Observations of Choir Members :

Annual Workshop

The Annual Workshop is a day of intense practice held about a month before the summer concert.
It is an away event organised for a Saturday and provides an opportunity for winding-up the day with a social occasion. The location for the Workshop, which is not fixed, is a country hotel large enough to accommodate up to seventy choir members. During the last four years the Workshop has been held in Monaghan and Cavan before going to Tullamore for the last two years in succession.

Colin Block himself takes charge of the practice sessions and is ably assisted by Celine Kelly our accompanist. Practice starts at 11 a.m. Allowing for travel time, a cup of tea or coffee on arrival and hotel check-in - this represents a very early morning rising for participants.

A lunch break of one and a half hours is well earned before returning for the afternoon practice session. By 4.30 p.m. voice boxes are getting weary and the session is brought to a conclusion.
This is when the recreation facilities of the hotel and town can be explored. In the Bridge Hotel in Tullamore the magnificent indoor and outdoor heated swimming pools were a great attraction not to mention the gym, steam room and sauna.

Dinner brings everyone together again, including some spouses and partners brave enough to mix with the single minded choristers. With such an assembly of musical and other talents all the ingredients are present for a spontaneous party. A deep debt of gratitude is particularly due to Declan Deveraux and Brian Ingoldsby for their tireless playing of piano and guitar as members of the choir do their party pieces resulting from some diplomacy by the M.C. Chris McMahon.

For some the 2001 party did not end until 4 a.m. but I'm glad to say I was not there to verify the closing time!
There is no doubt that the Workshop makes a substantial contribution to the choir's performance providing as it does the opportunity to work on tone, pitch and the getting of difficult entry notes.
The good attendance at the Workshops is gratifying and it is important that the level of support continues if we are to maintain our standard of performance in concert.

Gerry Reynolds.

When we went down...

 There must be something about group outings that bring out the child in us. Whether it is our collective memory of school trips long ago or not, but there we were, four grown adults with arms linked and laughing giddily, skipping and dancing along a country road. But then this was no ordinary country road. This is the winding ribbon of road that wraps around the harbour and headland of magical Mullaghmore.

I should explain that early the previous morning about sixty sleepy members of the Dublin County Choir had set out for Sligo from Connolly Station. We quickly passed through the suburbs of Drumcondra and Cabra. The train gathered speed and we clickity-clacked on through the plains of Meath and Westmeath. As we reached Longford, Carmel Whelan, (God bless her!) produced about a hundred sandwiches and a gallon of tea, and a tablecloth - no less - she's an awful woman, but what would we do without her? Then somebody, I think it was Winnie, pulled out a pack of playing cards and between "Rummy" and a hilarious and hectic hand-slapping game of "Snap" sure, we were in Sligo in no time at all. A short spin around the town and a quick rehearsal in the school hall, then off with us out that bumpy lumpy road to Mullaghmore. We were just in time to catch a glorious sunset with the harbour and boats silhouetted against a blazing sky.

I think our concert in Sligo that night went very well. We sang excerps from Carmina Burana, The Anvil Chorus, The Grand chorus from Aida, The Biscuit Girl and highlights from Porgy and Bess…..but my memory of it is a bit dim. After all, this was back in 1989, and it's more than a little while ago. But strangely, I can quite clearly remember our own `private' concert back in the hotel later that evening. This was my first trip with the choir and it was wonderful listening to all the individual talents in the DCC - all show stoppers! Who could ever forget Noel Whelan's comical Dublin Cinderella and Sidney Egan's quartet `Libiamo' from `La Traviata'. With a borrowed handkerchief he performed all four parts with gusto. We loved his soprano line! - `Bravo' Sid! Then Peer O' Shea strummed away on his guitar and we sang every song we ever knew - just llike they say in the song "Me and Bobby McGee"!

After such a hectic day and even more hectic night, Sunday morning found a lot of choir members in need of some good fresh air. And so it came to pass that four silly school girls, Claire O'Neill, Oonagh Monaghan, Jean Connolly and myself, found ourselves cavourting under a clear blue sky looking out over shimmering Sligo Bay and completely intoxicated by that clear fresh air. As we tripped along, naturally the `Biscuit Girl' was foremost in our minds as we had been rehearsing it for months. Somehow the words `when we went down to Maidenhead' got quickly changed to `when we went down to Mullaghmore' and of course a few more lines were added here and there to capture the mood and flavour of the weekend just for fun. As we journeyed back to Dublin that evening Jean asked, and then insisted, that I write down these new verses and with the help of Grace Harrison a final draft was made. The next day was Monday, choir night, and somehow Grace managed to type it up and, unknown to me, mad copies for everyone in the choir. It was a surprise for me and, I'm sure for Colin, that evening ho hear all the choir singing ` When we went down to Mullaghmore'. I wonder would the Guinness Book of Records consider this the fastes production of a choral piece ever? Probably not, but that weekend trip to Mullaghmore is certainly in my book of records! 

