A summer concert with a relaxed feel
in the beautiful surroundings of St. Budock Church.
We would love to see you there!
Read about the Motor Neurone Disease Association
and the Cornwall Branch
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Author Archives: Bea Geddes
Our recent trip
Any trip out of County with a large number of travellers takes a deal of organisation and the Choir is fortunate indeed to have Chairman Peggy who excels at such matters. There is the travel and transport, the accommodation, the concerts and, most importantly, the recreation and leisure time!
The organisation was impeccable and there was no hint of difficulties until we met traffic on the M5 … static traffic that is. This meant a one and a half hour delay, a less than leisurely lunch and a very condensed rehearsal with Nigel, our accompanist for the first concert. The coach driver took us on a most interesting route into Bristol – at one time we thought we were going via London – but we did eventually get to our lovely hotel in time to change and have dinner before it was time to retrace our steps to St Mary’s Clevedon.
The concert was a great success, enjoyed by performers and audience alike and we were treated to some refreshments afterwards – yes, alcohol was involved and we travelled back to Bristol with a warm glow.
We were able to have a leisurely breakfast and then most people opted to join the excursion to Bath whilst some did retail therapy ( the shopping experience in Bristol is highly recommended ) or had a quiet stroll. After an early dinner we departed for the nearby village of Long Ashton where our team of “keyboard shifters and putter-togetherers” sprang into action. Choir members acquainted themselves with the layout and acoustic of the church which is both beautiful and peaceful – that is if you could ignore the persistent strains of a nearby rock concert!
The joy of this particular concert was working once more with our young friends The Beatroots
They are consummate musicians, lively, confident performers and genuinely warm people – it was a pleasure to share a concert with them once more and we are really grateful that they made the journey to be with us.
Refreshments were again provided and it was lovely to share some downtime with the performers, audience and the loyal choir supporters who were travelling with us. For some this was a late night compensated for by a late and leisurely Sunday morning breakfast. On the way back to Cornwall we stopped off at the National Trust property Tyntesfield and had several hours in the glorious gardens enhanced by glorious sunshine. Luckily the journey home was without incident and we all got home safely. This year’s Choir Tour was as successful and memorable as all the others and, as we approach our 50th anniversary celebrations, who knows what adventures the future will bring?
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A note about the video above
This song is a departure from our usual repertoire in that is has a band backing track. The ladies feel that the words of the song “Together” from the musical Gypsy encapsulate the feeling within the choir that we are always there for each other during challenging times and so it has been for the past 50 years. Strong, supportive, encouraging, caring.
No fits, no fights, no feuds and no egos
Amigos
Together.
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Successful? … you bet!
TOUR TO SOMERSET 2016
Stithians Ladies Choir with The Beatroots
All Saints Church, Long Ashton. June 4th 2016
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Here are some of the photos taken on our trip away last weekend.
( Photocredit: Peter Asplet and Nigel Guzek )
A full report will appear very shortly, together with a recording –
so keep checking back!
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Here we come!
It’s countdown to this year’s trip away and we are really looking forward to it. Our final practice is on June 2nd and we travel by coach to Clevedon on Friday. That evening we give a concert in St Mary’s Church, Clevedon where we will reconnect with our ex-accompanist Nigel Guzek and his wife Bridget.
Our wonderful team of organisers has arranged a two night stay in a top Bristol hotel and an excursion to the city of Bath on Saturday.
Saturday evening sees us in the village of Long Ashton near Bristol singing in All Saints Church, again accompanied by Nigel.
On this occasion we are joined by our friends The Beatroots from Oxford who shared a charity concert with us last summer at Budock Church. It is a privilege to work with such a talented group and we look forward to hearing their eclectic selection of A Capella vocals.
Our trip continues on Sunday with a visit to the National Trust property and gardens at Tyntesfield and then we come home! We will have lots to tell when we get back so watch this space for a full report.
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£650+
Yes, you read that correctly … the choir helped to raise the amazing sum of £650 ( and counting! ) at the concert they gave on Saturday 16th April.
It was a really lovely evening shared by a large, enthusiastic audience, with our good friends the Glee Singers and enhanced by the acoustics and welcoming ambience of Camborne Catholic Church. Even the weather was on our side!
