We had our first session on the Pepys Motet project today with the tenors very firmly in the spotlight. These are, of course, famous last words, but I doubt it could have gone a great deal better... I feel rather elated. Those lucky enough to be musicians who regularly work in recording studios will know that there's nothing better than the buzz you get from a good session.
The day started with a proper early morning walk, to Muswell Hill, through a misty, magical Highgate Woods. My walking partner was the lovely Meriel, and we put the world to rights several times over, before reaching our breakfast destination; a greasy spoon just off Colney Hatch Lane. We polished off a couple of vegetarian breakfasts with extra halloumi before taking the back route home, along the Parkland Walk, as the sun started to burn through the mist.
There's a stunning view over the city from up there. Under normal circumstances you can see all the way to Canary Wharf and beyond, but today it was like looking at a piece of reflective glass; a swirling mass of misty, sunny haze which threatened to destroy our retinas!
We walked through Queen's Wood, and were home by 11, whereupon I settled down to doing some writing.
At lunchtime I received the call that all composers dread; one of my tenor's voices was shot and he was unable to sing...
Cue the major panic as Nathan and I called every tenor we could find to absolutely no avail. In the end, Christopher very kindly agreed to come in and do as much as he could and Nathan very speedily looked through the dots in case he was suddenly asked to step in.
As it turned out, we were okay. Christopher's voice held out, probably as much to do with the fact that the style of music I write doesn't always require perfect vocals. I'm much more likely to opt for a take with a crack in it because I find it emotionally more engaging, and the Pepys is all about extended vocal technique, which hardly requires kosher singing.
The five tenors in the piece make up a quarter of the full ensemble and they are universally red hot: Five utterly unique-sounding voices encompassing musical theatre, early music and opera styles, which for some reason blend rather wonderfully together.
The session was lively, ran to time and everyone was as well-prepared as I could have hoped. Hurrah for them all... Although I've had too many cups of tea, so feel a bit jittery.
I can't wait to get cracking on the next piece in the jigsaw now, which is a session with the basses in early May. We're taking small steps on this project.
The only trouble with running sessions in South London is the ludicrously long tube journey home. Still, I guess, it's the perfect length of time for writing a blog!
Sleep well readers. Enjoy.
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