Angela O'Duffy.

A Requiem for Rehearsals
(Air: Borrowed from "It's Six Miles from Bangor to Donaghdee".)

Oh! Colin would you ever get off your block

We've rehearsed all night and it's past ten o'clock 

Poor Mozart must be dead from listenin' to his Requiem

If we sing another "Kyrie" I'm going to scream! 

Dies irae Miserie - that's a virus you get in Dublin C.C 

Now we've done a wonderful Christmas Show

And two full houses have helped our Cash Flow

But when we've finished with Mozart and Rutter

You can bet our finances will be back in the gutter! 

Dies irae miserie - we should apply for a grant from the European E.C.

Now Colin our conductor is quite supreme

And he'll get the best out of any Requiem

But lately he's getting a little "poco agitato"

When half the choir forget its "tutti marcato"

Dies irae Miserie - You'll have to learn latin in the Dublin C.C. 

`Cos it's sometimes Crescendo and it's sometimes Diminuendo

 and sometimes it drives you right round the bendo!

To make sense of this Classical complexity

Will take all of John's musical Dexterity!

Dies irae miserie - What a "opus profondis" for the Dublin C.C. 

Oh! Those Sopranos are whispering, half the Tenors are missing

 The Altos are chattering and the Basses won't listen!

Poor Mary B. has gone hoarse from "shush"….ing,

 And Colin's about to start roaring and cussing

Dies irae Miserie - Oh! I think it's time we went for our tea!

Ah! But we're off to Cavan and we'll put things straight,

And old Mozart and Rutter will sound just great

And when we sing in that Concert Hall

The Dublin County Choir will be acclaimed by all!

Dies irae Miserie - we'll party all night in the Dublin C.C.

Angela O'Duffy

Dublin County Choir and Chorgemainschaft Wolfraftshausen

We performed with the Chorgemainschaft Wolfratshausen in Christ Church Cathedral on Good Friday 1990. We sang the Beethoven Mass in C conducted by Erich Rupprecht.

On 21st April 1992 we sang the Verdi Requiem with the German choir in Wolfratshausen conducted by Colin Block.

We were hosted by the members of the choir and shown fantastic hospitality. We were treated to tours of their beautiful country, visiting Oberammergau, The Palace of Neuschwansteir, Ettal Monastery (in which we sang) and Muchen City.

From the 2nd to 9th April 1994 we hosted a return visit of the German Senior and Junior choirs. They were welcomed to Ireland at a reception in St Killian's German School by Ms Eithne Fitzgerald TD, Minister of State Dept., of the Taoíseach. On Wednesday 6th April the lord Mayor Tomás McGiolla held a reception for both choirs in the Mansion House and the following evening we jointly performed Carmina Burana conducted by Erich in the Nation Concert Hall. Distinguished guests included the German ambassador and party, Mary Banotti M.E.P., Niall Andrews M.E.P. and a representative of the Lord Mayor. The concert was a great success. 
During their stay we had an Irish night, trips to Newgrange, Viking Dublin and Dublin Castle.

On Friday we gave a farewell party at which we presented Erich with a limited edition of the Book of Kells. The collaboration between the two choirs has always been considered as one of our greatest achievements and built up lasting friendships. 

Mary and Roy Byrne.

Musical Musings :

The Purpose of Music:
The function of music is to release us from the tyranny of conscious thought.
(Thomas Beecham 1879-1961).

Einstein said that `the most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious'. 
Then why do so many of us try to explain the beauty of music, thus apparently depriving it of its mystery? (Leonard Bernstein 1918 -90).

So long as the human spirit thrives on this planet, music in some living form will accompany and sustain it and give it expressive meaning. (Aaron Copeland 1900-90)

Melody:
Composers should write tunes the chauffeurs and errand boys can whistle.(Thomas Beecham).

A melody is not merely something you can hum. (Aaron Copeland)

Three things belong to composing, first of all the melody; then again melody; then finally, for the third time, melody. (Saloman Jadassohn 1831-1902).