The ladies sang their hearts out – beautiful music sung with soul and accompanied by our very own treasure Rico, his first concert with us. The Glee Singers with their own style of relaxed a Capella music had the audience smiling and tapping their feet. Thank you for joining us, gentlemen.
The success of the event was, of course, due to the hard work of many people, including those who organised the raffle, dealt with the catering, carried and set up heavy equipment, provided prizes and the myriad things which go towards an enjoyable event. And what a wonderful amount was raised by the very generous audience and various donations. This £650 ( and rising ) is the first amount raised to go towards the next undertaking by Cara Coweth Water Sierra Leone – providing solar energy for the town of Medina which will cost an estimated £10,000 to £14,000.
Thank you to everyone
Job well done!
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Our next concert is …
Good news!
In the news today ….
Singing in a choir boosts the immune system of people affected by cancer, according to a new study.
“Singing in the choir is about more than just enjoyment, it genuinely makes you feel better”
Diane Raybould, 64, Bridgend Sing With Us Choir
- Being in a choir could help the body fight cancer by boosting the immune system
- Singing reduces stress hormones, such as cortisol, and boosts mood
- Reducing anxiety takes strain off immune system so it can fight disease
- People with depression experienced the greatest mood improvement
- The research suggests singing in a choir could help put cancer patients in the best possible condition to receive treatment and stop tumours returning.
Read the full report HERE
and HERE with rather technical jargon!
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This Charity begins at home …
Our first concert of the new season will be in aid of Cara Coweth Water, Sierra Leone.
Cara Coweth is a charity founded in Stithians, Cara Coweth being Cornish for “A caring group of people working together” and the aim is to raise money to build clean drinking water wells in rural areas of Sierra Leone.The money sent covers the cost of the materials, many of which are given at a discounted price by local businesses. The wells themselves are hand-dug by the local people.
Choir members Mollie and Monica on one of their visits to Sierra Leone
The availability of clean water doesn’t only benefit health. Children usually head out into the jungle in the mornings to find water to carry home. The time spent doing this prevents them from going to school, therefore with water available on their doorstep the children can go to school and improve their prospects for the future.
Pictured below is the first official well, which was presented to the people of Lungi Village on the 5th April 2013. Future plans include more wells and funding for solar panels to run the generators at Madina. £10,000 needs to be raised so that renewable energy can replace costly fuel.
The choir is honoured and delighted to be able to support this remarkable charity and we would love all our friends and followers to join us at the concert so that we can raise lots of money.
Here are the details:-
SATURDAY APRIL 16th 7.30pm at the Church of St John the Baptist, Camborne.
Plenty of parking available. Admission free with donations invited. Refreshments and raffle afterwards. Guest appearance by the ever popular Glee Singers.
Read about Cara Coweth Water HERE
Cara Coweth Water Facebook page HERE
Find St John’s Church, Trevu Road, Camborne HERE
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A Stithians Choir supporting a Stithians Charity…
a Charity which may begin at home but has profound and far reaching results
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How true!
Looking forward
Well, here we are at the dawn of a new year so it’s time to look forward to what the future will bring. The Choir starts rehearsals again on January 7th and we have several concerts booked, a potential trip away and our 50th anniversary to anticipate.
New year, new beginnings and one of the most exciting happenings for us will be the arrival of our new accompanist.
RICO GERBER
Those who are familiar with choral singing will understand that a huge part of a choir’s success is due to the accompanist. In this respect Stithians Ladies Choir has been very fortunate indeed in recent years. When our wonderful George Smith died in March 2014 we, amazingly, found his replacement right here in Stithians village. Nigel Guzek shared his pianistic talents with us until October 2015 when he relocated to Somerset. Then, luckily for us, our esteemed deputy accompanist, Kathryn Downing, held the fort over the Autumn and Christmas periods.
Rico, originally from South Africa, joins us with an enviable reputation as a pianist, composer, accompanist and conductor, both in Cornwall and further afield. We are really looking forward to spending a rewarding time with him and, once again, we are grateful to the Gods of Music who sent him our way!
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A HAPPY CORNISH NEW YEAR TO ALL OUR READERS!
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STITHIANS LADIES CHOIR 