King's College Cambridge Lessons and Carols (both L and R) 24/25th xii 22 / Rads 3 /4

[Ein Heldenleben]

Speaking for myself I wouldn't dream of claiming any expertise, but I did have a little conducting tuition when I was young, know the basics and have occasionally been thanked by singers for using them. More to the point, there are those who have risen from cathedral/collegiate training who manifestly have cultivated a proper conducting technique (Harry Christophers and Stephen Layton to name but two) and they do stand out a mile. But this is getting out of proportion. My original point (and a small one at that) was to wonder why it might have been that the ensemble between choir and organ wasn't as tight as one would expect. It may well have been nothing to do with the conducting at all.

Harry Christophers’ technique has always struck me as commendably minimalist. I wonder though whether his is a slightly easier gig . Professional mature singers completely familiar with the repertoire , clear sight lines , no pesky organ etc.

[Vox Humana]

My impression was that the organ playing was superb

He is a superb organist (as KCC organ scholars always are) and collared all the prizes at FRCO.

[jonfan]

Are we even fully qualified to criticise?

Be careful, nobody knows who all the aliases are on these boards. Daniel Hyde might be one of them.

[PeterboroughDiapason]

Hear, hear! I hate with a passion the practice of introducing a hymn by playing the end of the tune.

Yes, I agree in general though, I must admit, I do make an exception for Hark! the herald: the last line makes a much better intro, I think. (Possibly I do it because Thalben-Ball did it on his carol LP from the Temple Church and I listened to that every Christmas as a child while decorating the Christmas tree!)

I think Carols for Choirs has the last phrase as an intro for The First Nowell which I also use.

[Wolsey]

[...] I was also very sorry to see that Cleobury wasn't recognised in any way in the list of music - be it in an arrangement or descant.

His arrangement of 'Joys Seven' was heard in Carols from King's on BBC2.

[D Hyde]

As I have said for many years, why do you all have to post under an alias?!

[Vox Humana]

Harry Christophers’ technique has always struck me as commendably minimalist. I wonder though whether his is a slightly easier gig . Professional mature singers completely familiar with the repertoire , clear sight lines , no pesky organ etc.

I am pretty certain that the repertoire they sing is by no means always 'completely familiar'. Pesky organs probably feature less often than orchestras—and there's nothing like an orchestra to encourage a conductor to learn his/her skill properly: orchestral players are far less forgiving than singers.

[Vox Humana]

As I have said for many years, why do you all have to post under an alias?!

Speaking for myself, it's simply because my real name wouldn't mean any more to anyone than my alias. It's not as if I were anyone significant, or my opinions at all important. I'm just your common or garden nobody.

Also, I don't have any inherent objection to being identified, but does not posting anonymously make it much easier to dismiss my opinions as the irrelevance which they undoubtedly are?

I actually did enjoy the service hugely. I really did.

[Sir Velo]

As I have said for many years, why do you all have to post under an alias?!

Hmm....why the diffident "D"? Literally hundreds of D Hydes on Facebook (or the phone book for that matter). Has Daniel entered the lion's den at last?

[smittims]

I don't think a screen-name is quite the same as an 'alias', or at least does not have the same connotations as an 'alias' usually suggests. I think of an alias as connected with secrecy, whereas a screen-name is simply about privacy: two concepts easily confused, especially today.

I began on the internet by using my own name and got a lot of unwanted attention from people who were trying to find out my address, etc. It was at a time when 'identity' was becoming a sensitive topic.

The advantage of screen-names is that we appear here as views , free from the pre-conceptions or prejudices some people feel when they know someone's age, sex, physical appearance, etc.

[Ein Heldenleben]

I think the reason people stay anonymous is largely for privacy reasons. For the same reason I’m not on linked in , Facebook or any other social media and I make an effort to ensure that there are very few pictures of me on them . It is an unfortunate fact that if you are active on these (especially Facebook which is a very sinister organisation) it becomes much easier for corporations to gain a great deal of information about you. The disreputable can also guess at passwords ( often based on enthusiasms esp football teams ) and also work out when you are away from home. I am often surprised at what friends of mine post - pictures of children,live posts from abroad . Any organisation trying to build a picture of you whether it be the police, HMRC , or criminal gang will first go to your Facebook, Instagram etc pages. When I worked as a journalist it staggered me what people what make publicly available. Though my witterings on matters musical would be of minuscule interest to any of them.

[Petrushka]

Hmm....why the diffident "D"? Literally hundreds of D Hydes on Facebook (or the phone book for that matter). Has Daniel entered the lion's den at last?

Mr Hyde has actually been on the Forum before but I'd guess his membership here was deleted when we had the clear out of contributors who hadn't posted for some time a while back. Hence the re-sign back in again.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

I was also very sorry to see that Cleobury wasn't recognised in any way in the list of music - be it in an arrangement or descant. I still think his original descant and arrangement (not the later modified version dating from the mid '90s which went over the top) of O come all ye faithful tops the lot... spine-tingling.

Interesting. It was a pity not to have some recognition of Cleobury, but surely not those descants, which ranged from bizarre to chaotic - I’ve really tried with these, but many years down the line, I continue to feel embarrassed by such a fine musician miscalculating repeatedly.

But I was pleased about the inclusion of one descant by Sir Philip Ledger, though I would have preferred it to have been his wonderfully inspired one for Once in Royal

I

[Ein Heldenleben]

Mr Hyde has actually been on the Forum before but I'd guess his membership here was deleted when we had the clear out of contributors who hadn't posted for some time a while back. Hence the re-sign back in again.

So is the D Hyde who has just posted THE D Hyde ?If so congratulations on an excellent service.
If not slightly smaller congratulations on a an elegantly paradoxical post .
Wouldn’t Dr. Jekyll also work ?

[James Vivian]

Happy Christmas to all. I thought the SJC Advent service and the Nine Lessons were shining examples of our Anglican choral tradition: both choirs on brilliant form.

As an ex-OS of KCC, the FNLC broadcast always reminds me of how I felt, as a 19-yr old, sitting at the console waiting for the red light knowing that a wrong note will be remembered for a very long time. This year, both organ scholars had a huge number of notes to get through, particularly in the Farrington and Martin (both great pieces), and although I haven't read the threads in detail this fact seems to have been lost or not appreciated by some. If you haven't been involved in one of these services it is difficult to imagine the pressures involved.

Both services have a huge following and both are flying the flag worldwide for our choral tradition under increasingly difficult circumstances. These circumstances are indeed felt up and down the country and web streaming has shown that standards are as high as they have ever been nationwide.

I wish you all a happy new year.

James Vivian.