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SEPTEMBER 2007
WELCOME BACK!
And if you are new – a warm welcome to you.  Please don’t give up after one or two rehearsals as you will soon catch up and find your voice. An extra special welcome to our new musical director Miguel Esteban. We are very lucky to have him and as he already took some rehearsals last year we all know what he can do - and we approve!

COMMITTEE TALK

The committee met last week and here is a summary of what was talked about:
  • The College salaries for tutors are notoriously low and regardless of the person’s experience or qualifications the hourly pay is the same.  The committee made a decision to subsidise Miguel’s pay to reflect his talent and to be able to have a musical director who will be able to support the choir’s ambitions for continued development.  No doubt some of us would be happy to come just for a sing-along, but if we aim to continue the high standard of our concerts, achieved over the years under the direction of Sue, Rachel and Miriam, we need to have the appropriate professional support.
  • The hours per week and weeks per term were under discussion and the committee will seek the members’ views on this before any decisions are made.
  • Various fundraising ideas, for the choir as well as a local charity, were discussed, such as a quiznight and a carol sing-along.  A karaoke evening has also been suggested.  Please let us know if you have any other ideas or suggestions about a suitable charity to support.
  • It was decided to discontinue the voluntary £1/week contribution.  Drinks and biscuits will be available at breaktime for 50p.
Look out for the concert and rehearsal timetables which will be published soon.

A whole new publicity drive has been launched and in the first instance some promotional leaflets will be distributed to libraries.  They will be available shortly for choir members to take along to suitable venues, such as churches and schools.

The Citizen magazine have promised to run a feature on the choir in their December issue and a reporter will be along to a rehearsal quite soon.

To increase our membership we are in the process of writing to members who have left the choir in the last couple of years to invite them to re-join
A huge thank you to Roger and Daphne for hosting the end of Summer barbecue and providing a glorious weather to the bargain!