Sleeping In: messing with circadian rhythm

Circadian rhythm is not a fancy jazz term.


It refers to something in our biological clock that is a daily cycle, like sleeping and eating patterns. We're influenced by daylight, dark/light cycles, but, the 24-hour cycle is built in to us. Like lots of other things in nature, we have daily patterns of behaviour. Our daily sleep pattern is a big deal.

Jet lag and shift work mess with your sleep patterns. So do weekends, and summer holidays. 

You can read about studies that show that keeping a regular sleep pattern is good for your health, performance at school and work, everything. And, the reverse is also true. Not being in rhythm is bad for your health, performance, etc. Still, many of us sleep in when we can, especially on weekends, and end up suffering on Mondays and whenever we need to get back to our routines. 

School starts next week and I'll be happy to have the regular rhythm of the school week back. Harry and I both have irregular hours, so the girls' school days set the rhythm. Without the structure of a regular day, things get messy. This has been the case for the whole summer. Our sleep patterns haven't had a regular pattern. 

I don't think it's a horrible thing that our circadian rhythms are irregular in the summer. Music doesn't keep the same rhythm throughout a song. That would be boring. A change in pattern is interesting and necessary. Even in Mozart's music (think Mozart Effect)  there are necessary changes in rhythm and tempo. Our summers are more jazzy, with lots of improv. 

So, I'll let my family sleep in. But, maybe just a bit less, so that it's closer to the rhythm of the school year which is just around the corner. After all this free jazz, classical could be a shock to the system.

Exciting Project- New Recreation and Event Centre in Aurora

Our good friend and fellow chorister Bill Reid is involved in an exciting project in Aurora. The plan is to build a new Recreation and Event Centre in Fleury Park that can be used by a variety of sports clubs (in particular the Aurora Tennis Club) and community groups, and will include an amphitheatre where people can come and hear us sing! We loved our experience singing in Newmarket's Fairy Lake Park Amphitheatre and look forward to performing at this proposed new park!
Check out this newspaper article: click here
And keep up-to-date with the progress of the project on the Facebook page: click here
Here's the picture from the newspaper article that shows Bill with the model of the building. Check out all the playing surfaces inside.

More Support for Singing in a Choir

Through Facebook, I read another good article about the benefits of singing in a choir. 

Here's a link to the article called "The Choral Cure": click here

Like I said on FB, we just do it because it feels great. You don't have to convince us. 

 Indeed, in the article it says "Singing is the best free drug going."

Here's the best part: 
"Like walking, singing has always been taken for granted – it's just something people have always done," says lead author Professor Stephen Clift. "But just as walking is now prescribed, the benefits of singing for health are slowly being rediscovered by health practitioners."

Like walking, singing is something that everyone should be doing. 

Another Olympic Success!

Another group of YRCC Olympians made us proud. The York Region Community Choir participated in the Olympic Finale Event at the Upper Canada Mall in Newmarket yesterday, Saturday, August 11th, 2012. 

This time, our choir was asked to sing more, because they loved us so much the first time. What an honour! 

We were told that our O Canada "gave the community a feeling of patriotism", which we all felt when the crowd cheered at the end of our beautiful a cappella version of our national anthem. What a thrill! 

I'm so proud to be part of this wonderful group of people, the York Region Community Choir. 

Here's the picture of the group that performed at the Olympic Opening Event. 

YRCC Olympians return to the Mall Saturday

Come to the Upper Canada Mall on Saturday, August 11, 2012 at 11:00am!

Hear the choir sing to celebrate the excellent work of our Olympic athletes in London.

We're part of another Olympic Event at the Mall.

There will be commemorative medals and photos and a gymnastics display in addition to our performance- all happening in Centre Court.

Go, Canada, Go!!!

Sing to Your Sweetheart

I was thinking about campfire songs, and Googled it. Most of the campfire stuff was for girl guides and boy scouts and children in general.

So, I got to thinking about what you sing when you're not a kid anymore. 

My teenage daughters sing with their friends- pop songs from the radio, mostly with the radio. They sang well past midnight at a sleepover in our basement recently. I loved it. 

