Category: News

Plans now finalised for the theme for this year’s show so can get going on writing the music – this year I will be recording a vocal and junk percussion soundtrack with Carlisle primary and secondary school students, with live singers, brass and drummers on the stage. Great to work again with storyteller Jeff Wallcook from Trellis Arts and firesculpture maker and director Gavin Lewery.

(Brampton is weekly on Wednesdays 7-9: Penrith weekly from April on Mondays 7.30 – 9.30 at Mostyn Hall.)
……last week of term so doing a bit of evaluation but in an improv way

asked: “if the group woke up on stage in front of an audience and were asked to demonstrate something of what we, what would happen?”

really different answers –

Penrith: definitely not when we turn the lights out
Brampton: definitely when we turn the lights out
Penrith: show how we take a song or riff and develop it – so I set it up and everyone waited for me to start something off (which was what I had expected)
Brampton: they just launched straight in! was great! foundered quite soon – when we got to a place where I started something off, everyone was raring to go

Quite exhiliarating the whole thing

the last day of term so i decided to get all the singers in my lessons to sing phrases in response to a call – either as an echo or to start off a conversation.

this was something people hadn’t done individually and with the opportunity to explore their own phrasing and style, shape their own melodies and rhythms and create words – all on the hop.

it was great fun and showed how much everyone has improved over the last term.

what a great group of young musicians and supportive staff at Richard Rose, Central, Carlisle!

Well – definitely worth the trip through the snow over to the North East – over on the east people seem raring to go. What a treat – nothing better than handing people a few tools and seeing them take them far beyond your expectations.

looking forward to the next one and massive thanks to Sarah Gray for organising it all.

Kate is up this weekend and we are finishing off the songs for our song cycle. Who said composing wasn’t hard work!

Rather special evening with over 30 singers for an Improv Choir workshop at the new Community Hub. Took 5 Brampton Improvers with me and we ate at the amazing Bistro first, then had to wake up to do the session!. Highlight for me was the end with the lights off – suddenly the room was filled with individual voices in an explosion of exuberance. No tentative beginning with soft oohs or taps or percussive sounds, but straight in to this meld of long-held notes and cries. Great!

Just got back driving over Pennines from Howick – great village hall made of wood and octagonal!

Sarah Gray organised 17 singers to be there and provided and amazing AFTERNOON TEA!

Bryony & I co-led the afternoon – takes on Equinox and my version of Trouble, with some group jamming. Everyone really up for having a go. Looking forward to the next one!

Based in Yorkshire, their summer course for puppeteers seems to have a fantastic programme and I was really chuffed to be asked to provide a small slice of it.

I did a day of vocal improv and it was really interesting. We ended up looking at rhythm in detail, as the responsiveness of the group to tone, timbre, signals, phrasing, conversation, dynamics was impressive – it is what they have to do all the time. What they weren’t used to doing was working within a rhythmic framework and allowing a pulse to inform and energise all those elements.

Ended up with a really interesting talk with the director, Caroline – well it is always thrilling to talk to someone who knows what they are talking about and also likes to listen to you!

She is doing a phd which is something I am toying with so her experiences were really valuable to hear.