newsletter > Winter 2004 <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> SHEILA, CHRIS AND MEMBERS OF THE KENTWOOD SHOW CHOIR WOULD LIKE TO WISH YOU ALL A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> THE PRESIDENT’S CHRISTMAS MESSAGE Well, here we are almost at the end of 2004 with 40 years of Kentwood behind us. What a remarkable achievement – not just the 40 years, but the way in which the choir has grown and developed over those years and how the standard has consistently risen under the guidance of its one and only musical director, Sheila. 2004 has been another really busy year beginning with Sheila’s surprise 60th birthday party at the Blunsdon House Hotel in January. A few weeks later, in mid February, the choir spend a day at the Wyvern Theatre recording their latest CD which clearly shows, what I said earlier, the remarkable professionalism and musical standard that the choir has now reached. A week later, we were back at the Wyvern for a very different reason with a lovely tribute concert in memory of Gary Beint. June saw our return visit to Ireland and another most enjoyable few days with our many new friends there and after a short summer break, September saw the choir recording for BBC Songs of Praise, a most prestigious invitation to be part of a programme seen around the world by huge audiences. The sound was recorded at Christ Church in Swindon on the Friday evening and the following day, the choir was taken to Malmesbury Abbey where the cameras had a busy day! This brings us to our last November Show as Sheila has decided to have the choir’s main show in May thus moving away from the Cracker. Packed audiences were certainly very appreciative of the all-action, all-singing show – 60 shows with hardly a chance to draw breath. So, thanks to everyone involved with the choir for their hard work, commitment and support throughout this special year and, of course, to Sheila for her boundless energy and her musical expertise in bringing such lovely music to so many people far and wide. Here’s to the next 40 years – I shall be 101 – and still playing the piano, I hope! Geoff <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> LETTER FROM THE PRINCIPAL Dear Friends What can I say but thank-you, thank-you, thank-you. The November show was wonderful for me personally and I think for you all too. Anyone who missed seeing the show missed a real good night out. We have made a DVD of this show. All merchandise now is being looked after by Marge and Dave Parsons (Tel: 527372). Our CDs and videos etc would make wonderful Christmas presents! I have now nearly finished designing the new May show “Putting on the Style”. I am including all types of vocal singing. Something different again. I am making my mind up whether to try a matinee this time. This may encourage older people and children to come to the theatre. Watch this space! I hope you agree that we had another lovely Christmas Cracker. Grateful thanks to our special guests, The Aldbourne Brass Band. Can you believe that Christmas is upon us? Life is so very fast! I hope you all have a lovely Christmas and can I wish you all a happy, peaceful and healthy New Year. See you in 2005. Much love. Sheila WHAT THE CHOIR BOUGHT ME FOR MY CHRISTMAS PRESENT “The final curtain has fallen on our last show in November Perhaps on the best show of all that we can remember So a fitting gift has to be chosen just for you So we thought of the thing you like best to do Seeing musicals at the West End is always a treat So the enclosed vouchers should ensure you the best seat To make this gift to you and Chris even better yet There’s a night in a hotel as near to the theatre as you can get!” <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> FILMING DAY FOR SONGS OF PRAISE After a late night chatting and drinking the odd glass of water or two discussing the events at Christ Church that evening (this is where the Songs of Praise sound was recorded) Bev and I decided to drive ourselves to Malmesbury Abbey on the Saturday morning so we could stay in bed a little longer. Once there the first problem for us was where to park as we knew we needed more than the two hours on offer in the market place. We took a right turn at the side of the Abbey signposted ‘Hotel Car Park’, followed the road down to find it narrowed into a little bridge where a couple of girls were walking across. I was not sure whether to proceed but Bev had different ideas and persuaded me to edge myself across the bridge, which I did successfully, if a little red faced. Success! We were now in a free all day car park! Having mountaineered our way up to the Abbey (Bev and I obviously need to get fit) we saw the Barnes coach arrive and we waved enthusiastically, relieved that it was not just the two of us filming Songs of Praise. At this point I tripped in a ditch much to the amusement of my fellow choir members who were watching from the coach. What a start to the day! Once inside the beautiful Abbey we changed straight away into our red glitter tops and black skirts and waited with intrigue as to what was going to happen. Eventually we were called to take our places and the filming began. As the sound had been recorded the previous night we were not sure how it would all work but the BBC crew were extremely organised, knowing exactly what they wanted. We were instructed to sing short sections of a hymn whilst they decided who to film. This was extremely nerve racking for those who found themselves on camera. Meanwhile the choir had to look at Sheila whilst reading the words on the projector behind her – this was not an easy task as all the while we had to look natural and confident. We repeated this over and over again until lunchtime, by then we all were feeling cold and hungry! During lunch we were able to make ourselves hot drinks which were very welcome and we had the chance to sit and chat for an hour or so. Once the afternoon session got underway the crew were determined to get everyone on a close up and so the choir members who had already been filmed were asked to sit down in the Abbey whilst the others had their minute of fame too. This was really interesting as we got to see what they were filming and I felt so proud watching