Spent last week working lots.

Spent the weekend at a choir workshop in a posh hotel (which probably does most of its business from, er, business people and so it's happy to give people a good deal on weekends) (City North Hotel -- I can definitely recommend the food there, both bar and restaurant, nice spacious rooms and good service). This was fun but exhausting, both for the actual workshop activity (music and voice technique) and because being with people all the time is tiring for me, though I do like these people. Oh, and I didn't sleep much the two nights I spent there, partly through being in the pub half the night and partly who knows, being in a strange bed? It was a confortable strange bed, and not noisy, so I don't know.)

Now I'm back to working lots, specifically on a job that turned out to be a lot slower than average (pretty much every word needs to be researched because it's all movie titles, works of art and stuff...)

I was still uncertain whether to poke my nose into Octocon next weekend, but this morning I find news of Octocon-related fandom infighting all over my flist, and frankly, even leaving entirely aside the merit of the issue, Irish fandom is too small for a feud (by which obviously I mean "too small to afford it", not "too small to have one"), and I'm almost pathologically confrontation-averse, so it really doesn't look like I would enjoy the atmosphere at the con, so decision made. Ah well, I might have to work through the weekend anyway...

The other event that Dublin had been waiting for :-) For one night, and one night only...

Last Sunday we sang at the RDS, and the tickets were €100... ok, so it wasn't just us, there were also some people called "Celtic Tenors", and it was a charity event, but even so...

Next Saturday we're doing our own summer concert (though we do have some soloists), and it's only €15, and in fact if you get the ticket from me it's €12.50.

We're doing some Handel because it's obligatory this year (a coronation anthem in 4 pieces), three pieces from Rutter's "Childhood Lyrics" which are damn hard despite being things like The Owl and the Pussycat and Sing a Song of Sixpence, a couple-few madrigals, two jazz pieces and a Blue Bird (words by Mary Coleridge). We have a new director since last year, David Leigh (strangely not mentioned on the poster), and we have a new venue because the usual one is closed for restoration. And we're pretty good :-)

Today I sang with my choir at a Catholic Mass in a big, cathedral-like church (St Peter's in Phibsboro) -- which is quite satisfying from a singer's point of view.

I also got a chance to see the Liturgy of Teh Cute (possibly not the official name), a sort of "welcoming" ceremony for 5 babies who are going to be baptised next Sunday (actually, 4 babies and a girl who must have been 3 or 4). The parents stood on the altar with the babies and a number of older siblings, the priest blessed them and anointed the babies individually, asked the parents what names they'd chosen for their babies and if they wanted them to be Christians and then welcomed the babies to the Church. The cuteness level was quite high.

Also, not one but two of the babies were called Holly, which I thought was a very fine pagan name -- but the priest didn't seem to find anything wrong with it.

The priest had more of a theatrical streak than most Catholic priests I've seen, walking up and down the altar during the homily and making sweeping gestures, and on the whole looking like he'd been watching and learning from the Evangelical competition.

The singing went well, and I had fun. There was enough Cute in the front pews to keep me amused during the non-singing bits, so that wasn't so bad either.

(This is in Dublin, Ireland, in case you're wondering -- this is a picture of the poster, which wasn't exactly meant to be posted all over the world...)

Edited to add: The concert will include choral pieces by Lassus, Da Victoria, Mozart, Rachmaninoff, Poulenc, Elgar, Stravinsky, Gounod and (I'm afraid) Rutter, and a few solo pieces (which are going to be a surprise to me as much as to the audience, but the soloists we've had singing with us have always been very good).

Most of the pieces are Ave Marias or closely related texts, for no special reason that I've been able to find out; they are also all very good (with the exception of the Rutter, but then maybe that's just me...)

(And if you do come, wait for me at the end of the concert, I'll come out as soon as I can and maybe we can adjourn to the nearest pub!)

The choir workshop week-end went well, but my attempts to get a decent amount of sleep per night were foiled once again by my brain firmly deciding that 7:00 is the correct time to wake up, independently of the time I've gone to bed and the amount of alcohol I've had before doing so. (I never got very drunk though, and even more importantly, I never got a hangover. It's either the pints of water, or the fact that I actually spaced my drinks quite a lot, or just plain luck.)

