Music Update

Grease

In the first week of May, well over a thousand people poured through the doors of the Bonar Hall to enjoy the Operatic Society's performance of the musical Grease. These were the biggest audiences OPSOC has had for several years. Grease, must still be The Word. Zoe Glenn's direction and choreography was imaginative and fun and, teasingly, did not pander to those familiar with the famous film. In his sophomore year as musical director with OPSOC, Phil McGregor once again coaxed terrific singing from the cast and, with an excellent band, made good work of the exciting score. In the leads, Chris Murtagh and Laura Andrews reinvented the iconic roles of Danny and Sandy, and were supported by a cast who similarly made the show their own.

Vienna

The University Chamber Choir recently returned from their annual Easter tour. This year's destination was Austria's music capital, Vienna. Due to a busier than normal schedule, we had to spend all of Saturday rehearsing for our Vienna debut which left no time for any sight-seeing, apart from a hunt for some food at lunchtime. Our first concert was in Christ Church, the English speaking church linked to the British Embassy in Austria. We received a very warm welcome from the audience and were delighted to have two of our very own Northern Irish groupies with us. We performed a mixture of unaccompanied music covering the renaissance up to the 20th century; particularly well received were the folksong arrangements: a Scottish set by Cedric Thorpe Davie and a German set by Mendelssohn. Andrew Wells of the Church Council gave a very warm vote of thanks at the end of the concert and encouraged us to record a CD.

Sunday again got off to a busy start, as we were singing at the Palm Sunday service in the United Free Methodist Church. We sang three items concluding with John Rutter's Gaelic Blessing. Following our exertions we were invited to join the congregation for refreshments in the church hall where the choir did their fair share of clearing the plates of cake. The congregation gave us some hot tips for sight seeing and, armed with umbrellas and thick jumpers, we took off for Vienna's tourist attractions - a plethora of museums, galleries, statues and interesting looking buildings, especially the very bright Hundertwasser house - one for the Chamber Choir photo album.

The tour ended in style on Monday with an outdoor concert on the steps of the stunning Schonbrunn Palace. Despite the cold weather, and the fear that our music would blow away, the passing tourists stopped to enjoy the music and we were delighted to be asked to perform an encore.

Many thanks to all those who helped organise and fund the tour. Although it was very busy, everyone had an enjoyable time. Debates are ongoing as to where the Chamber Choir will strike next - the current hot favourite is Lisbon where the choir will be able to enjoy the sun, sea and of course, singing.

Come and Sing

On April 21, the University Chaplaincy Centre hosted its second annual Come and Sing. Over 40 singers turned up for a short rehearsal then a performance of Haydn's Nelson Mass. This was not the easiest of pieces to learn in 2 hours but somehow we got through it in our allotted time and the evening's performance went surprisingly well. Three of the soloists, Emily Gribbin, Susan Oliver and Kenneth Murray are graduates and Alix Cadden sang with the University Chamber Choir for a number of years. Thanks go to the orchestra who turned up an hour before the choir to have their first and only shot at the music before accompanying the singers. £280 was raised for the Ninewells Cancer Campaign.

Picture: The chamber choir in Vienna

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