Greetings, everyone!

Thank you for another great rehearsal yesterday. You’re working really hard, and as a result, we’re making very good progress. I’m very encouraged by what I heard this week.

Let’s keep our ‘eyes on the prize’ and stay focused during these crucial first two months of rehearsals. I say “crucial”, because, if we put in time to practice on our own right now, the dividends will yield greater returns when November rolls around and out lives suddenly get insanely busy going into the holiday season. 

Please take a moment to read through this somewhat lengthy email. 

TCC MEMBERS’ PAGE

Please remember to regularly visit the TCC Members’ Page via http://www.torrancecivicchorale.org/member-login-new/

Username is: TCC
Password is: tcc1819

***REVISED*** CALENDAR

Attached is a PDF of TCC’s Singer Information Sheet. You’ll notice two important changes on it:

1. Our full-day workshop on October 20, 2018 is back on. City of Torrance was not able to grant us space on November 3, nor any other Saturday leading up to the concert. Due to liability insurance concerns, venues outside of the City’s domain were not considered. Thus, we are back on October 20, 2018. Please take a moment to update your personal calendars. I’d like to apologize in advance if this poses inconvenience to some of you and I thank you for your flexibility in making this work. I myself had to make some major changes to my professional and personal calendar to make this work. The October 20, 2018 workshop date is final. 

2. We do have rehearsal on Monday, October 8 (Columbus Day) from 7:30 – 9:30 PM in our usually rehearsal location. This is also the day that there will be uniform fittings with Katy Moss starting at 7PM.

3. As per Ray’s announcement, keep October 23 and 24 open for TCC’s Comedy Club fundraiser. The exact date will be confirmed by Ray as soon as he has the details from the venue.

4. As a reminder, the ‘off-site’ performance at the Torrance Woman’s Club is scheduled for Wednesday, December 5, 2018 from 12:30 – 1:45 PM.

ATTENDANCE

Many of you have approached me to inform me of upcoming absences. In an effort to streamline communication on this front, please respond to this e-mail letting me know the exact dates that you will be absent. I will share this information with the attendance takers a.k.a. Attendance Team.

For the upcoming weeks, our Attendance Team will be marking who is on-time, late, and absent for rehearsals. This system is slightly different for the alto and soprano sections (which currently pass the sheet around and where singers mark themselves). If you are in those sections, please introduce yourselves to Cathy (soprano attendance taker) and Lauren (alto attendance taker) so that they learn your name. The Attendance Team will share their reports with me monthly. 

This new system will help me better plan for rehearsals. I take great care to structure rehearsals and to track our progress on individual pieces. My system is elaborate and to ensure that I do my best to factor in solo auditions, semi-chorus rehearsals, sectionals, etc. I need to know when in our rehearsal period I will have absences. 

With all of this said, please take great care to be at every rehearsal unless it is absolutely impossible for you to do so. As you know, it is not possible for me to rehearse all of our songs in one evening, so if you miss more than two rehearsals, you will likely miss learning large chunks of repertoire.

INTERVIEWS

Below is the schedule for one-on-one interviews on Monday, October 1:

REHEARSAL PLAN for MONDAY, OCTOBER 1

• ?Sweeter Still (YouTube link)
  • learn the opening
  • run-through from beginning to end
• The Christmas Song (YouTube link)
  • all
  • Claire P. & Jennifer C. – can you be prepared to sing the “A solo voice or small group” material at the bottom of pg. 5 to bottom of pg. 6?
• Suzi’s Carol (YouTube link)
  • Letters A to E
• Across the Vast Eternal Sky (YouTube link)
  • learn new material from D to E
  • review C then go to E
• Christmas Cantata (YouTube link)
  • ?Second movement, mm. 38 – end
  • at 9:15 AM, I will release TB and rehearsal mm. 7-38 with SA only

Be sure and check out the Music Downloads section often.  New tracks were just uploaded for “Salvation is Created”.   In addition, Irene has added links to YouTube videos in her first blog post.  Those same links will be available in the Music Downloads section in the near future.

Hi everyone,

Thank you for a fantastic rehearsal yesterday! I am thrilled to be working with such a wonderful group of people/astute musicians. We have an exciting season ahead of us! Please invite more of your friends to come to a rehearsal 🙂

Please take a moment to read through the following announcements:

• If you haven’t already, please register for TCC through the City of Torrance. 
  • Class code is 455701-01
  • You can register by calling (310) 618-2720 or through  https://www.torranceca.gov/our-city/cultural-services/registration
• To post an announcement on the “members page” for the chorale, email Suzan Shukay at torrancecivchorale@gmail.com
• Our performance for the Torrance Women’s Club is scheduled for Wednesday, December 5 from 12:30 – 1:45 PM. Please add this date to your calendars.
• A sign-up sheets for interviews will be circulated at the September 17 rehearsal
• Below is the seating arrangement that I would like to try for September 17 & 24

REHEARSAL PLAN for SEPTEMBER 17, 2018

1. Christmas on Broadway (YouTube recording)

– review measures (mm) 278 to the end

– learn measures (mm) 103 to 174

2. Gloria (YouTube recording)

– please NUMBER YOUR MEASURES (every single one, or every 2, or every 5 – as you need) before rehearsal. If you’re not sure what this means, please send me a quick email.

– we will learn mm. 1 to 26; mm. 64-72, mm. 110-119 as well as the opening

3. Peace, Peace (YouTube recording)

– we will learn mm. 5-56

4. Across the Vast Eternal Sky (YouTube recording)

– we will learn mm. 17-24

– review mm. 25-40

– run mm. 17-56

5. Salvation is Created (YouTube recording)

– don’t worry about the Russian text, but listen to it in the recording listed above

– learn mm. 41 to the end 

6. Celebrate the Season Medley (YouTube recording – not a great one)

– learn mm. 1 to 36

REHEARSAL PLAN for SEPTEMBER 24, 2018

1. A Feast of Carols (YouTube recording)

– learn mm. 74-134

2. Suzi’s Carol (YouTube recording)

3. Gloria (YouTube recording)

– if you haven’t already, please NUMBER YOUR MEASURES

– we will review what you did on September 17 and learn mm. 125 to the end

4. S’vivon (YouTube recording unavailable)

– unison beginning

– two-part split on page 3: Soprano and Tenor on top, Alto and Bass on the bottom

5. Christmas Cantata (YouTube recording, starting at the spot that we will be covering)

– learn 3rd movement, mm. 19 to 24, mm. 29 to the end

6. Christmas on Broadway (YouTube recording)

– learn mm. 58 to 102

– review mm. 102 to 174

If you have any questions about anything listed in this e-mail, please let me know. I will check this inbox at least once everyday, usually in the morning.

Have a wonderful week and a great time with Jaco Wong next Monday!

Irene