Hello all!
The weather is finally heating up and the magpies are out to swoop once again. When I say 'finally' I don't actually like spring but the warmer weather does help with moods, motivation and getting people out of the house to concerts and recitals! As I was reading over my last post to remind myself where I'm up to, I still have my foot on the accelerator. I'm the type of person that needs a project or goal—not to necessarily keep me busy, but because I like working towards something. And once that challenge or goal has been completed, I do enjoy that moment of joy and accomplishment but I'm again on the hunt for the next project.
I suppose you could see this as finding purpose in life. When I seriously started getting into the organ in about 2010-11, I couldn't understand why so many people (musicians included) weren't as excited about it as I was. It was seriously like getting a new toy but never getting sick of it. I experimented with many ways of trying to get people interested in the organ, some were successful and some not. Then something clicked. Instead of trying to convince people that it's such a good thing, I just decided to share my passion—on social media and YouTube, of course. When people see that I'm really enjoying what I do, I believe that is in some way contagious. They too want to be part of that happiness. To share my love of the organ outside of it being an individual experience, I learnt that using it in collaborative ways (accompanying instruments and singers) was encouraging.
So that leads me to the main item on my agenda—my upcoming concert with Tony Lee titled "An enriching experience of organ music and tenor solos". This is a first for me and also for him. It's quite a different experience in terms of repertoire and working with a single individual (as opposed to working with larger choirs or ensembles like Swell Vox). Organisation and rehearsing has been much easier to navigate, plus it gives us both the opportunity to work on the finer details of musical performance. On that note, let's congratulate Tony on completing his Grade 8 vocal exam with distinction! It has been an absolute pleasure working with him on this exam and I'm already on his back about continuing onto the Diplomas.
This is our programme for Bodalla:
Prelude in E-flat major, BWV 552i - Johann Sebastian Bach
Meditation on The Water is Wide, Op. 145 - Vidas Pinkevicius
Ridente la calma - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Loch Lomond - Traditional Scottish
Ave Maria - Franz Schubert
Come away, death - Roger Quilter
Postlude in D minor, WAB 126/1 - Anton Bruckner
Prière à Notre-Dame - Léon Boëllmann
Dear Lord and Father of mankind - Charles Hubert Hastings Parry
My soul shall rejoice - Tim Attride
O Salutaris Hostia - George Frideric Handel
Ave Maria - Anton Bruckner
HYMN - ABIDE WITH ME
Fugue in E-flat major, BWV 552ii - Johann Sebastian Bach
The video will be posted to the channel in due course and perhaps some extra behind-the-scenes footage too.
If you are willing and able, please support our upcoming trip by making a donation on BMC or via one of the links here: https://linktr.ee/james_flores
Finally, just in case you missed some videos since the last update, here are the highlights:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbS9i5UF-7U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5jiM4q2yKQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWc3GJ9sFi4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79I_wAU2hzA
Until the next update,
James Flores