I think we must have surprised some of the hotel staff and concurrent-wedding guests on Saturday night. When a dozen people in a pub, surrounded by ample proof that they've been doing some serious drinking in the form of empty glasses and bottles, start singing Beatles songs and trad ballads and stuff, they don't tend to sing perfectly in tune. Never mind spontaneously breaking into 4-part harmony... The guests (who had a room to themselves) did occasionally come out and sit around to listen to us. All in all, much fun was had by all and sundry. And we went through quite a lot of music during the official singing sessions, though.

(As an aside, the current repertoire uses the whole range of the tenor voice minus maybe a tone. The tricky thing is that while a high A* will never get any higher through the choir's natural tendency to drift, and I can hit it reliably if I concentrate, a low B** may well get lower, especially in a piece with a bunch of descending scales in it... and I can only get below the B with any volume on a very good day. I think I will have to threaten the sopranos with something suitably terrible -- of course it's the sopranos' fault if we drop a semitone or two, isn't everything?)

Now, however, I'm more completely wrecked than I've been for a long time. And that's after napping most of yesterday afternoon, and a bit of this afternoon (after delivering the current job half a day in advance). I went to bed around midnight last night (which is early for me), but then I woke up at 6:10. Ah well. At least the job is done so I can afford to nap in a desperate attempt to catch up with sleep.

Ah, and the anxiety is gone. That is very good. We'll see what I feel like once I stop being wrecked, but I'm pretty optimistic.

* Palestrina and Poulenc
** Rachmaninoff and someone else I can't remember right now

Well, that was last night. And it didn't explode much -- it just kind of went "pop" and died.

It has to be noted that I'm working on a largish job and I was already slightly behind on schedule. And one file was due for delivery first thing in the morning -- and that was ready, too, but now inaccessible due to the computer's refusal to give any signs of life whatsoever. Of course.

First I panicked. Then I went to flip the fuses that had unflipped in the corridor. Then I guessed a power supply fault. Then I tried swapping the power cable and using a different socket. Then I panicked again.

Then I checked my backups and discovered that (a) my scheduled automatic backups on USB key of the most important files (current work, accounts, novel, etc.) is somehow fucked up and the most recent copy of the file that was due in the morning was from 2 days ago -- in other words, totally useless. And (b) I couldn't do anything with the other files (due in the next 2 days) because the program I need to edit them doesn't run on my laptop (not just because it's not installed, but because this version doesn't run on Vista).

So I panicked further, and then I went to sleep because by this time it was past 1 am and there wasn't anything I could do anyway.

This morning I got up, panicked, and then called the client and explained the problem. The project manager, fortunately, was understanding. Then I started calling a number of PC repair places -- none of which answered the phone before 10 am. This is Ireland after all...

Ok -- I'll cut it short. To my complete amazement (as well as relief), I got the machine repaired by midday. I could have done without the expense right now, but well, I couldn't have done without the computer :-) It was indeed the power supply, which needed to be replaced. I'm thinking that if it happens again, I'd probably be able to replace it myself now that I've seen what's involved -- though the number and variety of output cables from it is a bit scary.

And then I also managed to get a deadline extension from the project manager -- which is just as well, and which allowed me to go to choir practice tonight instead of slaving over the translation without breaks for the rest of the evening. This was also just as well, since I was the only tenor present tonight. The basses were doing just as badly -- only one bass too. We looked a bit like the Ulysses Girls' Choir... :-) (Our new director also directs -- and founded -- the Cathedral Girls' Choir, which is why I thought of it).

...clearly, so called because the singers who are required to sing it become very puzzled and ask themselves, "what the bleep was the composer drinking??"

Oh look, it's on Wikipedia. Ohh look, it turns out to be even better:

The 'scala enigmatica' is an unusual musical scale, with elements of both major and minor scales, as well as the whole-tone scale. It was originally published in a Milan journal as a musical challenge, with an invitation to harmonize it in some way.

