbury - 2495 views - 0 comments

    [A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   Choir leaders often ask me where I source my songs. I’ve written about this in previous posts: Finding songs for your choir and Easy songs for your choir.     One place you can get some tried a... read more

  • Holly M

    Ten Tips to Ace your Audition

    Added August 21, 2017 by Holly M - 2165 views - 0 comments

        Relax, research and ready yourself. A good audition can get be your ticket to sing in your fave group. Whether you are booking an audition for the Stairwell Carollers, or Googling "how to audition for a choir", I  want to help you do your best at any choir tryout. Our choir holds auditions tw... read more

  • Holly M

    Auditions this week!

    Added August 21, 2017 by Holly M - 791 views - 0 comments

        Update - Auditions closed for the season -- thanks to all who came out!    Searching for just the right choir? Do you sing bass or tenor? Do you live within driving distance of the Ottawa, Canada's Capital region? Join us! Tenor and bass auditions  continue this Wed - A... read more

  • Chris Rowbury

    Why can’t we sing more songs in English?

    Added August 16, 2017 by Chris Rowbury - 1661 views - 0 comments

    [A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   I often get asked this at workshops after people have struggled to get their tongues around a few foreign songs.     I point out that my speciality is “traditional songs from around the world i... read more

  • Alena Mejstrikova

    The 25th anniversary Biennial of the International Festival of Academic Choirs IFAS 2018, Czech Republic

    Added August 10, 2017 by Alena Mejstrikova - 1024 views - 0 comments

    Dear friends, 50 years ago, in 1968 an International Festival of Academic Choirs in Pardubice came into existence. It has already welcome not only various Czech choirs but also a lot of choirs from 30 foreign countries. Let us thank very much to all of you who have participated in our IFAS festival and helped make it... read more

  • Chris Rowbury

    What to do if you don’t have a ‘nice’ voice

    Added August 9, 2017 by Chris Rowbury - 1383 views - 0 comments

    [A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   Many of us don’t like the sound of our singing voice. Some people won’t even sing in front of others because they don’t want to inflict their ‘horrible’ voice on them.   photo... read more

  • Chris Rowbury

    Use the long choir break to get better at what you do

    Added August 2, 2017 by Chris Rowbury - 2111 views - 0 comments

    [A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   Most choirs have a long break at this time of year (whether it’s your summer or your winter).   photo by Timothy Valentine   Apart from missing the singing and your choir friends, what will yo... read more