A Bass Blog

Having stood in front of Cairn Chorus rather a lot during this year’s

rehearsals, I thought I’d better introduce myself properly. My wife, Lyn, and I moved to D&G from West Cumbria in 2017, singing with Kirkcudbright Choral Society having been part of choral groups in Cumbria. We gradually realised that we wanted different challenges musically and, after listening to a Cairn Chorus concert, thought that was what we would like to do.

We joined Cairn Chorus just before covid, not very auspicious timing! Since then, I’ve sung with the bass section, trying to pronounce unfamiliar languages whilst following the bass clef music. During the 2022-3 season it was suggested that a group of us went to the Street Choirs Festival 2023 in Kendal. We went, we enjoyed ourselves, and it was suggested that we should explore the idea of bringing the festival to Dumfries. Those of you that remember Lyn will know how enthusiastically she embraced this idea, and I was swept up into helping

on the committee. I’m still not sure how, or why, I ended up as chair of the committee. The

committee gradually developed the plan, involving Cairn Chorus, Catstrand Singers and

SongWave as lead choirs, to bring the 2026 edition to Dumfries. And so it happened, not

without a few interesting twists and turns, and it turned out to be a superb event centred

around Easterbrook Hall, with Kate leading the 860 singers in Dock Park. What a spectacle.

The feedback from the visiting choirs extolling the volunteers, the Crichton

campus, Dumfries, and the Easterbrook Hall and staff has made the last months well worthwhile, so a

BIG thankyou to all of you. Even if you were unable to take part, the support from the choir

putting up with the disruption to the normal choir events was of vital importance.

With much relief I will now disappear back into the basses, growling as Kate tries to get us to

sing ‘above the stave’ and working towards our Christmas concerts, and bringing my dairy

free, sugar rush flapjack along to boost half time energy.

Paul

Echo down the Cairn Valley

A poem by David Neilson written in 2020

There was a murmur in the wind,

by sibilant alders’ susurration,

a song from silence emanating

searching for incorporation.

Here the Cairn Water flowing

from the hills beyond Benbuie

by Colt hill and past the Byre

strides that burn of utmost beauty.

Now the song and waters meet

at Moniave. By some conceit

her eager ear they both inspire:

Kate, at the bridge, gives to the choir,

from silence born, a melody:

evokes in them their harmony.

How do you start a choir?

By Sarah Keast

I have always sung. I started from childhood when my mum taught us to sing in harmony (mainly because she wanted to). I sang in local choirs as a teenager, then in small groups and bigger choirs as an adult.  I moved to Moniaive back in 2004 with two small children and there was a great choir called The Feral Choir which I wanted to join but they met in Castle Douglas and I didn’t have childcare that allowed me to travel that far.  I kept thinking it would be nice to sing locally and I kept meeting other people who thought the same.   

In 2006 I somehow agreed to be the treasurer of the folk festival in the village. I got together with musician Wendy Stewart and historian Alyne Jones around my kitchen table.   We sat down to work out a budget and plan events for the folk festival.    As we discussed the festival funding  Alyne made the precocious suggestion that some of the funding we ask for could be to start an embryonic community choir in Moniaive “Maybe funding to pay a choir leader for 10 or 12 practices and our debut performance could be the opening event of the folk festival in 2007”.  The idea stuck and we put it in the funding applications. Alyne and Wendy also set up an important founding principle:  "this choir must be run by the members, for the members and we will hire our choirmaster".   As an afterthought (a genius afterthought!) we stuck in a request for some extra funding to keep the practices going for a few months after the folk festival so that the choir didn't just end after that first performance.   

12 local people came along to sing in that very first iteration of the choir, practicing in the café area of the George Hotel after the carpet bowls had finished, and we did indeed open the folk festival by singing a punchy and loud Sami reindeer herding song.  I was watching the reaction in the audience.  Expectations were low, locals thought we might be a good laugh, but when the initial song rang out jaws literally dropped with surprise.  We only had a handful of songs ready but we had some great voices in our midst and the tunes had been well chosen for the small group.  Our initial performance was sufficient to lead lots of new people to come and sing with us.  So we had done it. We started a choir.  In 2027 Cairn Chorus will be 20 years old.   Of the 12 initial singers who started the choir 8 are still singing with us today. Our membership regularly reaches 50 singers and the choir is an amazing community of people who are united by love of singing together!    How do you start a choir?  Three women round a table with cups of tea!!!