Verdi used it in his Ave Maria, part of the Quattro Pezzi Sacri (4 sacred pieces) in 1889.

The scale, (written out beginning on G) is as follows: G, A, B, C#, D#, F, G, G.

...now guess what piece we've just started studying with the choir?

(Actually, strange as it may seem, it sounds good. But it's not what I call easy to learn. I mean, it was a bet!)

(Oh look, here it is. Wonders of YouTube...)

I'll be singing carols again with my choir at Farmleigh on the 22nd of December, at 1:30 pm, as part of the whole Christmas thing they do every year there. The show is free, and if you're around Dublin and like carols you might want to come.

So last night at rehearsal we added a couple of new pieces in German, because this year's event has a kind of European theme. Two are carols, while the third... as I told the rest of the (largely non-German-speaking) choir after rehearsal, it's about Sex. In church. Between dead people.

...but it will do, because it's in German, see?

In der Marienkirche begruben sie ihn
und sie im Marienchor;
aus ihrem Grab ein rot Röselein sprosst,
aus seinem ein Weissdorn hervor.

Die neigten sich, die verzweigten sich,
wären gern einander recht nah,
dass jeder gleich erkennen könnt',
zwei Liebende ruhten allda.

(They buried him in St Mary's church, and her in St Mary's choir; out of her grave there sprung a little red rose, and from his there grew a hawthorn. They leaned closer, they entwined, they wanted to be really close, so that everybody would know that two lovers were resting there.)

It's actually a very nice little song. And it cheers me up that we're passing it off as a carol :-)

The party was fun, as expected. Drank rather more lager than expected -- it was very warm inside, and Mike had turned a (brand new) recycling-bin-on-wheels into that great Australian institution, the esky, by filling it with cans and bottles of lager packed in ice. Diving into the chilled melted ice to fish out a bottle of lager was a very attractive activity, as was downing the contents of said bottle while chatting with friends.

Anyway -- got drunker than I wanted to, but still nothing unmanageable. Rushed the km or so down to the Luas station trailing my almost-empty shopping trolley at half past midnight to catch the last "regular" tram into town -- not so much because I didn't trust the Special Night Service as because that seemed like a wise time to go home anyway. Walked the other km or so home dragging etcetera. Bought milk at a 24-hour shop on the way, and was asked by a Bangladeshi shop attendant where I was from. Told him I was from Italy and I was only wearing the scarf on my head because of the cold and wind. Chatted a bit about the weather.

Got home no problem but still buzzed and drunk, which meant I didn't go to bed until 3 am. Woke up at 6:30, which would have been in good time for getting dressed and walking the mile-and-a-bit to the Buddhist Centre to do some chanting and puja, but decided to give it a miss anyway and went back to sleep until 8:30. Woke up with extremely mild hangover, which was cured by food, coffee and one nurofen (and I could have skipped the last if I hadn't needed to be quite awake-and-present for the concert).

Long rehearsal starting at 2pm -- I really wish the director didn't insist on keeping us standing for the whole rehearsal when we have a concert immediately following (which is, of course, all standing again). Concert at 4pm went fairly well, with some uncertainties which may or may not have been noticed by the audience. We do collectively have a few problems with the director's style at this point, but I don't know if there's a Plan about that because I haven't spoken to the committee yet. (Example: deciding on the day of the concert that the De Victoria piece is going to be directed in 2/2 instead of 4/4 as it had always been. I know I have specific problems with rhythm, but I wasn't the only one who was confused. Luckily I know that piece backwards, so I did manage to hold my own -- especially since the other tenors were trusting me... and the other sections managed too. But it was quite stressful, and I think dangerous.)

Visited the Twin Bookshops on the way back and found a few more presents (not even randomly: I already knew what I was looking for. That is uncommon.) Came home and collapsed, and for the rest of the evening I basically flopped on the sofa, either dozing or reading about San shamanistic art. Haven't remotely caught up with LJ yet.

