How I did it:

• Attended rehearsals since January
• got distracted by work arrangements changing and other bands I was playing with but 
• Still managed to turn up for enough rehearsals 
• Gave myself a serious talking to when tempted to not sing because of a chest infection, but suddenly remembered how much effort Mum made to sing in her last concert exactly 5 years ago with Leukemia 
• Got dosed up and turned up regardless 
• Sparing the details, climbed a really steep hill to get breathing deeply and clear all my air passages out! 
• Didn't sing too heavily during the afternoon rehearsal and concentrated on checking out what I could manage 
• Got fed surreptitious cough sweets by a sympathetic bass sat behind me
• Concentrated like mad, sang as precisely as possible, watched the conductor like a hawk (this thing changes pace and/or time signature almost every page...) 
• Felt really proud to have sung this with the choir
• Had a great chat with friends in the choir and orchestra afterwards 
• Helped clear up the staging 
• Went to the pub with some of the choir and brass section! 

Lessons & tips:

• If you're going to sing with a choir, persistence with the rehearsals is the only way to get it right
• You're only likely to be enthusiastic about singing Sea Symphony if you've heard it with a full orchestra first. The choir part in rehearsal only sounds like a fraction of the total effect with the orchestra running at full tilt...

Resources:

• A Score!
• Car to get to rehearsals 
• Inspiration of my Mum's memory 
• Determination that I was going to do this... partly because it's great, but also because I know how much Dad loves it if I sing in the choir with him.

Apr 29, 2012, 02:43AM PDT | 2 comments | 13 cheers