My husband and I break out in song frequently, singing bits of things from all over the place- old and new radio, musicals, movies, TV commercials, anything. That's one thing I love about Harry. He's a great singer and knows tons of songs and is playful and confident enough to sing anytime, anywhere. He doesn't have to sing anything romantic or even sing it to me for his singing to make my heart flutter. Hmmm...

I Googled a bit more and I came across this article:

Songs To Sing To Your Girlfriend

By: Matt Ralfe


The writer suggested that when guys think they should "do something sweet for their girlfriends to enhance their relationship," they should sing something romantic. 

He says that it's great if you can play a guitar or piano-"Luckily most girls like simple songs with simple chords." (what?!)- And, if you don't, he suggests you get a karaoke version of the song. 

"Don't worry if you think your voice sounds like a frog. It will not matter to your girlfriend if you can't sing, just the thought of doing this for her is enough. Just be confident. Make sure to practice first, though."(my italics) 

He goes on to suggest a number of suitable "romantic" songs.


Aside from his weird notions about girls liking simple songs and the idea that you have to practise first before singing for a girl and need accompaniment, Matt's got the right idea.  

Sing to your girlfriend. Sing anything to your girlfriend. Try it. I bet she'll like it. 

Sing to your boyfriend. 

Sing together. 

We sing to and with our babies all the time, and it's a great expression of love. We know babies love to hear your voice singing, the voice they love. So, sing to your sweetheart.

Summer Singing

We just had a long weekend and I'm sure that lots of people had campfires. I see and hear about more and more people having outdoor fireplaces in their backyards too. So, I'm wondering whether there was a lot of singing going on. And, what were people singing?

When I think about campfire singing, it's mostly the girl guide stuff I think of first:

• Fire's Burning 
• My Eyes are Dim 
• Make New Friends 
• Land of the Silver Birch 
• Kumbaya, etc. 

Then, there's pop stuff like:

• American Pie 
• Stairway to Heaven 
• Bridge Over Troubled Water
• Hey Jude (wasn't that cool at the Olympic Opening Ceremony?)

And what about:

• the Gilligan's Island and Brady Bunch theme songs
• I wish I were an Oscar Mayer Weiner ; )

And my kids might sing:

• Pumped Up Kicks
• Somebody That I Used to Know

Do you sing around the campfire? What do you sing?

Olympic Athletes Making Us Proud

Following the Olympics a bit. Isn't it awesome? Feeling proud!

Olympic Stars

Friday's Opening Ceremony event at the Mall was excellent!

The members of the York Region Community Choir who were able to come out and sing had a great experience. It was fun and very rewarding.

It was such an honour to represent our community that way. You could hear the power of the moment in our O Canada. It has never sounded better! A CTV camera was there to capture the event and we were on the news Friday night! Here's a link to that broadcast: click. The event is mentioned right at the beginning and you can hear a snippet of O Canada at 2:27.

We sang You Raise Me Up to open the event. It was beautiful. We're so lucky to be able to share such wonderful music.

The Olympic gold medalist who was there gave a wonderfully inspiring speech and we were able to see her gold medals.We were each given a commemorative medal and then we had our picture taken. My family was there and we had our picture taken too.

Everybody, Come to the Mall on Friday!

Tell your friends and family to come to the mall to hear us sing at the Olympic Opening Ceremony Celebration.
They are giving away commemorative medals and souvenir photos to the first 150 visitors. You can meet two Gold Medal Olympians, Anne Ottenbrite-Muylaert and Larry Cain. And, there is going to be a gymnastics demonstration as well.

Update on the Olympic Event

Oooh. Now there are 2 Gold Medalists coming to hear us sing!

Choir Olympic Event

Hey Everyone, the choir is in an Olympic Event!!!
400m sing? Note holding? Voice throwing?
Nope.
It's the 2012 Summer Games@UCM Opening Ceremony Celebration Event.
We'll be singing our National Anthem and You Raise Me Up at Upper Canada Mall to help Newmarket, York Region, and all of Canada cheer on our athletes in London on the day of the Opening Ceremony.

