We ran O God Of Earth And Altar once more in rehearsal last night with the Parliament Choir, and it continues to sound good and elicit positive comments from the singers. I quite like the piece and am looking forward to hearing how it sounds in the orchestral version. We’ll be rehearsing it with the wonderful Southbank Sinfonia next week, at which point I’ll be able to find out how close my imagined version is to the reality, also, more bluntly, how accurate my proofing has been.
Before the rehearsal yesterday I was interviewed by a lady from Classical Music magazine, speaking about my role with the Parliament Choir, and with a focus on the writing I do for them. It is a slightly nervy experience when the gentlemen and ladies of the press sit in on a rehearsal because, of course, it is a rehearsal, and certainly not the final product, but I thought that our sound was good, and well on track to produce an exciting concert next week. The style of the Monteverdi is, I suspect, new to most of our singers, but it is such a wonderful work from such a wonderful mind that I hope it has converted many to the glories of this pioneering composer.
Concert season means spending more time in London, but I am looking forward to getting back to my country hideaway over the next few days. As if I had not had enough of working on houses over the past year or two, we are already looking at different shades of paint (although they all look identical to me) for some redecorating. I have asked for a respite after the next batch of work, though, time off for good behaviour. No point in staying on that treadmill without pausing for breath every now and again.
Nicholas O'Neill 