So, a very good week-end on balance :-)

Today is going to be mostly translation work. Cooking some nice lunch with stuff left over from Saturday's salad preparation. Sun is shining. I might decide to go out later on. Still rather knackered though -- I seem to have given my legs and (more surprisingly) my shoulders some unexpected exercise, judging by the current complaints.

At this point anybody who reads this LJ is probably quite aware of the fact that I don't... but I don't have a problem with other people liking them, either. I won't despise you if you like them :-)

In fact, if you like carols (and are in Dublin), I'm going to suggest that you come listen to my choir singing this coming Sunday afternoon in the city centre. We're a good choir, and we sing our carols well.



The program is about 80% carols, with one Renaissance piece thrown in for good measure (De Victoria's O Magnum Mysterium) and a couple of Christmas songs that aren't strictly carols, like Tchaikowski's The crown of roses. You can get tickets from me, or at the door; or the compromise solution (since I'm only announcing this two days before the event), which is to tell me how many tickets you want and I'll have them reserved for you to pick up at the door.

The poster says the basic stuff -- date, venue, price. (It doesn't specify that the venue is in Dublin, Ireland -- I suppose I should say that...) Ulysses is my choir, we've just won prices in a competition and I suppose that proves that we're pretty good :-) Seanma is an instrumental ensemble playing renaissance music.

The choral program includes 4 pieces by Palestrina, 3 pieces by De Victoria, 2 by Byrd, 2 by Tallis, and madrigals by Farmer, Bennet and Morley. Tickets available from me or at the door (but if you get them at the door, let me know you're coming anyway!)

I hate selling. I HATE HATE HATE selling. I can't do it. If there's a phobia to do with selling, I have it.

Between the way that tonight's rehearsal went and being pushed to sell tickets for the concert, at the moment I feel totally ready to leave the choir. Which would be a pity because I love singing. I'm pretty sure I would have done it tonight if we didn't have a concert in 2 weeks' time where we're already going to be one tenor short (on top of being chronically the smallest section) -- and I don't want to do that to the rest of them.

I haven't been so furious and upset and ready to cry for a while. It will pass -- it would help to have someone to let steam out to, but it will pass anyway. But it is not my idea of fun.

Sorry about venting. I was going to explode otherwise.

I spent yesterday in Navan with the rest of my choir for the Navan Choral Festival.

It was a thoroughly exhausting day, but it was also great fun. We entered in 3 categories, plus the National Choir of the Year competition. Each of these involved performing 2 different pieces in front of an audience (mostly, but not only, of members of other choirs) and two (or three) adjudicators, listening to the other choirs in the same category, and then listening to the adjudicators' comments on each performance and the announcement of the winners. I had never been at a choral competition so it was all new to me, and I found that getting a critique from a very knowledgeable and experienced musician is extremely interesting and useful.

The big news -- we actually won in 2 of the categories we entered for! The first was for Sacred Music, and the second for Mixed Voice Choirs, and both had some rather good choirs taking part. Winning the second was the biggest coup, since among the other participants was New Dublin Voices, which has been reaping prizes all over the place lately and is full of professionally-trained musicians (the competition is for amateur choirs, so most choir members have no special musical training beyond what they get in the choir).

( Photos of the cups behind the cut )

...I got home around 10 pm, had some quick food and promptly fell asleep on the sofa. Woke at 3 am and went to bed. Got up around 8:30 this morning, but I've been wrecked all day -- yesterday was a very intense day...

Choir practice has become increasingly frustrating. This is not a good thing.

It has been the case for a while now, but last week I was in tears at the end of the practice, and tonight I had to stop singing for a while during rehearsal for the same reason.

I am also getting more and more pissed off with the new director, but frankly I cannot say if he is in any way at fault, or if he is simply ending up as a lightning rod for my frustration. It is true that things started getting frustrating when he came in -- and I expected them to get better as we got used to each other, which has not happened at least for me; on the other hand, I haven't noticed the same reaction from other choir members, so I'm keeping this in doubt for the moment.

Still. The music we're doing at the moment is pretty much all renaissance, which is both what I like and what I generally find most congenial to sing; and yet every rehearsal is continuous frustration.