After a delayed start due to a medical incident (in which I wish the person a speedy recovery), the U18 Sacred Solo brought us safely back to the realm of music, with a very high quality class. Some truly beautiful singing from all in this class, with excellent choices of music, very well suited to the stunning acoustic of St James. Peter Hewitt made comment on the hall, and "how lucky Guernsey is that it has been saved for this kind of thing", and he's bang on - we really are lucky to have St James (and it's a real shame Beau Sejour Theatre doesn't even compare....). Each singer in this class was able to really use the hall to their advantage, and explore greater dynamic range and colour in their voice, I felt. Peter Hewitt spoke to the singers about the importance of emphasising the right word in a song (to use his example, "the drinking place" and not "the drinking place") - a very important lesson for all singers! As evidence of the high standard, two Distinctions were awarded to Kirsty Dempster and Charlotte Hardwick, with the latter claiming the trophy. I must say, as Charlotte's teacher I am incredibly proud of how she sang in this class, and I think she gave us a fantastic glimmer of what she really is capable of as a singer.
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| Charlotte Hardwick, U18 Sacred Solo Winner |
Continuing the afternoon we had a wonderful array of sacred choral singing, featuring the Junior School Sacred Choirs, The Church/Chapel/Religious/Community Choirs, the U18 Gospel Choirs and the Secondary School Sacred Choirs, all in succession! It's fantastic to see so many singers on the St James stage, from all ages, different schools, and all pockets of community (and in one case, a neighbouring island!) - That's what music should be all about! It was lovely to see the Alderney Voices back on the stage again for their final class of their eisteddfod, performing really well. It's great to see how they have improved since last year, although they were narrowly defeated for the trophy by Churches Community Choir (Festiva). Elizabeth College's Close Harmony Group, consisting of 5 lads gave a really impressive performance in the Gospel class, particularly of their second number "Turn the Radio On", and I think it's also worth noting that it was un-conducted! Finishing off the 'choral' section of the afternoon we had the Secondary School's Sacred Choirs, another high quality choral class all round, which was won by St Sampsons High School Choir with a Distinction. This choir really do have a great unified sound, which is key to great choral singing. Perhaps a little simpler in their concert program, which is no bad thing (remember, sometimes it's better to perform slightly simpler music perfectly than harder music not so perfectly), I think off the back of their eisteddfod success they can use their solid cohesive singing and now challenge themselves with meatier material. Finishing up the afternoon we had two Oratorio classes, one for 'novice' oratorio singing (open only to those who have never won the class) and what I will call the 'advanced' oratorio singing (for those that have one the previous class). For those that don't know, oratorio's are essentially solos from sacred works, sung in a more operatic style (e.g. Handel's "Messiah"). Another high standard class, with excellent singing by every competitor, the class was won by Joan Le Flem in a very closely fought competition! I have to say, the most impressive moment of the class was most certainly Niall McCathie's stunningly clear (and loud!) opening top A! That's what St James' acoustics are for!
After a fantastic afternoon we were set up for more excellent sacred music making with Jack Colley performing in the U18 Church Organ class, and the O18 Sacred Singing Groups. Jack in particular shows excellent command of keyboard instruments, and his organ playing really highlights this, earning him a Distinction. The next class was something just a little bit special, with two local choirs competing for the O18 Sacred Choirs class; Bel Canto and The Accidentals. Both choirs, although very different (Bel Canto are a large all female voice choir, whilst The Accidentals are a small SATB choir), showed excellent command of the choral sound, and indeed the performance space. Praising both choirs in their choice of repertoire, vocal colour and story-telling, there was an intense moment as he uttered the phrase, "this class was simply outstanding..." - it was then that he awarded The Accidentals 90 Marks, and the win to Bel Canto with 92 Marks! The first Outstanding marks of this years Eisteddfod, and they've both been in the same class! A truly wonderful moment! Following on was the O18 Sacred Solo, which is always a wonderful class, to both be in and to watch. What I love about this class is the variety of sacred music that gets shown in these solos, covering all genres from classical to gospel, and even pop/folk style sacred music. It was really lovely to see Lee-Ann Hawkes win this class with a Distinction - I know Lee-Ann has not been too confident with her singing in the last few years, and it was great to see her back on top-form for a really deserved win, and I hope this reassures her of her singing talent. Closing out the evening, a really fun class, the O18 Gospel Choirs, featuring The Accidentals. Performing two completely contrasting pieces, I think the choir captured the audience's hearts with a soothing rendition of Bob Chilcott's "All my Trials", followed by the wonderfully fun and upbeat "Hail Holy Queen" from Sister Act, complete with unexpected (but highly amusing) flying music folders! A great closing number for the evening, the choir earned themselves more high praise from the adjudicator, and a Distinction mark of 89.
All in all, the Sunday sessions at St James have once again proved themselves to be some of the best music making in the island. Getting to perform in that space is an absolute privilege, and the confidence a quality performing space can give a performer is quite clear after hearing the outstanding (quite literally) music of the day.
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