I have just received a letter from WNO about their 2009 programme. If we hold the Anglesey Meeting on Saturday, March 21st we could go to see their production of The Elixir of Love, Donizetti, at Venue Cymru, a very good theatre in Llandudno after our forum event. There is the option of attending a pre-performance talk before it at 6.15 too but we might be rather pressed for time if we attend that. We would need to eat at some point. I suggest that we take a coach from Benllech to the opera and back. It saves us losing people en route.

There is a performance of The Marriage of Figaro on Friday , March 20th too and I will be going to that.

Also we will go to Plas Newydd on the Sunday if anyone wants to stay on. This year's informal music making session in the music room there was wonderful. I will book our accompanist for that too and then we can have fun playing and singing just what we choose.

Would March 21st 2009 be a good date for Forumites?

Who knows Petra?? But I'll say yes. It sounds lovely. I'll write it down now.
Bev.

I think I have a window that weekend



Barring unforeseen circumstances, I'll say yes please to the concert on the Saturday and to Plas Newydd. Maybe not the operas though

*enters quietly so no-one notices*

That weekend should be fine. Not sure if I'll be around on the Sunday though.

Looks good to me Petra

Sounds great to me
I will pencil it into my diary

2009...

Could we have the earliest publication of a forum event calendar ever?...

Go on, publish away!

is what I say...

but back on topic...

Plans are well in hand for the next Anglesey event. It will be held on the weekend of March 21/22 2009. On Friday 20th I will be heading off to the opera to see Marriage of Figaro in Llandudno. If anyone would like to join me please let me know in good time so that we can get tickets booked. This is always a popular one and tickets tend to go well in advance.

On Saturday 21st we will be meeting in St. Andrew's Church, Benllech for an informal concert and will have a buffet of local produce as we had last year. Our expert accompanist has agreed to offer his services once more. There will be a couple of new items this time, including an ensemple of large recorders and something with the puppet theatre!!!Then we will be off to the opera again. The best seats are in the front of the dress circle so I will need to make a block booking for these quite soon. I am going to ask the theatre to hold a block of tickets for me and pay for them later when numbers are confirmed.
Afterwards we willl be hungry so there will be an Indian takeaway ready for when we come back and opera mites can come to the Rattery for an post opera supper. This will be followed by a midnight ride on Eddie and Dobbin

There are several eating places around Benllech for those who do not attend the opera. I will add details of some possible ones later.

On Sunday there is going to be a recital given by Katyjay and Arwel in a very beautiful church in Moelfre, a village about two miles from Benllech. This is a church with a long and interesting history and has lovely acoustics. Do mark that into your diaries too. It is booked to take place at 2.00pm to fit in with the church services.

Can't wait!

Well done petrat - looking forward to it...

Going to drop you a quick PM

I have to re-arrange my sock drawer that weekend so i can't come!

Count me in for the Saturday - may try to persuade kiddles to come this time. They've both got exams before the end of this month - g5 bassoon and g6 harp.

I'd love to come to the opera on Fri night - but credit crunch is probably gonna kill that one, unless the seats aren't too expensive. I was very lucky a few years ago to win 2 tickets to Don Giovanni on the BBc Wales website, and that was brill! Mozart rules!!!

Yes, I will come, and I'm going to tell everyone NOW, so they can't drop things on me at the last minute and stop me from coming.
I can't wait. It's me-time, and I deserve it. I couldn't do the November Manchester play day, or the Somerset one, so I WILL DO ANGLESEY. OK, heard that everyone??
Good.
Bev.

YES, LOUD & CLEAR! Aren't we going to have fun playing with Petrat's puppets

If the girls let you get anywhere near them

We could have a puppet fight!

We've got several puppets of our own. They are big enough ot see off any tiddlers from the puppet theatre

The gauntlet is thrown then! Let the Battle of the Roses commence!

You're only saying that because you haven't met Charlie, Marvin and Samantha the girl with attitude




You got it right

Any further news petrat?

There will be later this evening. Wqtch this space.

The plans are well in hand for this and are much the same as I thought when I posted the above.
The opera tickets will cost us £18.00 each and the performance will begin at 7.15pm. We will need to be in our seats around fifteen minutes before to nose through the programme and to wave at friends in the orchestra. We will not be attending the pre-opera talk as we will be too pushed for time,

Supper at the Rattery will be ready and waiting for the opera-mites after the performance and will be a pot luck Petrat speciality. We will take cars rather than a minibus to keep our costs down unless I can get a great deal on one as I managed last year.

The puppet show item will be a short opera scene. It is so much easier to stage a puppet show rather than a real life one so that is the plan. There will be several singers there so I will find something suitable, easy and with a chorus for us all to join in. We will need a couple of puppeteers and I can think of at least two young ladies who might be up for that task.

If you are planning to come to the opera on the saturday please let me know asap. I will need to make a booking very soon. You will not need to send a payment yet and I can always pass on unwanted ones to choir members etc if I overbook.

