4 Part vocal and 4 part instrumental.
Songs take some time to 'bed in' and this being our third week since starting ROW ON we were ready to learn the harmonies. The text comes from the diary of a 19th century whaling ship captain and the song, a beautiful, low melody with 3 very close harmonies gives the effect of strength and togetherness. Our high tenor led the low altos in a lovely part, the basses were led by a soprano singing low, two sopranos took the alto part and the other voices, alto and soprano, held the tune.
Now that's what I call adaptability! A good example of the strength of the group being greater than the sum of its parts, And what an enjoyable sing.
Similarly with Wolfgang's Canon, everyone played it well today and when we split into 4 parts there was that wonderful feeling that we could go on forever. After that there is always the opportunity to be creative with the music, to find ways of changing the timbre, increasing the tension, building up to a climax, before ending on a high, or beginning a gradual fade before the finish.
That's our challenge for next week - to decide on how to complete the piece.