The Effects of Music: 
To some people music is like food; to others like medicine; to others like a fan.
(The Arabian Nights Entertainments. C. 1450)

When music and courtesy are better understood, there will be no war. 
(Confucious 551-478 BC)

Music hath charms to soothe a savage breast
To soften rocks, or bend a knotted oak. (William Congreve 1670-1729). 

Mary Byrne.

Prague Trip

A large group from the Dublin County Choir raised the profile in the Czech Republic over the St. Patrick's week-end, 2001. Singing a Mass in an O'Riada setting with "Hail Glorious St. Patrick" while Mozart's "Ave Verum" and Faure's "Cantique de Jean Racine" were also sung. The Irish Ambassador, Michael Collins attended the service and congratulated the choir afterwards.

Hanna was our engaging guide on a walking tour of part of Prague, ---- Hradcany, where we visited the Gothic Cathedral of St. Vitus and adjacent Royal Castle grounds. Nearer to St. Charles Bridge we visited the Carmelite Church where the Child of Prague is housed and a kindly priest gave members commemorative pictures. 

Hanna also brought us to Vysehrad where we paid homage to Dvorak at his tomb in the cemetery, readily identifiable by the bronze bust of the composer by Rodin. Smetana is also buried there and an obelisk marks his grave. 
Prague is a city of music, and concerts were being advertised at every turn. Mozart, Vivaldi, Smetana and Dvorak were being performed at venues throughout the city.
We tested the music loving public, by busking at the tram stop in Wenceslas Square.

 "Danny Boy" was well received, and at a request for "Whiskey in the Jar" we obliged. As a fund raising notion, using an upside umbrella proved a bit optimistic!!
A highlight was a visit to the State Opera. A beautiful building, it was a treat for the eye with a highly ornate auditorium, glittering chandeliers, gilt and mirrors. We had magnificent seats and enjoyed a memorable performance of "Carmen".
Many thanks to Claire, Siobhan, Berna and Brian.

Three Rock

The View From the Mountain

I got my first bird's-eye view of the future home territory of the Dublin County Choir early in June 1940. I had battled my way up the only accessible side of the Three Rock Mountain which was then very intruder-unfriendly indeed. Being a recent blow-in from low-lying Clontarf, it was quite an adventure. Standing on top of the highest rock it felt like being on top of the world. (More than 50 years later I would be singing the Carpenters `Top of the World' at the foot-hills of these same mountains!) For a low-lander like myself the view was breath-taking. In those pollution-free you could see as far as the Mourne Mountains on the northern horizon and the Welsh peaks to the east. Below urban Dublin in those days was contained between the two landmarks of Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the east and the Wellington Monument on the west.

During the war (1939-1945), and indeed for many decades afterwards, the view you got while descending from `Three Rock' was a landscape of unspoilt farmlands and the occasional country house. But all that was to change when the massive housing developments of the 1960's and 1970's got under way, and almost imperceptibly reached the foothills. Those included the suburbs of Dundrum, Ballinteer, Rathfarnham etc, which were soon to become the home territory of the Dublin County Choir.

But if the `Three Rock' had its sights, it also had its sounds: - the running streams, the lark-in-residence and the wind, always the wind. There was however one remarkable exception. One sultry summers', as I was standing on top of the mountain I noticed that a thick blanket of cloud hung motionless over the mountain. There wasn't even the slightest breath of wind and the silence was intense. Then, wafting up from, it seemed, the base of the mountain came the voice (as clear and as warm as only `Bing' could make it) singing "Sometimes I wonder why I dream the whole night through". Yes, it was Hoagy Carmichaels' "Stardust" (c.1929, the knowledgeable nephew tells me).

Wasn't it remarkable though what a barrier there was in those days between `art' music and other music? That has, of course been largely over-come in the meantime. And this in no small measure, I would claim, as a result of the activities of our choir. What with items such as "in the Mood" and Brian's arrangement of Eleanor "Rigby" and the later 60's and 70's concerts, we have been making progress, albeit in a deliberately backward direction!
Maybe one of these days we will take a few more steps backwards - this time into the 30's and 40's and perhaps even as far back as the Hoagy Carmichael era. I suppose if we wanted to be accurate we would have to call such a concert the "Day-Before-Yesterday Once More. 

Albert D.