Music in the Park, Fairy Lake

Wednesday, July 4th, 2012, weather permitting, the York Region Community Choir is going to perform at Fairy Lake Park in Newmarket.

The concert will be the first of the Music in the Park season. Every summer, the Town of Newmarket has free outdoor concerts every Wednesday and Sunday evening throughout July and August.

We're the first one this year!

YRCC is going to put on a show similar to our spring concert: SHOWBIZ! We're featuring songs from stage and screen: opera, musical theatre, movies, television, and YouTube.

We have a great selection of choir, small group, and solo pieces mostly accompanied by our amazing pianist, Sapphire Navaratnarajah, and also featuring some guitar accompaniments.

The concert starts at 7:00 pm and runs about 1 1/2 hours.

Bring a lawn chair or blanket to sit on to watch the concert. The rocks are pretty, but I prefer a soft seat.

Main Street, Newmarket

Just in time for Canada Day, Harry has made the move to Main Street Realty in Newmarket!

We love our great country and we love our hometown. We can't wait to join in the Canada Day celebrations- as we do every year- on Main Street and in Fairy Lake and now in Riverwalk Commons too!

We love our home in Newmarket, and are both active in this community. The Main Street name resonates with us because Main Street, Newmarket is where the spirit of the town resides. Walking or driving down Main Street always feels special.

When you're thinking about buying or selling a house in Newmarket, or anywhere in York Region and the GTA, talk to Harry Naghavi at Main Street Realty in Newmarket.

One In A Million

Hello Everyone,
We were just talking about how the choir is a community, and really more like a big family, at our last performance. We were all proud and happy when Jonathan sailed through his performance of Love Changes Everything and nailed the challenging last notes.
We love our choir and celebrate when one of us does well and mourn together when someone suffers a loss.
I had an email from Elliot, former Tenor and friend of Karen and her dad, Bill. I felt his pride and had to share it here with you. It feels great when one of us does well, even in our extended family.

Dear friends and family,
>
> My son, Ron Fromstein, is fortunate to have his first musical, ONE IN A
> MILLION (a micromusical) running at the Toronto Fringe from July 6-16.
>
> It is the story of four very different sperm on a quest to the egg, who
> may or may not be all they imagined. Direction and choreography are by
> Steve Morel, who directed the original Fringe production of the Tony-award
> winning The Drowsy Chaperone.
>
> I hope you will be able to make it to a performance! I will probably be seeing several performances and would enjoy sharing the occasion with you.
>
> All performances take place at Randolph Academy for the Performing Arts
> (formerly known as the Bathurst St. Theatre)
>
> 736 Bathurst Street (west side, south of Bloor)
>
> The show runs 60 minutes
>
> Toronto Fringe Festival Performances:
>
> Friday July 6 8:45 PM
> Saturday July 7 1:45 PM
> Sunday July 8 10:30 PM
> Tuesday July 10 3:15 PM
> Thursday July 12 7:30 PM
> Friday July 13 3:30 PM
> Sunday July 15 12:00 PM
>
>
> http://oiamillion.wordpress.com/creative-team/

Congratulations, Elliot! We share in your pride over your son's musical!

Yours in harmony, 
Renate 

Music for Healing

We know that music is magical. It affects our health and well-being. Singing in the York Region Community Choir is a wonderful, healthy activity that we enjoy every Monday evening.
Lately, our Mondays are even more rewarding.
We're on our seniors' tour. We're visiting retirement residences and nursing homes in our community. Last week we visited Doane House Hospice in Newmarket.
When we visit seniors to sing for and with them, we feel great because we're doing what we love to do, and it's good for us, and we can feel great about contributing to the health and well-being of our audience members.
I just read about The Vancouver Chamber Choir's Music For Healing recordings:
 a series of three discs designed to accompany people facing serious life challenges. It has been funded entirely through generous donations by individuals and organizations who want to be part of an important and ongoing gift to the therapeutic process in their communities.
The first two discs look amazing and are available on their website. The choir is presently working on the third CD. It's an impressive project. I can totally relate to their desire to connect with the community in this way, and can imagine that it's a very successful and satisfying mission. They say:
It is our way of saying through our music, “You do not stand alone”. 
Choral music can do that best. The sound of a community of singers, people's voices joining together in unison and in harmony, is special.
Check out the sound clips on the website. They are really extraordinary. There are samples of all kinds of music the choir sings.