the choir on screen as they all looked so professional. Once this had been done the choir re-assembled and it was time for the long shots to be done, which meant the lighting had to be changed and the church cleared of any equipment on show (including the screen with the words on!!). This took a long time as it’s surprising what can show up on camera if you’re not careful! Meanwhile, a photographer arrived from the Evening Advertiser to take a photo of the event. How lovely for our local paper to mark the occasion! Long shots were then taken and our day was almost at an end. All that was left to do was to film Sheila conducting her choir. What a wonderful experience we had had – we had met some lovely people who were true professionals and after a gruelling 24 hours The Kentwood Show Choir had once again pulled out all the stops and achieved a top class performance. Yet another day for the memory book!! Sharon Lloyd and Bev Clayton-Gale <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> SOME OF THE CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED FOLLOWING OUR APPEARANCE ON “SONGS OF PRAISE” Dear Sheila I have just finished watching “Songs of Praise” and felt I had to write to congratulate you and Kentwood on such wonderful singing. I was so proud of you all! It is 30 years since I left Kentwood, but it still holds a special place in my heart. And I still keep up with the events through mum, who as you know is a huge fan. I don’t think you may realise the positive impact Kentwood had on me. Even today, I can hear you in my ear when I have to present something, extolling the maxim ‘smile’ – look as though you know what you’re doing (even if you don’t)! This have gotten me through many a situation! Bless you for all you and Kentwood stand for. Much love. Rachel Voss (nee Jenkins) March, Cambs Dear Sheila Congratulations on Songs of Praise. Lovely singing – the choir looked so good. Great to see their faces up close – a great miss when one is back of the circle! Vee Talbot <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> GREETINGS FROM CORNWALL Hello all my friends in Kentwood, on a chilly cloudy day here in Hayle. Tony and I have just completed an early morning walk over the towans (dunes) to the beach and round the estuary to the harbour. Lots of birds to see this morning – residents and winter visitors alike – cormorants, curlews, Mediterranean gulls, herring gulls, egrets and several swans, to mention a few. Little birds are now returning to the garden after a summer away (where do they go??) and in the last two days we’ve seen bluetits, robins, dunnocks, greenfinches and collared doves. Tony and I have lived here for two and a half years now and have loved every minute. What a privilege to be living in such a beautiful place. Many Kentwood friends have been down to stay with us. There are still some who haven’t been yet – the invitation is still there! The highlight this autumn for me has been “Songs of Praise”. Never in a million years did I ever think I would be singing with Kentwood again! What an honour it was to be asked back to sing with the choir, especially in Songs of Praise which is one of my favourite TV programmes and one that I never miss watching. At this point I have to bring in my friend Jane Shrimpton who, knowing that I love hymns, approached Sheila with a request for me to join in with the choir. (If it wasn’t for Jane I wouldn’t be living in Cornwall, I wouldn’t enjoy Cote-du-Rhone so much and I certainly wouldn’t be on TV singing in Songs of Praise with Kentwood!). I must say it was a fantastic experience for me coming up to Swindon for the rehearsal in Christ Church, then the recording a month later, and the filming at Malmesbury Abbey. I knew all the hymns already, and just had to learn the words of the verses I didn’t know. It was great seeing all my old friends in the choir and it felt as if I’d never left – I just sort of glided back in. The experience of singing those lovely words with friends all around and the glorious sound of Kentwood ringing in my ears was totally uplifting. Thank you , thank you, thank you for letting me do it Sheila, Jane for thinking of it, Terri for lending me the TV uniform, Yvonne for the loan of the travel uniform, Ann and Alan for their hospitality in putting me and Tony up. We are now looking forward to the November show and the Cracker, and hope to see everyone then. Ann Donaldson PS Sold a CD “Small Part of the World” to one of my new friends in Hayle. Her verdict: ‘Marvellous’ <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> KENTWOOD’S PHILOSAN PARTY! I guess you actually need to be over 40 to know that Philosan was supposed to fortify the over forties. Well perhaps in days of yore the over forties needed it, but at the beginning of November, Kentwood celebrated that magic age and Philosan seemed to be the furthest thing from anyone’s mind. Sheila and Chris invited all the adult members of Kentwood to a sumptuous meal at the Chiseldon House Hotel. As with all these things, you can never pick a date that absolutely everyone can make, but Sheila chose very well as there were only about 3 absentees. The evening started soon after 7pm when the heavy drinkers started congregating in the bar, while others gathered in the residents lounge. By about 7.45pm most people were in the bar and ready to take their places at the table. The three course meal was nicely prepared and presented, although Paul Ashman did spend most of the meal wondering what had happened to his chips. A haughty comment from the waiter that “the chef doesn’t do chips” didn’t seem to cut any ice with Paul, in fact, if anything it prompted him to ask even more, even extending the request to be “a plate of chips to dip in a bowl of that lovely gravy” (the chef didn’t do gravy either… he had prepared a sauce…. that looked very much like gravy). In order to provide some amusement during the meal, Kathy Hobson found some old pictures of choir members and created a couple of competitions. The first should have been simple, there were pictures of people that we meet with on a regular basis, the pictures were not doctored in any way, all we had to do was put a name to each picture. Some were easy, but, boy oh