Singing in the rain (first chorus meets emma bathgate)
September 28, 2009
It was windy, raining and cold.. but the show must go on, isn’t it!
Emma Bathgate opened this extraordinary gig at the Fairfield Amphitheatre by welcoming 8 year old Zafiya Witkoski-Blake on drums and poetry. Beats and words. There is something really moving about a child who’s able to get up and work her performance magic in front of a bunch of adults. Plus Zafiya is an amazing performer. A great way to start the show.
Several of Emma’s songs i’ve heard before, having seen her perform with Natalia Mann the incredible harpist in Shima and the Wikimen as well as solo. i enjoy the way her soulful voice jumps across various registers and tones as she searches for the most authentic sound at any moment. Great to hear Emma step away from the crowd-pleasing (crowd-horrifying?) Dilapidated Diva and sing as her own self.
.. and so it was lovely to be a part of the backing band of singers (first chorus), singing This Ancient Land, Flame Trees and Adoration – a song devoted to Emma’s singing teacher for many years. There were a few emotional moments in the show, especially when Emma was talking about her inspiration for the song about the wombats during the 2009 bushfires.
Plenty of deliberation before the show about whether to go ahead in the cold windy rain. In the end Tim the sound guy who’s had experience running outdoor gigs said, “Let’s just do it!”
i hope someone got a photo of the choir with all our umbrellas out. i’ll have to settle for these photos of the bridge at Fairfield park.
Links: myspace pages for the musioes:
fIRST cHORUS excitement (a fringe festival event)
September 25, 2009
First Chorus is part of the Melbourne fringe festival, this time featuring in
- an event with Emma Bathgate
- at the Fairfield amphitheatre.
- More details, plus book tickets at the Melbourne fringe site.
- (This Sunday 27 September at Fairfield Amphitheatre, near the Boathouse.)
- (Here’s the faceboo event page if you have a residence in that place.)
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Plus, from the Victoria hotel event in August:
The choir i’ve been singing with had our big big night.. seven original songs by the songwriters in the choir. Songs in genres including folk, pop, jazz, operatic and gothic-epic, the arrangements all worked by Virginia Bott the amaazing musical director.
i wish i could put up the video right now, but it’ll take ages to be ready. i’ve heard the bootleg recording came out well.
The first show was electric and intense.. while the second was more sedate, laidback, and somehow harder work. Probably because we were already exhausted. As Lou said, it was as though we had a whole season, from opening to closing night .. in the same evening.
The Victoria Hotel has really picked up its game, reshaping into a kitschie Melbourne style classic. Upside-down lampshades hanging from the ceiling.. which any self-respecting Melbourne bar must have.. since the Night Cat started the tradition back in ooh 1990-something.
Really great to be involved in such a dynamic and powerful performance, eh!
Lovely people.