Music and rhythm find their way into the secret places of the soul. (Plato)

Music and rhythm find their way into the secret places of the soul. (Plato)

When our music makes people laugh and cry, when people stand up and start to dance in response to our music, when we can see that our music has touched someone's soul, we have shared a little of what we feel when we make our music. This giving and sharing is immensely gratifying. Each laugh, each tear, every dance step is a great gift to us. Sharing an hour of music with seniors reminds us of how very lucky we are to have the privilege of immersing ourselves in music together every week.

YRCC sings "Mamma Mia" - ABBA Medley (May 2012)

After the big show: "down" time

Hey, Everyone,

Do you feel like I do after the big show? A little down?

It was fantastic. We were wonderful. The audience was wonderful. They loved us. A standing ovation! (I told you so. Glad we had the encore ready.) The second standing ovation, we bow again and say our thank-yous, and clean up.

And it's over.

For the next few days there's relief, but also a sadness.

We worked really hard and gave our all, and the joy is intense, but so short-lived!

It's got a name, this feeling: Post-Show Depression. Really. Some people get hit really bad.

We're so lucky to have the seniors' visits lined up so that we can continue to perform our music for a while, so all is not lost. And, we know we'll be back in rehearsals in September. But, the big show is over. And, it makes most people feel at least some sense of loss.

Rest assured, it's normal and most of us were affected in one way or another.

Even if the thrill is fleeting, it's totally worth it, isn't it?!!

Yours in harmony, 
Renate 

Performance. You're on stage!

How we love being up on the stage! It is a dream we all share.

Or, so we sing in Regards to Broadway. For some of us, it's more of a nightmare.

I know that there are some people in the choir who would be quite happy if we just sang together every week in our rehearsal room in the Administrative Centre, and never set foot on a stage.

Don't worry. Performing on stage is anxiety-provoking, stage fright is fairly common. But, we're not giving a speech, being judged or graded, there are no spotlights, and you don't have to wear stage make-up. We're all dressed the same in black and white, like zebras, so that predators can't pick out individuals to attack. (remember to also wear black shoes and socks/hose)

Performing in a choir is awesome! You get the big adrenalin rush, the excitement of being on stage and the thrill of the applause and you're up there surrounded by your friends and not singled out for inspection. You worked hard to learn all kinds of music in 2, 3 and 4 part harmony. Now it's time to show off to our friends and family and neighbours.

You should relax and have fun, but there are some things to remember when the choir is on stage in front of an audience.

• Blend in -like the zebras. Don't draw attention to yourself, unless you're doing a solo at the microphone. That's true for your voice and for your posture.
• Hold your binders closed in your left arm, when you're not singing. So, that's also when we're walking on to the stage and off of the stage.
• When you're not singing, look at the conductor or the soloist. Glance at the audience. Smile and look engaged in the performance. Pay attention to whatever else is happening on stage. Do not look at your shoes, drink, pick your teeth, frown...
• When you're singing, smile with your mouth and your eyes. Look at the conductor. Glance at your music and at the audience. 
• If you make a mistake, chances are nobody can tell. Don't make a face. Keep smiling, keep going.
• When the audience applauds, look at them and smile. We will take a bow before we leave the stage.

There will be times during the show when you can sit down off stage. This is when you can have a drink of water, or glance at your shoes. But, while you are sitting down during the small group and solo performances, you must be excellent supporters of your choir friends and examples of good audience behaviour. Pay attention to the performance. You are still in front of the audience. 

If you feel stressed, that's ok. This is good stress. You'll get energy. If you're feeling yucky, breathe. You'll be surprised how much it helps to just take a good deep breath and let it out, phewwww. Think positive thoughts. 

