SEA TO SKY SINGERS Music
Director’s Report May 2008
This year marked
my fifth year as Music Director of the Sea to Sky Singers. How
time flies when you’re having fun! This year brought new faces to
the choir, but our overall numbers stayed about the same.
Expectations and Policies were outlined in the first rehearsal and a
calendar of important dates was also distributed.
Our
annual workshop day was held at St. John’s Anglican Church.
Melissa Bachert led a workshop on vocal technique and physiology.
Stan Thomson led a jazz workshop, focusing on typical rhythms of the
genre. Melinda Hainsworth led a quick icebreaker before we shared
a potluck lunch together. The day also included a General Meeting
and sectional rehearsals of the Christmas repertoire.
The Christmas concert, entitled A Family Christmas, featured the
oratorio The Birth of the Messiah, by W. D. Armstrong. I was
delighted to have two of my sisters, Christine Fagan and Jean-Marie
Kent join me as soloists. The concert also included the St.
John’s Children’s Chorus, led by Tracy Stuchberry, a set by Three-O,
upbeat secular choral numbers, and our traditional sing-along. We
held two concerts: Saturday evening at Squamish Baptist Church,
and Sunday matinee at St. John’s Anglican Church. Both concerts
were very well attended and well received. I particularly enjoyed
singing with my sisters again. I was very proud to be able to
share that side of myself with our audience. The concert provided
a lot of variety, both in singing groups and in musical styles.
We did not do much caroling fundraising this year. We
participated in the Christmas tree lighting ceremony downtown and the
Eaglewind Winter Fair. Due to conflicts or canceled events, some
of our usual caroling gigs did not happen this year. We sang at
the charity event Carols for Kenya. We also sang at Wal-Mart
since they became sponsors this year.
The Spring Term focused on music with the theme Behavin’ Badly.
Once again, we were joined with local band, 3rd Octave Down. The
concert included upbeat classical, folk, country, jazz, and broadway
songs about drinkin’, carousin’, and foolin’ around. Choir
members presented solos and duets and the band played its own
set. Laura Shoults also joined us to sing a solo. We held a
Friday night concert at the Brackendale Art Gallery with highballs for
sale for $5 each. There was a lively crowd and the energy was
great. Lots of breaks meant choir and audience members could mix
and mingle. It was a lot of fun. After the concert, three
people approached me about joining the choir in September. The
Saturday matinee had a smaller, but appreciative audience. Spread
out in the larger Squamish Baptist Church, the crowd seemed more
reserved, but they too showed their enjoyment with a standing
ovation. An audience response I heard more than once was that the
choir really looked like they were enjoying themselves. Thanks to
Paul Graham who once again devoted his time and expertise as our Sound
Technician. Sheron Johnson did most of the event co-ordinating
and filled the positions of bartenders and the door, picked up
supplies, and organized rentals. Huge thanks to Sheron for all
her efforts.
This year, we took on year-long sponsors to avoid the extra footwork
each term. Philip Harness led this committee and managed to find
companies to donate $500. Wal-Mart, Squamish Terminals, Greg
Gardner GM, and The Chief were generous sponsors this year. The
Brackendale Art Gallery was very welcoming and accommodating to us,
thanks to Dorte and Thor.
This year we participated in the BCCF raffle. With a
misunderstanding in deadlines, this job became stressful for Sheron and
Melinda who gracefully took on this responsibility.
We participated in the Howe Sound Music Festival this year with three
memorized pieces. The adjudicator did not award grades of medals,
but I felt we performed extremely well.
Possible changes/adaptations for next year could include: Adding a
Fundraising Chair to the Executive to construct and implement a plan to
find sponsors and advertisers and help organize additional fundraising
events, as necessary Having a choir
trip to Cuba, or more local (BC) destination. This might need
more fundraising to help offset personal expenses Indicating the
term’s repertoire selection when advertising for new choir members Having more
written information with confirmed dates and times of rehearsals and
engagements Regular
Executive meetings, possibly every 2 months Re-evaluate
concert uniforms Possible
Workshop Day each term Possible venue
change, such as Adventure Centre, for anticipated small audiences (such
as the Spring Concert) More socials
organized for choir members, such as DVD viewing of past concerts Possible
re-instatement of Non-Profit Society
We have a wonderful Executive Board. Thank you very much to
Sheron Johnson, for her role as President, who did a lot of behind the
scenes work with concerts and organizing. Thanks to Roy Shephard
for updating our web site. Thanks to Dorte Froslev for all the
fabulous posters and organizing the ticket and programme
printing. Thanks to Caroline Campbell for all her Treasurer
duties. Thanks to Melinda Hainsworth, as secretary, who took on
lots of extra jobs, including raffle and concert tickets. Thanks
to Teresa Hoogenboom who organized coffee and helped set up snacks each
week and at the concerts.
This year was a little tumultuous for me personally. I was away a
lot and felt very busy with a number of obligations. Colleen Koop
capably filled in for me while I was away on vacation, but it once
again emphasized the importance of an Assistant Director. I took
a Conducting Course at Capilano College this year, and felt that my
conducting style improved some. I am eager to continue my
professional development by applying what I learned to our future
repertoire. I enjoyed the repertoire we sang this year and the
variety we offered our audiences. I am very proud to be part of
an organization that has so many dedicated members. It is
wonderful to be able to make music with all of you. I look
forward to new growth and experiences next year. I welcome any
and all feedback regarding repertoire choices, concert scheduling, or
anything that would make your participation in Sea to Sky Singers more
enjoyable. Please contact me directly by e-mail at
dvmcphee@shaw.ca or by phone, (604) 892 7819.