Voices of the World

In April 1996 some members of the Dublin County Choir took part in the "Voices of the World" concert held in Cape Town, South Africa. Our flight took us through Amsterdam Airport and then onto Cape Town where we met with larger groups from the UK and Europe. On arrival the world famous champion of the underprivileged Africans, Donald Woods, welcomed us.

Our party included tenor Ronan Tynan, soprano Suzanne Murphy and musical director Gearoid Grant. As one can imagine the trip was full of exciting experiences between rehearsals and performances, but a few occasions stood out for special mention.

One was a tour of Cape Town's many townships organized by now retired member Sidney Egan, through contacts with an Irish priest and resident in the township of Khayelitsha. We were taken through the township in a small converted van, which we shared with some African women, friends of Fr. Des Curran who took us into their squalid homes. During the trip we met with an Irish order of nuns who ran a school where we were introduced to the teachers and children who entertained us with lovely singing, we gave a rendering of "Dublin's Fair City" and the children were quick to pick up the chorus. Fr. Des then took us to a hospital for Aids victims run by the Irish Missionary Sisters of mercy and encouraged us to mingle with the patients, reassuring us that there was no danger.

Another occasion worth mentioning is the performance in the Newlands Park stadium, this was the venue for the main gala event. There were tribal choirs from all over Africa in their magnificent robes and colourful dress. Also present was Bishop Desmond Tutu. Intermingled with these choirs were white Afrikaan school choirs and of course the European contingent, a totally spectacular occasion.

A wonderful experience - never forgotten, particularly the choirs' performance of the Battle Hymn of the Republic (with Ronan Tynan as soloist) and the ubiquitous Hallelujah Chorus.

Sean Dalton.

The Young Veteran

If I told you that I took Brandy and Whiskey along to my audition would you believe me?

It was a cold February night in 1980 and I was a teenager who had recently responded to a recruitment poster which boasted, "you don't have to read music to join the Dublin County Choir". As one who had always yearned to sing with a large choir, how could I resist?

The audition took place at Colin's house; I was nervous and in such a tremendous hurry to leave that a I sang complete with headgear and raincoat! Despite this, an extensive and enjoyable musical adventure was about to begin for me.

We have performed Carl Orff's exhilarating `Carmina Burana' no less than 7 times, from our debut concert in TCD'S Examination Hall in March 1981 and in an arrangement for two pianos and percussion, to 5 orchestral performances over the years at the National Concert Hall, through to Colin Block's ingenious synthesized version at the Royal Hospital Kilmainham in 1989.

I remember the anticipation and preparation for our NCH debut of Beethoven, Mass in C in November '82. This marked the 1st performance of a work commissioned by the Choir, namely John Kinsella's, "Jubilate Deo"; both pieces received good critical reviews.

Our association with our wonderful chorus master, John Dexter started back in 1983 when we collaborated with his choir in a memorable and moving performance of Benjamin Britten's "St. Nicholas" at St. Patrick's Cathedral.

"Versatility" is, in my opinion the word which best describes the Dublin County Choir. We have performed, locally, nationally and internationally; on TV, Radio and CD. The Choir's musical achievements range from our annual Christmas concerts with Niamh Murray and the Billie Barry Children to many standard choral works including a semi-staged version of Purcell's "Dido and Aeneas" through to more recent "pop" ventures at the NCH with Red Hurley, Kathy Nugent and Peter Corry. 

There are few hobbies which allow the amateur to perform with the professional and enjoy the privilege of musical guidance by such talented musicians as our Musical Director, Colin Block and our Chous Master, John Dexter.

I could not have foreseen, as I left my audition that I would still be singing with the Choir 21 years later, but I breathed a sigh of relief that I had passed and that my two dogs, Brandy and Whiskey were still waiting for me by the lamppost where I had left them!

Here's to another 21 years.
Michele Nolan (alto). 

Memories

Dublin County Choir was in existence 4 months when I joined in January 1977. I was very nervous when Eamonn Kealy auditioned me. I joined the soprano line, Marge joined at the same time and we became great friends. For 24 years we have carried the flag without interruption.

