Do you know what a Foxtrot is?....

Ah, the weekend - a time to unwind from the rigours of the working week and recharge the batteries....Yeah, not if you're involved in the Eisteddfod it's not! This first Saturday of the Music Eisteddfod was crammed with amazing musical performances, and I'm not quite sure how I made it to the other side alive!

Kiriana Hutchins, winner of the Under 8 Vocal Solo

A morning of many small classes, we opened the morning session with two Harp classes (the Open
and the Under 18), both contested by the same singular competitor; Marie-Claire Benoist. A well-known face in Guernsey as an excellent Harpist, Marie-Claire once again showcased her beautiful and stylish playing in both classes. A few little pitch issues as a couple of the strings went a bit sharp, but such is the burden of being a Harpist. I heard a phrase once that, "Harpists spend half their life tuning.... and the other half playing out of tune." None the less, a wonderful performance, earning herself a Highly Commended and a Distinction respectively. Following on was the Vocal Boys Under 18. This is a very interesting time for young singers, particularly male singers. Whilst girls of this age are starting to settle into an adult tone, the male voice, having just gone through somewhat of an armaggedon in vocal change is still very much tender and unsettled at that point, which Adrian Goss was sure to point out. To follow came another 'mini-master-class' in the realms of vocal production, which I really hope these young competitors absorb and relish. The class was won be Benjamin Fletcher, but I also want to mention Harvey Falla, in whom I heard great promise for the future. Well done lads.

Continuing the morning we had several junior piano classes: the Under 14 Solo, the Junior Classe Superieure Under 18, and finally the Piano Duet Under 18. The underlying theme of adjudication for these classes was understanding of the music; not just in a technical sense (the dynamics, the articulations, the key etc etc), but also knowing what the title means! With songs, it's a little easier to grasp what the song is about - there are words to read! But with instrumental music, often we just have a title - and sometimes that title is not that helpful (Opus No. 3...... what?!!). A good chunk of musical learning is about knowing as much as you can about what it is you are performing! This can come from listening to many versions of the same piece, or finding original composer notes on the piece, to give yourself the best possible chance at connecting with the music on a deep level. A particularly useful technical concept was the idea of a bouncing ball to represent the rhythm in a piece or song. The ball may only bounce at certain times (the beat), but the music (and the rhythm) continue when the ball is in the air! Something for all to think about!

After the interval, we had another set of small (but perfectly formed) classes: the Vocal Boys & Girls Under 8, and the Cello Under 9. Although different disciplines, the overlying message was the same - learning to 'sing' through the line (not chopping phrases short), and working with the imagery conveyed in the piece. Some fine young performers in these classes, with Kiriana Hutchins winning the Vocal Class, and Lucy Appleton winning the Cello Class, both with Commended. Well done girls, fine work indeed. The final class of the morning sessions was something rather wonderful: the Special Needs Choirs & Groups Open. The Gateway Club performed two songs, 'Molly Malone' followed by 'This Little Light of Mine' - a wonderful show of team spirit, with everyone involved contributing in their own way to make this a lovely and memorable performance: even the audience joined in with singing and clapping! What fun!

Unlike it's morning counterpart, the Saturday afternoon session featured only two classes - but both jam-packed with talent and entertainment! Kicking off the afternoon was the Under 18's Piano Solo, a class marked by it's hugely impressive young performers, tackling some of the classic and epic piano repertoire, including Rachmaninov's 'Bells of Moscow' C#minor Prelude (performed by Charlie Brewin), and Chopin's C#minor Nocturne (performed by Jude Wegerer). A particular highlight of this class for me was Benjamin Fletcher's performance of 'Three Moods' by Aaron Copland. An incredible amount of panache and élan from this young lad, who was described by the adjudicator as "A rebel who relishes in destructive behaviour." Benjamin also has a very dry sense of wit, as when asked by Adrian, '"Do you know what a Foxtrot is?", Benjamin replied, "There aren't any foxes on Guernsey... so no....." - A class of superb skill, which was ultimately won with Distinction by Charlie Brewin, who shows amazing command and control of 'the beast' (aka, the eisteddfod piano, for those of you who've never played it!).

And then we were onto one of the festival favourites: The Songs from the Shows, this time for the 12 and Under 15s. It is incredibly clear (as it always is) that we have some great talent in our young performers here on Guernsey. But I am a firm believer that talent is grown, and that it takes a LOT of hard work to excel in anything, but especially singing! And this is one of the reasons I am so very pleased we have Adrian Goss as our adjudicator this year. As a singing teacher myself, I can vouch that everything he says about singing, and to the singers on this Island is 100% accurate and extremely valuable to their development. Adrian stated in his adjudication that he was going to be critical, but was clear to add that his criticisms were coming from a place of 'love', and that his aim was to educate, not to put down. The major vocal issues that came up in this group were that of vocal range, and this is primarily to do with the age group of the singers in this class. 12-15yr old voices are vulnerable: there is (or has just been) a massive vocal transition, and many voices will be unsettled, or will have developed a 'vocal break', or in the case of boys, will have shifted dramatically in range, or soon will. And, in complete honesty, this will (and should) limit singers at this stage in what they choose to sing. The major problem we face is that, a lot of the really awesome repertoire for Musical Theatre is intended to be sung by adult voices (and adult voices who have trained for years, I might add!), but in the case of shows like 'Grease' for example, the actual character ages are that of teenagers, so the subject matter is aimed at them. #majordilemma!! Below I've listed some of the amazing tips that Adrian gave out to these youngsters, as it really is so important for their developing vocal health:

• Sing in your Range: this may mean limiting the range of songs you pick for a while - but only a while! Seriously, a couple years at most, and then you can start developing your range safely knowing you have a healthy voice. 

