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Hi everyone,
Sorry—not sorry—for working you so assiduously on Tuesday! I had actually planned to run things a little bit differently, but it was clear that I needed to strike while the iron was hot and work to solidify your entrances in that first movement. They'll just have to be in our heads instinctively because, as you saw, the accompaniment doesn't hand them to you! Before last Tuesday, we've always had the magic Brenda Safety Net, giving us false confidence; but, to mix a metaphor, we now must take off the training wheels. I think we accomplished a lot on Tuesday, which needed to happen to compensate for our missed rehearsal. Luckily, we're in pretty good shape in the 2nd movement and the 3rd movement is clear and relatively easy.
I'm hoping that going forward we can check in with Stories at the beginning of every rehearsal and then turn to our shorter pieces since they've gotten rather short shrift lately. Please take the time (really) to turn to your YouTube example of Stories and come in with your part—drilling it over and over if need be. Ah, the wonders of technology!
I need to change the subject now, and do a bit of finger wagging.
It's evident in every sphere of our lives that COVID has changed us all, in varying ways. The enforced lockdown kept us home with ourselves. And while in some respects that's good for self-awareness, we also seem to have drawn in upon ourselves. We can occasionally be rather self-absorbed. I know I'm guilty of that. There are perfectly good reasons for that, given the fear and loss and endless challenges, but it's time we begin looking outward again.
An early FCO motto was "Friends Committed to Outstanding Music." We are still committed to great music, but lately it feels as if the friends part has slid backward a bit. We're a self-producing ensemble, needing every one of us to look around for things that need doing—and as you hear every week, there are a lot of things that need doing!
This week was a case in point. Our posters need to be distributed. They were set out on the back table, divided into sets marked for different nearby communities, with the invitation to take a set and donate an hour or so to distribute them in the given locale. That's volunteer work that is vital, since we want as many people as possible to attend this cause-driven concert. The need for poster distribution comes but once every term, yet fewer than half of the sets were picked up! If more singers don't give of their time with this necessary task, it becomes one more task for our board, and that would be patently unfair. Bryan and the rest of the board already give much of their time and talents, and it's only right that the rest of us step up when called upon! That's what friends do: they have each others' backs.
And to put FCO's unique makeup in perspective, for 44 years we've had a no-audition policy. I love offering the chance to perform world-class music to anyone who wants to work hard. Not all of us audition well, and besides, I'm not a fan of groups that apparently get their energy from excluding others. And as if the open-door policy isn't enough of a gift, like the Ginsu Knife...there's more!!! As you know, this term and last, to welcome everyone back, the board voted not to charge dues and to GIVE singers their music for free. That is unheard of and represents an investment of nearly $15,000...money raised by our hardworking board!
Can we all do our part by pitching in when asked? That seemed to happen before the pandemic, and our continued existence and success will require it. I hope you agree that it's not much to ask considering all the freebies that have come your way.
Have a good and safe weekend, and let's make outstanding music together again soon!
Solveig
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