The final rehearsal before the weekend of the Freedom Road concert was last Sunday, 31th July. As many people as possible came from regional choirs – Bendigo, Ballarat, Wodonga, Stratford to name just a few. Some came in buses, others car-pooled and many came in their own donks.
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| Peeping over the drum kit, we see people finding their places |
Two Bays Choir members were everywhere, and enjoying the whole thing of course. We have shared the driving, the tea and carrot cake, and the music.
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| Simply Irresistible, we are ;-) |
Most of the musicians, most of the guest performers and the narrators were present to take us through the substance of the program. It was a longer rehearsal than usual and we all worked hard with Stella and Dani moving the whole thing along with energy, precision and laughter.
It made all the difference to hear the narrators doing their thing – it all feels connected now. Barry and the other narrators read their scripts which create an understanding of the tragedy of slavery, bringing to life the gospel music that spelled hope for the people caught in this desperate trap. Geoffrey Williams sang, Archer sang, and Mark Grunden beefed up the rhythm with his fabulous drumming.
Next weekend we are issued with our t-shirts on Saturday at the full rehearsal at the Collins Street Baptist Church, followed by the dress rehearsal on Sunday morning in the Town Hall. The performance is at 2 in the afternoon. Your friends can still get tickets on-line although quite a few hundred are already sold. The Town Hall is so big!Roll on the weekend, it’s very exciting.
Cheers until the next post.
Ros and Sue.
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| Dani calls for hush, Stella draws breath, Barry is pensive |
It made all the difference to hear the narrators doing their thing – it all feels connected now. Barry and the other narrators read their scripts which create an understanding of the tragedy of slavery, bringing to life the gospel music that spelled hope for the people caught in this desperate trap. Geoffrey Williams sang, Archer sang, and Mark Grunden beefed up the rhythm with his fabulous drumming.
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| Geoffrey Williams singing, Stella's right there! |
Afternoon tea break was welcome as we were to continue until 5.30 this time. It was sunny and time for stories and catching up.
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| Tea break in the afternoon sunshine |
Thank goodness Harry was present, the world’s best sound engineer (for MMC performances). The work song stomps and the happy clapping from over 300 people would overwhelm the recording so we made adjustments accordingly. The Illuminators sang their piece and described their costumes - can't wait both to see them and hear them at the performance.
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| The Illuminators with great harmony, exciting energy |
Next weekend we are issued with our t-shirts on Saturday at the full rehearsal at the Collins Street Baptist Church, followed by the dress rehearsal on Sunday morning in the Town Hall. The performance is at 2 in the afternoon. Your friends can still get tickets on-line although quite a few hundred are already sold. The Town Hall is so big!
Cheers until the next post.
Ros and Sue.