• Bigger isn't always Better: This relates to the ever popular technique of 'belt singing', which contrary to popular belief is not all about singing in the heavy 'speech like' voice quality (also known as 'chest register'), and certainly not in the higher parts of the vocal range! True belting requires a thorough understanding of vocal register, managing register transitions (or passagios as they are also called), and knowing how to apply the right vocal techniques to create the illusion of a heavier sound.
• I have much, much more to say on this topic, far more than I can possibly say in this blog - if any of you reading are interested comment below (or contact me!) about learning more about vocal technique. 

• Reducing the Twang: 'Twang' is technique by which the singer narrows the vocal tract, which creates a brighter and louder volume in a healthy way. Now.... twang is actually incredibly useful, and the right amount of necessary twang is required for a focused and clear sound..... but it is very easy to over do it. Twang is another vocal colour to be added to the singers toolbox, to be used appropriately. In the case of young singers, it's often over used, so it's something to really look out for. 

All that technical stuff (phew!) out the way, I have to say that this class was wonderful to watch, with some truly special moments. Highlights for me included Rachel Dawson's rendition of 'Quiet' from Matilda, in which you could have heard a pin drop at the end of the song, and Reece Kilminster & Samantha Paines performance of 'Mooning' from Grease, which was delightfully comedic and well sung by both singers. Adrian Goss also stated about how the emphasis for this class should be 'Songs': although Musical Theatre numbers often involve a lot of choreography and acting, the song should take precedent, and that was his reasoning for his choice of winner: Reece Kilminster with his performance of 'Mister Cellophane'. Adrian stated that there were moments of true vulnerability in his performance, in which we (the audience) caught a glimpse of Reece amongst the character, and that that is what made this truly special.

Jazz winners, five years running! Chris Taylor and myself
after perfuming our rendition of 'Sway'

No rest for the wicked, the evening session opened with more 'social' piano playing in the Open Piano Duet, and Open 6-hands (or more) Piano Classes, followed by another festival favourite, the Vocal Jazz Over 18s, in which I was participating. A super class, which, as Adrian put it, really got everyone in the mood for a great night. The class covered a fair few sub-genres of Jazz, which is impressive considering there were only four of us in it! I want to really commend Mike Pepperell for his singing in this class, as his crooner-style approach was really charming, and suited him down to the ground. On this occasion, I'm happy to say that I was the winner of this class with an Outstanding mark of 90. Adrian said of my performance that it was a 'master-class in Jazz singing' - well, I'll take that kind of praise any day, thank you very much Adrian!


Next was the Choirs Folk & Traditional Over 18 featuring the Alderney Voices, and how lovely it is to have performers from a neighbouring island participating! Competitors from Jersey used to compete in this festival quite often in the past, but that doesn't seem to happen anymore, and I do wish that this was not the case, because it was clear to see how happy the Alderney Voices were to be taking part. From their first eisteddfod a few years ago, this choir have shown a strong sense of community, a love of singing, and are developing a real warmth to their sound, which was highlighted by their class win with 84 Marks. Directly after this was the Gilbert & Sullivan Class, in which the 'Cheshire Cats Choir' performed a condensed version of The HMS Pinafore in 10 minutes! Another highlight for the audience, which featured a re-working of Sir Joseph Porter's patter song with Guernsey-themed lyrics - hysterically performed by Michael Sproule, amongst some fine local soloists. A well earned 86 Marks and the trophy - Hurrah!
- Vocal Classe Superieure Over 18, much like the Piano version I wrote about in a previous post, requires the singer to perform two contrasting pieces in terms of style, composer and date of composition. A 'high-brow' class, the two performers really pulled out the meaty repertoire, which I know for some (aka, my dad) will have been a bit heavy. But that's music really - everyone has a taste, and you are obliged to have an opinion on everything! Despite the heaviness of the repertoire, it is clear to hear the skill from both Fiona Malley and Joan Le Flem, with the latter scooping the trophy with a Distinction mark of 89.

What do you think... should we form a Super-group?!

The final two classes of this loooooong day of music were the Folk Solo Over 18, followed by the Country & Western Over 18. A much lighter approach in musical tastes from the class before, and covering a vast variety of genres within genres, there was some really fine singing taking place, and also, a chance for some well-placed humour. Lindsey Veillard's performance of 'Gulls of Inverdale' (complete with Scottish Accent and a 5-litre bottle of Whiskey!) was a sure favourite with the audience,  and earned her a Distinction mark of 87 and the trophy. The final class, of which I was one of two competitors could not have shown more contrast if we had tried! I performed a soulful country ballad, with finger-picking guitar and accompanying cellist, whilst Jules Tostevin performance a skiffle-style rocking comedic song with two plaid-shirt blokes on guitars and a funky geezer on the kit. Both so far apart in style, but not in execution! Adrian decided that he simply couldn't choose between us, and awarded us both marks of 88 and the trophy to share. A brilliant way to round off the night!

A HUGE amount of music-making this Saturday, and a huge amount of information to absorb! This Eisteddfod is proving to be somewhat of an educational overload - but, you know what?.... I'm loving every second of it!