We had many happy times with Eamonn, especially when we won the Arklow Musical Festival in 1979 with our rendering of "Oh the Days of the Kerry dances" and "The Battle Hymn of the Republic". We had to attend the prize giving that night and Eamonn, God Bless him, was four sheets to the wind when he conducted us in our party piece. The craic was mighty; we had already won the Finglas Music Festival on the Friday. 
Colin joined us in 1979 and the choir went on to greater achievements; in fact we won the Father Matthew Feis in 1980. We went to the Cork Choral Festival in 1982, we were up against world-class choirs, still it was great to perform. What I remember most about that weekend was pushing Colin Block around the harbour at Kinsale in a wheelbarrow at 5.00 am on Sunday morning singing "Oh What a Beautiful Morning".
In 1983 we won the Transvaal Shield in the Isle of Man after crossing in a 10-force gale which nearly drowned us all. 
I could go on and on, 24 years later I think my high was "Elijah" in 2000 - 23 Choruses and By God we knew every one of them word perfectly.
My thanks to Eamonn, Colin, John and all the members for some great music.

Le Grá,
Wyn Ryan.

The Early Days
(Personal Impressions by Liam Flynn)

Sopranos and Altos in our choir have a dual function: not only do they sing, they also have to act as recruiting agents for Tenors and Basses. The ladies were unusually busy in 1980-81 when a campaign was under-way to build up the membership of the newly-formed choir. Joan Berry, a very enthusiastic Alto, took her recruiting task very seriously and devoted much time and effort trying to cajole her husband John and myself to join. When she showed me the repertoire, two things about the music struck me: the very liberal approach taken by the Conductor, Colin Block, and the fact that most of the composers were still alive( including Carl Orff!). 

I found the eclectic mixture of Seiber, Legrand, Popp, Paul Simon, Bruckner, Victoria and Orff irresistible. Another example of Colin's innovative approach to choral music was the learning tapes which he made for each choir part. These were (and still are) an invaluable aid for amateur singers. So in February 1981 John and I finally decided to join the then 80-strong Dublin County Choir. Incidentally, some years before Colin Block had conducted the R.T.E.S.O for the very first concert my wife and I attended in the ST. Francis Xavier Hall (as I recall, the music on that occasion too had some modern pieces, including Walton's rumbustious `Portsmouth Point').
I knew nothing about `Carmina Burana' except that it was so well-loved that, at any given moment,some choir in some part of the world was performing it! There was also some anecdotal evidence that its bawdy nature had deterred Our Lady's Choral Society from tackling it! Since our debut concert was scheduled for March 14th there was no time to lose. Repeated playing of the tape, however, meant that the music soon became familiar. There were side-effects, though. Since I hadn't yet, at that time, bought ear-phones, all my family (and, indeed, my next door neighbours) were also soon familiar with Orff's music through the medium of Colin Block's sonorous bass!

The choir clearly loved Orff's extraordinary music and every Monday night in St.Tiernan's they responded enthusiastically to the potent blend of long melodic lines and a raw rhythmic directness that `Carmina Burana' is. Colin's objectives were clear from the start: first, to turn us into musicians, and then to mould us into an ensemble of international standing. `Carmina' was to be a major first step in this process. Meanwhile, the day of our debut was fast approaching, and as we gathered for the final rehearsal in The Examination Hall of Trinity College on the afternoon of March 14th, 1981, there was a palpable air of excitement. Due to the popularity of the piece, Carl Orff had, in 1956, written a special arrangement for 2 Pianos and 5 Percussion players to cater for those choirs who couldn't afford the full orchestral version. Naturally, this was the scoring used for our debut, and the presence of so much `hardware' on the stage also contributed to the heightened atmosphere. Although there have been many other `Carminas' since, none, in my opinion, quite recaptured the special magic of that Trinity `Gig'.

Our second concert (Dec. 1981) was in complete contrast. Instead of `Cantiones Profanae', the mood changed to `Sacred Music', involving a varied and daring mixture of Bach, Handel, Victoria, Mozart, Schubert, Brahms, Berlioz, Parry and Britten. The latter two pieces called for solo contributions and, happily, Colin found the required talent in his own choir. Four of the eight voices used are still members - Kathy Doyle, Christy McMahon, Donal O Callaghan and Andy Ryan. The other soloist was Frank Patterson  (alas recently deceased), at that time a noted Oratorio performer. St Michael's Church, Dun Laoghaire not having any `star' dressing-room, Frank, as was his wont, chatted relaxedly with the tenors and basses. I recall clearly how thrilled he was to be singing his two pieces from Berlioz's `Childhood of Christ'. This music impressed him greatly.

