We began our session with introductions to welcome a newcomer, Wietske, and Tina read out the email she has sent to the Lewes pubs seeking a possible alternative venue for our monthly gatherings. Once again we had a fuller room, with eleven in total, which made for a great sound when we all got singing. So far Tina has received one welcoming response from a pub, so we agreed to wait for a week or so in the hopes of further positive replies, after which time we can visit and chat through the possibilities.
Tina talked us through her list of suggested songs, some for singing at the Firle House Garden Show on April 23rd , and asked people for their requests. There was a mixture of many old favourites and a few less familiar songs which Tina taught as they came up.
We began with “Rosebuds” and moved onto a very local sequence of “My Downland Remembered” (adapted from a poem and set to music by Chichester group singer Alan Wheeler, recalling the experience of one of his ancestors), “On Sussex Hills” and “Caburn Hill” (written by our own Lewes singer Dave Turner who led one of the two parts) before closing the first half with “Stedham Oyster Man’s Donkey” (a song which had been introduced at the Chichester and Worthing sessions but was new to Lewes).
Over a break to refill the glasses we shared news of local folk and other singing events attended by some of our members.
We started the second half with “East Sussex Drinking Song” and continued with a very seasonal list of “When Spring Comes In”, “Run of the Downs”, “Birds on the Spray” and “Turtle Dove”. Some of us needed a bit of guidance from Tina for “Come Stranger, Come Friend” and we finished as usual with a rousing rendition of “Thousands or More”.
A hearty sing as always!
Jan
No comments:
Post a Comment