Avoid coffee and alcohol before a concert. They not only mess with your stress, but also are bad for your voice. Water is important. Keep hydrated. There are also lots of ideas about what kinds of food to avoid, but the most important thing is to eat something. Don't overeat, but you will need lots of energy. Rest and sleep are also important. 

Women can tuck your white shirts or blouses in or wear them out- whatever makes you feel more comfortable. Notice in the picture above that it looks fine to have them out. Black pants or skirts should go down to your feet, or be worn with black pantyhose. We don't want to draw attention away from our faces. Trix will make sure we all have scarves or ties. Help your friends tie their scarves like Girl Guides. 

We're a great group and have fun together. It shows when we sing. People love that! We always have praise from our audiences about how we appear to be having a good time when we sing. We do have a good time. We enjoy ourselves. We love singing, we love music and we're going to share that with our audiences. 

They are going to love us. 

I'm sexy and I know it.

Hello Everyone!


Catchy title, isn't it? I'm talking about music, though, not about my attractiveness, my magnetism, my allure.


Ce qu’on ne peut dire et ce qu’on ne peut taire, la musique l’exprime. 
(Victor Hugo)


--Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.


So, when we want to say something, but can't, we can express it with music. Like, "I'm sexy and I know it!" (LMFAO-Loving My Friends and Others, not the Internet abbreviation, they say.)


Maybe Victor Hugo wasn't thinking of that, but music does liberate you, doesn't it? You will sing things that you wouldn't say, for sure. Don't we all love to prance around singing "I'm sexy and I know it?!" (Ok, if you don't, then just humour me with this one. I know other people besides myself who do. really.) 


I have been known to say similarly arrogant things when I'm holding the magic baton that turns me into "The Intrepid Choir Conductor." Fearless and reckless are related, right? My theme song "Ain't She Sweet" became my theme song because I always say to seniors when we're about to start singing it, "We're going to sing a song about me!"


Another recent example of singing something you wouldn't say is that Mumford and Sons song that I love, Little Lion Man. The chorus has the f-word in it. I'm no fan of cussing, but that song is awesome and I'll sing right along (when my kids aren't in the room). I do wish there was a clean version of it, but it I guess it would lose some of it's power, wouldn't it? 


There you go: it's power. Saying things you can't- shouldn't- say, things that are forbidden to say, is powerful. Even declaring your love for someone, or your pain, openly-out loud- is huge. And, we need to express our love and our pain, regret, loss, joy and celebration, and even our self-confidence.


Passionate expression is powerful. That's part of the magic of music!


Feel the passion when you sing, let it out, and share it!


Yours in harmony, 
Renate

Almost done!

Hello Everyone!

We're almost done!

We've got the next 3 weeks to finish learning (a very small amount) and to polish up all our pieces and then we're going to have an amazing show!

Some people are worried that we don't have enough time to get it all together, but I'm sure we can manage. We've got a few little bits to learn to finish TV Time and a few little bits to learn in the ABBA Medley and the rest is just polishing. We have a great number of excellent choristers who know their parts and they lead the others who are excellent followers.

Have a look at the list of what we're singing, to see if there are things in your binder that you don't have to worry about. There are a few pieces that we decided not to do this year.

Remember that we are a community choir and our job is to have fun and entertain our friends and families on May 5th, and then the seniors in seniors' homes after that. We don't have to be perfect. Nobody in any of our audiences will have the scores in front of them to see if we should have been singing in harmony but were in unison, or vice versa :)

They will hear heavenly harmonies, dramatic dynamics, and memorable melodies that they will love. We have lots of beautiful music to offer our audiences, and I'm sure they will appreciate the variety and quality of the songs we're going to sing.

We sing for fun, but we also sing to stretch our musical ability, to learn and improve continuously, to grow. That we have done, and we will continue to do.

Every year we get better, each of us and all of us.

Yours in harmony,
Renate

Music Terms for April

I stole these from this site-click here.

