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We are in the middle of a great summer of sport. While my best sporting days are over, it is interesting to learn more about the practise and training of elite athletes and what it takes to perform well. I always feel there is much to be gained from other walks of life and hearing about focusing attention on getting the best starts (avoiding false starts), finishing well, transitions (as in baton changes) and controlling nerves that strike a chord with ensemble playing. It’s often small tweaks that can make a big difference.

The sporting world has realised the importance of opening up on what it takes to deliver dazzling performances which the musical world is also waking up too. Good musical performances don’t just happen but are built on hours of practise and rehearsal and should be shared more. Some guitarists have been posting content about their daily routines for a while now (175) Ana Vidovic’s Daily Routine With The Classical Guitar – YouTube which are a great resource to learn from.

Three months ago, Alexandra Whittingham posted a video about looking over a new piece that she was scheduled to perform on stage in a matter of weeks (Attempting to learn a new piece in 20 minutes (youtube.com)). While this might seem a bit gimmicky, she presents an all too human example of something we all go through and all credit to her for sharing the angst of working under time pressure. Over the past year Alexandra has started posting duets with other guitarists including Stephanie Jones Helping Hands by Sérgio Assad | Whittingham-Jones Duo (youtube.com). How good would it be to start seeing videos of duos or ensemble practice sessions to share insights into the process.

Classical guitars come in a range of sizes. At the larger end is the bass guitar. As an ensemble, all the music we’ve played to date has only required the occasional dropped D on the sixth string. Looking for new pieces to expand our repertoire we came across a 4 part score for the ‘Pink Panther theme’ which included a score for bass guitar. Our Musical Director happened to have one and, always up for a challenge I volunteered to give it a go.

So, what’s it been like to play? Like wrestling with a bear, very physically demanding and with lots of deep growling. Think humpbacked whale song! You actually feel the vibrations of the guitar body the lower you go.

Let’s start with the strings. All six are wire wound and are more akin to piano strings so forget about gliding smoothly up the strings so different solutions are needed. The 6th string is twice the thickness (2mm vs 1mm) of that of a standard guitar. The thicker strings need a lot more pressure when pushing and holding down. They are also very unforgiving on the buzzing front so accurate finger placement is needed on the back edge of the fret to get a clean note.

The string length from nut to bridge is 8cm longer than my standard guitar so the lower frets are slightly longer and the fret board meets the guitar body at fret 13 rather than 12 so a whole lot of adjustments needed where longer fingers are a definite advantage.

The sound is ‘Simply Awesome’. The additional resonance the lower octave brings with it warmth and changes the whole soundscape and dynamic of the ensemble. As it’s name implies, it’s a base so can offer an anchor for the other parts.

All in all, the bass guitar is big all round and demands respect and practise time to get the best out of it. It’s a good way to get a physical workout and great fun. Can’t wait for some audience feedback when we play the piece in concert.

So, what other pieces might it be useful for? While I’m writing this ‘Bare Necessities’ from the ‘Jungle Book’ comes to mind. Think I’ll nickname it Baloo…!

What a treat to be playing to a packed village hall in Darsham again and help with fund raising. We performed for just over an hour and were more than ready to join the audience for light refreshments at the end. Sakura drew a lot of comments for it’s Japanese sound. The concerto in D major by Telemann with the contrast between the four movements also proved popular. We all enjoy playing this piece with the main themes in each of the two allegros moving around the stage between the four parts. Bravo to Maria and Mike for their two duets!

Thanks to the village hall committee for the invite and refreshments and Dave Butcher for the banners.

The general levels of uncertainty associated with social gatherings and audiences is such that we are still to schedule our next concert. To help us continue to develop our ensemble playing we are currently using our rehearsal time as recording sessions focusing on fine tuning of new repertoire. While not a substitute for playing to a live audience it does call for a different level of concentration and consistency. Hopefully some of these will be good enough to add to our recordings page so watch this space!

Mike

We’re four weeks into being able to meet up again after the easing of lockdown restrictions and it’s great to back playing together. Being able to sit together in a semicircle and play as an ensemble is such a simple thing and is simply joyous. Listening is sharper somehow as we work on timing and balanced tone and volume and long may it last. We’re busy working up four new works to add to our repertoire as well as checking on older pieces.

We are now rehearsing in Bressingham Village Hall as Roydon Church is closed to us at the moment due to Covid measures.

Music for a Summers Evening: St. Martin’s Church, Thompson

With the applause of a very appreciative audience for our performance of our last piece Tico Tico ringing in our ears, we were able to take a well earned bow for a job well done. Delivering a concert performance always raises our playing and tonight was no exception with all the elements of our rehearsals coming together. The Suite Antique (H. Fackler) and the Concerto in A major (GP Telemann) were particular highlights for us and appreciative comments from the audience on other pieces we performed.

Unusually for us, this was a mixed concert where we shared the stage with Karen Allen and A Cappella Quartet who were both fantastic and added significantly to our enjoyment of the occasion. The audience of over 100 who braved a somewhat rainy and blustery evening to help raise funds for restoration of the church were very welcoming and enjoyed the whole event.

Our thanks to all the organisers for making this a night to remember.

Mike

Our penultimate rehearsal prior to the Thompson Heritage Concert on 27th July at 07:30 pm St Martins Church, saw Rod Faulkner our musical director putting us through a very demanding session, where the finer technical points to the Fackler (Suite Antique) Teleman and California Dreaming were looked at in detail. I feel sure that all of the hard work will pay off.

Phil

In preparation for our upcoming concert on 27^th July in Thompson Church (see events page), we met for one of our occasional study days to work on our ensemble playing. These are enjoyable and rewarding days where we work through our programme focusing in detail on dynamics, balance and performance. We know the pieces but try to listen with fresh ears for ways to add clarity to the individual parts and narrative of each work. In the DGE this is a very democratic and dynamic process and great fun with everyone pitching in ideas and is surely the essence of good ensemble playing. Not all the ideas work but the process of trial and discovery is hugely rewarding and we all left buzzing with what we achieved. Home now to practice what we’ve worked on for the concert. Roll on the next study day! 

Mike