Member's ViewsMembers of the Choir have been asked for their views on NYCoS and various aspects of the organisation etc. These are the 98% unedited comments below on a few specified topics. As other members respond to the request these comments will be updated. The only editing that will happen is to correct spelling or grammar, or to exclude passages if members become rude, unnecessarily personal, or swear.
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Residential CourseI think it's fantastic. Glenalmond probably is the ideal place as we've so many teaching rooms and also the leisure facilities. Everyone looks forward to it all year. It's a once in a lifetime thing but it's every year!! Don't go anywhere near the opposite sex's dorms though: the Wrath of the Administrator will befall you! Glenalmond was great, I hope Strathallan compares favourably. The food is hardly a-la-carte but sufficient...the trick is to pretend that you're a vegetarian so that if the meat dish looks horrible, you have an escape. The facilities for general use were excellent, however, lets just hope that the first year at Strathallan (like at Glenalmond) doesn't see the lads (obviously the most important people in the choir) put in dingy stables and the women in what seemed like the Ritz. The residential aspect of the course is a real bonus. It helps you get to know folks a bit better and it's always a good laugh. The main thing I remember is the heat. I was not built for the heat! I ended up getting unwell and I was petrified that I wouldn't be able to do the concerts. I also remember the girls all getting a wake up call from the fire alarm at 3am and it was the night before the recording! God it was cold.(and it started to rain as well.) The residential course at Glenalmond is a great experience. There are excellent facilities for both rehearsing and relaxing in our free time.
The workload at the courseThe workload is pretty intense at times but that's half the fun. The feeling you get when you see it all come together at the end of the week makes the hard work worthwhile. It's not a tough regime though. There are plenty of breaks and free time. Huge but fun. If you like to sing, there's nothing like it. Producing the wonderful results we get takes a lot of hard work, but it is really worth it. We all go to NYCoS expecting to work hard and we're all willing to do our best to make the choir as good as it can be. At the time you don't mind the work load at all but when I got home I just wanted to collapse and go to sleep. Unfortunately I had to go to work instead! If you've never done anything like this before, you'll find the first couple of days hard going; you get up early and stay up late (so many girls, such little time!) Probably by the first concert you'll have very little voice left. Lets hope we never do Carmina Burana again!! Top tip...don't shout at people you fall out with. Simply ignore them, it often works better as they can't shout back. In saying that, free time is generous: lots of time to engage oneself in worthwhile pursuits. Top tip no. 2...when the time is nearing break time, or even has gone past it, do not complain or look at the clock. Christopher will get tetchy and make the rehearsal last longer and then everyone will hate you. There are many long rehearsals and there is a lot of music to get through but there is always sufficient rest time to prepare for and rest after these rehearsals.
The Singing LessonsMade a difference for me: it's nice to be one on one. I really benefited from the singing lessons. I'd never had a singing lesson in my life so the chance to let someone who knew what they were talking about hear me was fabulous! It also ended up with me getting a great singing teacher. The singing lessons were great. It was a little nerve wracking first but the teachers put you at your ease and they really know what they're talking about. I found these sessions totally invaluable. The private singing lessons provided are very beneficial and you learn a lot of things from your teacher in just a small space of time. Very useful if you don't have a singing teacher. Probably very different if you do. Having a couple of singing lessons on the course is really worthwhile. Some people who come to NYCoS have never had a singing lesson before and it gives them the opportunity to have one with a professional teacher.
Singing TeachersHee hee! I have to watch what I say here. They were all fab and down to earth! That's one of the great things I liked.There are no barriers. Everyone can talk to everyone else. They are an extremely patient group of people. The singing teachers are excellent and they are all very popular with the members of the choir because there is an excellent relationship between the staff and choir members. The three years I've been in NYCoS I've had my lessons from a fantastic teacher - (she) has helped me think about several aspects of my singing in different ways. She is very friendly and supportive. Nice people generally. Try to look interested when it comes to their bit in the informal concerts; they try very hard and it is terribly cultural!
Choir AtmosphereThere is such a great atmosphere in the choir. I have made so many terrific friends and there is great team spirit. There's something about the NYCoS atmosphere that I've never had anywhere else. It's hard work and we all moan sometimes but we love it really. That's why we pay to go and work for a week! The choir functions as a team. Everyone helps everyone else as we are all trying to achieve the same end product.I've made some very good friends at NYCoS with whom I stay in contact throughout the year.The choir as a whole are very supportive of each other. The atmosphere in the choir is great. There's a real sense of team work during rehearsal. Obviously in such a big group you're not going to get to know everyone and there will always be people who rub you up the wrong way a little, but when you're singing the sense of oneness is amazing. Remarkably for a unit comprised almost entirely of students and school pupils (in other words, wasters) the level of discipline and commitment is exceptionally high. If you don't work hard prepare to be shouted at and/or bitched about. Bring a Pencil. Don't make the same mistake more than twice. Don't talk during rehearsals. Adhere to this simple code and people won't shout at you. There is a special atmosphere in the choir where new members are made to feel welcome by the older members of the choir and also the staff who make a big effort to get on with everyone.
Choir OrganisationStuff is always really well organised. Everything was done for us. All we had to do was get ourselves to rehearsals on time although we didn't always achieve that! I'd say the choir is run really well. You always know what's going on and where you should be etc. Uncle Bob, we love you, tra la la !!!! Respect Uncle Bob (AKA Robert W Tait esq. Administrator, NYCoS) He am de man! Uncle Bob likes to think that everything is running smoothly so if he asks, tell him everything is OK. Don't say things like...Actually, I think I would like to leave after the Aberdeen concert, I've left my dinner suit at home, why are there no ash-trays in the bedrooms and does the campus shop do offsales? The choir is organised very well with special care taken so as the voices are never over used and plenty of rest is given to the singers. We get a newsletter every so often (during the year) keeping us up to date with what's happening behind the scenes. We have a meeting at the end of each course in which we are all allowed to give our input and comments on the course and next year's plans.