Glossary of music terms

Accent: An unusual manner of pronunciation, e.g. "Y'all sang that real good!"
Accidentals: Wrong notes
Allegro: Leg fertilizer.
Bar Line: A gathering of people, usually among which may be found a musician or two.
Beat: What music students to do each other with their musical instruments. The down beat is performed on the top of the head, while the up beat is struck under the chin.
Bravo: Literally, "How bold!" or "What nerve!" This is a spontaneous expression of appreciation on the part of the concertgoer after a particularly trying performance.
Cadence: When everybody hopes you're going to stop, but you don't.
Chord: Usually spelled with an "s" on the end, means a particular type of pants, e.g. "He wears chords."
Chromatic Scale: An instrument for weighing that indicates half-pounds.
Coloratura Soprano: A singer who has great trouble finding the proper note, but who has a wild time hunting for it.
Conductor: A musician who is adept at following many people at the same time.
Countertenor: A singing waiter.
Crescendo: A reminder to the performer that he has been playing too loudly.
Da capo al fine: I like your hat!
Espressivo: Close eyes and play with a wide vibrato.
Fermata: A brand of girdle made especially for opera singers.
Fine: That was great!
Gregorian chant: A way of singing in unison, invented by monks to hide snoring.
Harmonic Minor: A good music student.
Harmony: A corn-like food eaten by people with accents (see above for definition of accent).
Heroic Tenor: A singer who gets by on sheer nerve and tight clothing.
Interval: How long it takes you to find the right note. There are three kinds: Major Interval: a long time; Minor Interval: a few bars; Inverted Interval: when you have to back one bar and try again.
Messiah: An oratorio by Handel performed every Christmas by choirs that believe they are good enough, in cooperation with musicians who need the money.
Modulation: "Nothing is bad in modulation."
Opus: A penguin in Kansas.
Pause: A short period in an individual voice in which there should be relative quiet. Useful when turning to the next page in the score, breathing, emptying the horn of salvia, coughing, etc. Is rarely heard in baroque music. Today, the minimum requirements for pauses in individual pieces are those of the Musicians' Union (usually one per bar, or 15 minutes per hour).
Supertonic: Schweppes.
Tempo: This is where a headache begins.
Vibrato: Used by singers to hide the fact that they are on the wrong pitch.
Virtuoso: A musician with very high morals

Which ones are your favourites?

CD mix up

Sorry about the mix up with the CD's.
Here's what we have on the discs:

	Soprano CD
1	Chorus of the HS	Sop 1
2	ABBA	Solos
3	ABBA	Sop 1
4	Hail Holy Queen	Sop
5	Wonderful World	Sop
6	Wind Beneath My Wings	ACC

So we’re missing the second soprano parts which are on the Alto disc, Chorus and ABBA

	Alto CD
1	Chorus of the HS	Sop 2
2	ABBA	Sop 2
3	Get Happy	Part ll
4	Hail Holy Queen	Alto
5	Hallelujah	Alto
6	True Colors	ACC
7	Wonderful World	Alto
8	You Raise Me Up	Alto

We’re missing the alto parts that are on Tenor/Bass disc, Chorus and ABBA

	Tenor/ Bass CD
1	Chorus of the HS	Bass
2	Chorus of the HS	Alto
3	ABBA	Tenor/bass
4	ABBA	Alto
5	Hail Holy Queen	Bass
6	Hail Holy Queen	Tenor

We were completely missing the tenor part for Chorus, but it's on a new Tenor CD.

TV Theme Songs

Ok, now I've posted way too many of the theme songs from our medley, but they're all out of order and there are a few missing, so I hope I haven't given too much away to potential audience members.
Keep scrolling down for more. If you're stuck, hit home and older posts at the bottom and then you'll be able to scroll down through more of the posts.

The Addams Family Intro Theme Song 1964 - 1966

Brady Bunch 1969

Carol Burnett Sign off Song

Oooh. It was her left ear here!

Happy Days Intro Early/Mid Seasons

1979 Three's Company Season 4 Opening & Timex Sponsor Bumper