In the early days we were a competition choir and a very successful one too. It was no secret, though, that a competition ethos did not accord with Colin's long-term vision. Since, however, there was a significant body of members who favoured the competition route, or a mixture of competition and concert performances, the conductor was prepared to defer to the latter compromise approach. On our first outing (Apr. 1981) to the Arklow Music Festival we won the Adult Mixed Choir Competition. And so it was a very confident body of singers who made the short trip to Navan later that year for another contest. Alas, this turned out to be a debacle. In summing up our performance the adjudicator confined his observations to our sartorial elegance! It must be said, however, that Colin was unable to take us for that performance (that was a wise career move Colin!)
Undeterred, we travelled in April 1982 to the Isle of Man for the prestigious Transvaal Shield competition. This trophy, dating back to 1914, had never been won by a choir from outside the Island. Imagine our delight, then, when we were declared the winners.Another lasting memory from that week-end was the spontaneous rendition by all the competing Irish choirs of the Test Piece `Summertime on Bredon' as we disembarked at Dublin Port.

Sated from competition, all our energies were now devoted to intensive rehearsals for our National Concert Hall debut in Nov. 1982 (in fact, our next and final competition dates were in 1985 and 1986 at the world famous `Cork International' where we performed creditably). The choice of Beethoven's Mass in `C' was particularly appropriate because, as the critic Charles Rosen says, `both of his (Beethoven's) Masses are frankly concert pieces and more effective outside than inside a church'. This was the choir's first experience of a major work in the classical tradition, and their enthusiasm for the new genre was immediately obvious. To mark our debut we commissioned a new work from the Irish composer, John Kinsella - `Jubilate Deo'. This, of course, was our first contemporary piece, and though it held many technical problems, it nevertheless was a truly joyous work. The orchestral music was chosen to show off the lovely string-playing of SERENTATA. The `Adagio for Strings' by the American composer, Barber, I remember in particular, because I had heard it for the first time some months before during the TV relay of Princess Graces's funeral in Monte Carlo. Our NCH debut was a truly exciting occasion in front of an almost-full house, further enhanced when we read the Charles Acton review in `The Irish Times' on the following Monday - `I do not think that I have ever heard a performance of the Beethoven `C' Major Mass that so dearly realizes the composer's intentions, and that so diligently and impressively observed the spirit and the letter of his dynamics.' More important to us, however, was Colin's own assessment of our performance. In the post-mortem during the next rehearsal we were proud and happy when he told us that in two short years he had turned us into MUSICIANS!

Colin's hard work (and ours) were soon rewarded when we got our first `outing' with the RTE Concert Orchestra under Prionsias O Duinn (Apr 1983) in a Gilbert and Sullivan Festival. This was particularly gratifying for Colin, a big G. and S. fan. On that occasion we sang highlights from `Pirates of Penzance' and `Princess Ida'.
Our growing reputation as a flexible and versatile ensemble was acknowledged when visiting American singer/entertainer, Barry Manilow, asked us to accompany him for his R.D.S. Concert (Sept. 1983). While this was a most attractive, prestigious, and, indeed, successful date, it nevertheless had a negative impact on choir morale. The conditions of our engagement stipulated that only a small number of singers (about 20, as I recall) were required for the two performances. This led to an intense debate among the members, following which it was decided, in the interest of group morale, that the choir would never again perform under such conditions. (Some years afterwards this rule forced us to decline an invitation to appear on `The Late Late Show', because `Studio One' couldn't accommodate the full choir)

Since those heady days we've sung in about 100 concerts, but the pleasure and excitement associated with both rehearsal and performance never diminishes. When I joined, I had no idea we would have the privilege of working with great conductors of the calibre of Albert Rosen, Colman Pearse, Rico Sacani and Bryden Thompson (the most charismatic of them all, who, however, gave us a very difficult time in rehearsal, but was absolutely brilliant in performance). Little did I guess that we would sing with many top-quality Irish and foreign soloists (names such as Bernadette Greevy, Cara O Sullivan, Suzanne Murphy, Moira Anderson and James Bowman come immediately to mind).

Regarding repertoire, this choir is, I feel, quite unique in the breadth and variety of the music it offers. We have, on the one hand, a core of material from the Early, Baroque, Classical, Romantic and Contemporary eras, while, on the other, we are equally at home with Opera, the Beatles, Carpenters and Abba! This is due to the musical vision of Colin Block, supported in recent years by the inspirational tuition of John Dexter, our gifted Chorus Master.

Finally, I must express my gratitude to Joan Berry for introducing me to this wonderful choir. I am indebted to you, Joan, for all that Adrenalin! Choral singing, I can testify, does have `a salve for every wound', as a poet once said.

Liam Flynn