Music sungIt was fab! Can we please do Rejoice in the Lamb again. I loved it.The Durufle was also terrific. There were just bits in it that made you know that everything you had gone through, the hot rehearsals etc. had all been worth while. Most of the music is either about God, dead people or both. Don't be put off, they are normally very good. If you are very privileged, you may get the chance to sing Christmas carols with the Chamber Choir. In October. Which is nice. I'm not the one to ask: I like everything (even the Beatus Vir). This is probably due to ignorance but I don't care. Each piece of music chosen has something very special about it and the music is always very popular with the choir. The music is generally pretty good and sometimes it's fab. It's unlikely that you'll always love everything but I've always found that I come to like pieces which I hated at the start of the course. The music we sing is fantastic. It is chosen to suit the choir and I've never heard anyone complain that they don't like a piece.
Where you find funding?I received money from the school to help me with the cost of the course and music etc and I also received a generous grant from my local council. Funding for the chorus is a real headache. Unless your local authority are prepared to sponsor you it can be really hard to find the money. I've always had to pay for stuff myself but since the courses aren't cheap it's not the ideal option. Parents, Local Authorities and Charitable Organisations. Write to everyone, the worst they can do is say no. I took out my student loan and put it to good use. This year I started saving from my wages so that the money is there if I need it and if I don't then I'll just have to spend it some other way. I get funding from my local education authority. For the three years I've been in NYCoS I've been funded for the total amount.
The social aspects of the choirIn NYCoS everyone mixes and so nobody is ever left out. The facilities provided at Glenalmond allow the choir members to play sports with each other or listen to music together. The choir allows people to make friends with people all over Scotland who share the same interests. I have made so many friends through NYCoS and you could talk to anyone. It's a fabulous relaxed atmosphere. You'll never meet a nicer bunch of people. Furthermore, there are twice as many women as men. Because everyone has a shared interest, it makes 'bonding' so much easier. Come along, you'll make lots of friends. If you are over 18 you may also find some regular drinking partners (of course, there'll be no drinking at Strathallan!). Oh, and don't be shy and sit in the corner...it's a waste of time coming otherwise. There is free-time during the course in which you can get to know people. Everyone becomes very close - some closer than others! There are good leisure facilities, a common room and a TV room - which is always full on the Fridays night because "Friends" is on! You meet many people with similar interests as we all share the common interest of singing. Socially the choir is a good laugh. You always meet new people, and on the whole folks are really friendly.
The formal dinnerIt was a great laugh. Also a good way to get to know more people and the chance to get all dolled up was brilliant. Suppose I'll need to start thinking about this years fabulous dress. The formal dinner was a very enjoyable evening which was very successful and it was done in a great spirit. I thought the bouncing joke thing was great fun but a few people were worried at the thought of it so it might have to be reconsidered or restructured or something. What a brilliant idea. Great fun, come prepared with a 'clean' joke (to preserve Uncle Bob's sanity and sensibility). The formal dinner on the '99 course was a good idea. It gave us all the chance to dress up and it was a great social evening. There were many laughs and jokes and it made us see some people in a different light! I hope it continues every year.
Whether the choir encouraged you to take singing more seriouslyProbably. I've got a singing teacher now but I still can't take singing as seriously as I'd like because I'm so busy with uni. Oh well... NYCoS gives you the chance to perform some famous music with the best young singers in Scotland for large audiences. This gives you a lot of encouragement to continue singing seriously. Nope. If anything it made it easier for me to make life choices. I used to swing between wanting to be a music student and a medical student but NYCoS means I can do some music in the summer and be a medical student the rest of the year. Medicine is difficult to do as a hobby: there are only so many First Aid courses you can do. Also, I have much less chance of being penniless and having to pawn my piano to buy Super Noodles. Undoubtedly. Singing in such a professional outfit gives you such a buzz. Ask anyone who did the Burns sequence to let you hear 'will ye go tae the Indies Ma Mary' and watch their face when it gets to 'The hour, and the mo-men-tuh-of time!' If you've done nothing like it before, you'll be in for a surprise. I think the choir changed my attitude to singing a lot. The individual lesson highlighted some problems in my voice and helped me to improve on them. Also, the standard is high which means you're pushing yourself to a new level - expecting more of yourself. It shows that singing is hard work and takes real discipline but the sense of achievement that you get is immense.
Anything elseThe venues chosen to perform the concerts are all very good and NYCoS is very well supported with good audiences at all of the concerts. Christopher gives 150% throughout the course, forcing us to be the best we can be. At some stages you can wonder if he will ever smile, and say well done, 'cos he's very intense, and then four days into the course you're singing something and his face lets you know its fab. Then he tells you its brilliant (or bursts into tears!!) There is nothing like the feeling when you hear the applause at the end of a concert which has been a roller-coaster of emotion and everyone is happy. If Christopher does shout at you in a rehearsal take it on board but don't take it to heart...he's not that bad really. Cras Mediocritas seems to have emerged as a choir motto. This applies to both work and leisure time - Work hard, play hard...the satisfaction from both is fantastic!! I really hope I will grow out of NYCoS before I reach the age limit because if I don't, it will be heart breaking to leave. I could be the course doctor for 1/2 years if you like. Unpaid of course.
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