This is what it sounds like when 200+ people sing with their eyes closed

[annafugazzi]

Don't suppose this is gonna mean anything to anybody but me, but hey, it's my lj :)

Anybody remember about a million-jillion years ago I wrote an H/D story where Draco is a choir director in Ireland? I did this thing where I linked to a bunch of choir songs that Draco's choir sings. Most of them were songs that my own choir sang, and some of the files I linked to were recordings of my own choir.

Well, tomorrow is my choir's tenth anniversary concert (and may I say it both pleases and disturbs me deeply to say that I'm a founding member of a choir that is ten freaking years old) and we're singing a bunch of the songs that were mentioned in the fic. And it made me all nostalgic for the fic itself. As well as totally grateful to be part of a choir that sings such beautiful stuff.

Our men's section is currently tiny and... um... not very good. In part because they're so few. But the rest of the choir is sounding better than ever. Our concert tomorrow is going to be gorgeous.

::happy sigh::

In case anybody's interested, here's some links:

• Volunteers (Volunteers Music Page)
  
• Ember to Ember (Ember to Ember Music Page)
  
  And recordings of the Volunteers/Ember to Ember songs we're singing tomorrow:
  
  
• All Too Soon
  
• Pie Jesu (recording of my choir)
  
• Al Schlosha D'Varim
  
  
• Here's another gorgeous song we're singing tomorrow (not from the fics), and this is my choir, singing it:
  Love, Deliver Me

Here's a bonus thing we're not going to be singing tomorrow, but was in the Ember to Ember soundtrack (I think Draco sang it as a lullaby? Possibly?) and totally blew me away when we sang it at our last concert. This is what it sounds like when 200+ people sing with their eyes closed.

I'm serious. We were doing the final rehearsal before the performance, at least seven choirs including a children's choir and a francophone high school choir, and the guest conductor (Stephen Hatfield, OMG) had us all close our eyes as an exercise in "truly listening to each other and blending your voices." It went well, we all opened our eyes, said, "Cool!" and then the conductor said, "You know what? That was so good I think I'm gonna have you do it like that for the concert. You don't need me."

We honestly thought he was joking.

Close-up starting at 54 seconds. I'm guessing the one tenor whose eyes are open was from the high school and didn't get the instructions translated to him, poor guy. I wonder if he spent the whole song waiting for the conductor to come back.

Comments

[birdsofshore]

I love that fic and I was thinking about it this week as I wrote a fic where Draco dreams in fanfics, and I had him dream of himself as a choir director at one point :D

The video is lovely! What a beautiful idea for the conductor to try. Hope the concert tomorrow is a great success.

[tree00faery.livejournal.com]

ahhhh cooolllll! <3 I love choirs and choir music, and I love those fics. Maybe I'll reread this weekend. If I finish finals...

[songquake.livejournal.com]

You got to sing for Stephen Hatfield?? *is incredibly jealous*

Thanks for posting the links again! I'd borked the computer I'd downloaded the files to, and am delighted to get the recordings of "All Too Soon" and "Tiny Fish" again.

*hugs*

[piratesmile331.livejournal.com]

Do you really think people don't remember those fics? SILLY GIRL. They are classics. Thanks for all of the links for the music again. Your choir is absolutely beautiful!

[calmnla.livejournal.com]

Classics indeed! I can't tell you how often I listened to those songs but you wrote the stories during a particularly um challenging time in my life. I am forever marked by the beauty that overrode all the rest of the BS, in your stories and in the music, and therefore in my challenges.

When I was 10 I wanted nothing more than to be a boy so I could join the Vienna Boys Choir. Then I found I could try out for the church choir starting at 12. Hallelujah!

Some of those singers were not BORN when you started that choir :-)

[nenne.livejournal.com]

Good luck! Have fun. :)

[notearchiver.livejournal.com]

I remember being so excited whenever you updated those fics! I think everyone reading H/D during that period remembers the fics. It's too bad that some of the newcomers to fandom don't know about them...

Also, the video is so cute, especially with all the young voices making the song seem so innocent.