boy, some were not! It’s amazing how a change of hairstyle / spectacles / of diet can change somebody (should I mention that the addition of wrinkles, double chins and duelling scars also added to the difficulty?). Fortunately, the second competition didn’t require any accuracy, all we had to do was dream up some captions as they do on “Have I Got News For You”. Once we had finished eating Sheila took to her feet and said a few nice words about the last 40 years. If I had known I was going to do this I would probably have made a few notes so that I could quote them here, but I didn’t, so I didn’t, so I cant! (Sorry John, the editor hadn’t got her act together!) Clarry Bean then took to his feet and responded on behalf of the choir members. We then had a couple of toasts and, yes, Paul wanted marmalade with his toast. Sheila told us to make our way into the lounge for some entertainment, so Kathy and I quickly went to the other room to switch the equipment on before everyone else arrived. The entertainment was a rerun of the presentation which we did at the May concert, but the choir members had only heard it, the pictures being behind us during the show, so it seemed like a nice idea to show them again. Kathy had hooked out a few more pictures, Annette Packham borrowed one of those fancy projectors from her employer and I re-jigged the script (to take the micky out of Sheila a bit more). After quite a few minutes in an empty room, we concluded that perhaps people needed chivvying along a bit, so I went back to the dining room to fetch them. I promised faithfully that if people came instantly, we could whip through the presentation a bit sharpish and then get back to the bar. This latter point seemed to be well received so very soon the lounge was full. However, despite best intentions we did not whip through it very quickly. We had to pause on many pictures while the laughter died down, people found themselves, recognised people who had left or made insulting comments about friends lack of fashion sense. In the end, a presentation that took 20 minutes in the concert, took nearly an hour. But it was worth it, everyone seemed to go home that night feeling very happy. So, Chris, Sheila, thank you so much for hosting such a wonderful party to celebrate Kentwood’s 40th year. John Marshall <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> CHOIR’S MIND BOGGLING SHOW OF ABUNDANT TALENT (Taken from the Evening Advertiser) Sheila Harrod and her Kentwood Show Choir pulled off nothing short of what could only be described as a military operation on this first night of what is to be their last November show at the Wyvern Theatre in Swindon. The staging of this production was first class. Sixty spectacular show tunes that started with a bang and finished with an explosion – metaphorically speaking. The music and arrangements this choir turns out are quite frankly second to none and incredibly difficult. Their triumph, sheer professionalism and abundance of talent were stunning as we took the roller coaster ride, a ride that was neatly oiled, and never stopped. Everything about Kentwood smacks of people who know exactly what they want and can carry it out, including the choreographer Pollyann Tanner and stylish set design by David Wicks, and indeed the singers themselves. Everyone in the audience will have had their favourite moment or song. Could it have been Geoff Walters and the delectable Robert Harman who has the best legs in a dress, or maybe Abby Bean, whose smooth, pure tuneful voice belies her age. Well she is a member of the Bean family. Mum Chris sends shivers down my spine every time I hear her sing and hubby Clarry has the same kind of effect. Such talent in one family shouldn’t be allowed. A mind boggling quality of performance. Ros Hollands <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> The Choir received an overwhelming number of comments following the show and here are a flavour of some of them. “I spent my Saturday night at the Wyvern Theatre (or was it the West End?) to see the Kentwood Choir, which was at its best. In my year ranging around Wiltshire and previously visiting musicals in London, everyone in Swindon can be really proud of Sheila Harrod and her fabulous choir. In the space of months the choir has performed Songs of Praise, West End musicals and Christmas songs, the versatility and professional approach is second to none…Forty years on, the Kentwood Choir is better than ever. Congratulations to everyone involved for the undoubted hard work”. James Arkell, The High Sheriff of Wiltshire “What can I say! The back-drop – the stage set – the lights – the stage craft. Brilliant! What a show it was. So slick – so moving, in every way. Beautiful singing - not a bum note anywhere. Yvonne singing solo – that was a lovely first for me. What great understudies you have. They really were so very good. Congrats to the musicians – what a great job they did. By golly! – you sure worked everyone so hard – they all came up trumps. Congrats on your 40th and here’s to the next 40 (of course you will!)” Vee Talbot “I would like to congratulate you on your show. What can I say but……wow!! What a wonderful evening of songs heightened by excellent choreography and a veritable kaleidoscope of costumes. Slowly, we are adding more show numbers to our repertoire but – for me, at least – we still sing too many hymns! If your show next May is to be along similar lines then I shall look forward to that with much anticipation. Once again, many congratulations for a great night out!” Norman Smiles, Wessex Male Choir “……..I was very impressed with the quality of the show and I thought the choir sounded fantastic. The energy and sense of enjoyment that radiated off the stage was wonderful to see and you and your entire team should be justifiably proud of the performance. This is exactly the standard of community theatre that we wish to present at the Wyvern Theatre and I look forward to working with you and the choir in the future…...” Michael Ockwell, Group Theatre Director <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Editor:    Mrs Yvonne Walker 23 Bourton Avenue Stratton St Margaret Swindon SN3 4LY. Telephone: 01793 823849 E-mail: walker365@ntlworld.com