The form will be out in a day or so. The cost will be £10 to each performer and we will have our tame accompanist as usual to save on rehearsal time.

I shall nag the good people at the EMS as my big recorder has not arrived yet but the consort of larger recorders will be going ahead, possibly with a double chorus from Elijah! I have two bases to spare, although I think that Batty had earmarked one of them.

Form to follow asap. I have booked fine weather too.

If anyone would like to come to the opera on the friday before let me know as I shall almost certainly be going if I can alter some lessons.

That all sounds like great fun! I will be up to my ears in small children (both metaphorically and literally) on the Saturday and celebrating my mum's birthday on the Sunday so can't attend.

Hope it goes swimmingly!

Petrat, I will have at least one bass recorder to spare too...like you depending on whether a certain drainpipe I have in mind is available by then....

Don't think I'll be able to make that I'm afraid, sorry petrat/katyjay. Unfortunately, I have to work on the Monday morning (that is, leave the house at 6:30am ), so I'll need to be home at a reasonable time. Many apologies.



I'll try anything once



Will do.



I'll have to think of what to play! Tempted to do recorder - as I sang last time round (one of petrat's specialities), I think it might be nice to pick another of petrat's specialities!



I have earmarked one - thanks petrat!

We also have a spare Bass but it's only a plastic one, plays well though.

I need to book the accommodation yikes!!

Hi Petrat, sorry but I can't make your Anglesey concert after all. I have a commitment here on the Friday, a bowls final (possibly two) on the Sunday and my grade 7 piano exam on the Monday - your a bit too far for a day trip! Hope the event goes really well.

Never mind Oldnotes. There will be plenty more. We weren't going to inflict Maddie, Liddy and Great May on you either! By the way, how do you know the date ofyour exam so far ahead? Is it a special visit?

Exam dates; the ABRSM theory date is set for everyone for 5th March and the G7 piano is London College and my teacher gave me the date. The exams for York area are held in her studio as she is the regional representative, and I believe she gets a block of 2 or 3 days to fit everyone in.

I've just seen your signature petrat. Not too worried about 'sunny' , just a tad warmer than it is now will do, I'm not fussy!

Not sure what to play as a solo for this. Tempted to do something recordery...

It is sunny here now! Freezing , but sunny!

A recorder piece would be lovely. I am hoping to play one on my new baby then too. We will have a choice of harpsichords, harp, lute, classical giutar etc too as my faithful Yammy will be there too. Do you play the Baston D major concertino? (one of my favourites.)

Never tried (my baroque knowledge is patchy, being really a clari player!). How easy/hard is it?

The slow movement is very easy indeed but lovely. The first is OK if you like arpeggios and it is already decorated so there is little to add apart from the odd trill. James Hook sonatas are good too and more classical so they might suit a clari player better. The little G major soprano one is pretty and if you do that I'll play the keyboerd part for you as I love it. There are two G major ones that I know. The better is the one that begins;

G.......G..G.. A..A..D..............


With an Alberti Bass under it.

The not so nice one starts with a trilled B.


I wist that this forum had a stave writing facility for adding music quotes.

Hello Everyone


The application form is now available here


Cheers


Katyjay

Thanks katyjay/petrat - will fill out/send off asap. There may be one or two gaps, but I'll let you know of those as soon as I can.

Will I need to send any accompaniments to you in advance petrat?

Yes please. I will pass them on to Arwel about ten days before the event.

Thanks - will get it sent to you as soon as I've chosen something to play.

Form duly printed!

How long have we got for the slot Petrat? And next question - however long it is, can we split it into two slots as long as it doesn't exceed the total?

I think that four minutes would be fair but if you want to do more add it to the form and I'll see what can be fitted into the afternoon.

Puppet opera! (and real opera too)

Now I wish I could go to this Oh well, have fun people and look forward to seeing photos...

I've printed the form out and will get it off to you early next week, Petrat


I'm looking forward to the puppet opera too


Pity you can't come to Anglesey, Panthera, perhaps another time - Wales would be an ideal location for you to play

I've now completed my form and it's in a stamped and sealed envelope ready to post, Petrat



















I just need to first unseal the envelope and put the cheque inside

You may well win the "I got my form in first" award Lavvy.

In (at least) two minds about what to play.
If I want to use a backing CD will there be a machine to play it on?
Will send my form off soon. What's the latest date for decisions petrat?

I can sort out a machine to play CDs. It really doesn't matter too much as to when you let me know what you want to play as it will be a private event in church. As long as the forms are in by the right date that will be fine.
PS Arwel is a great jazz pianist if you want to play something up beat.

I'm sorely tempted to play Begin the Beguine again, which was the first concert piece I ever played - at your Chester concert exactly two years ago, if you remember Petrat I didn't realise it at the time but it was above my level - it just happened to be one of my favourite pieces and I'd wanted to play it since first taking up the clarinet. I'm tempted to see what sort of job I would make of playing it again two years down the line In fact it might become one of those pieces which I roll out every couple of years to mark my progress (hopefully!)

But I'll see what my teacher says