Dear Performers, A group of us have put our heads together and come up with a proposal we hope you’ll all be happy to support. The considerable cost of the basic hire of King George’s Hall, the school’s caretaker, the specially sourced scarves for the women and the music/words folders for the singers and players could be successfully met if each performer were prepared to donate £10 for the pain, pleasure, stress, fun - however you see it! - of taking part in this great reunion weekend. This gesture would then allow all ticket monies from the concert to be donated to the CAFOD project. This could add up to well over £12000 if we manage to fill the hall. CAFOD have rethought their initial advice and have suggested that the most appropriate project for the school’s Music Department to support longer term should be one from their ‘Connect2’ programme. Matthew and Toni have therefore chosen to support the community of Sebeya, in the north of Ethiopia, where drought threatens hundreds of families who rely on farming for survival. The community is fighting back. Local people are building reservoirs and water pipes to keep the fields green and improve the harvests. Over the coming years, there will be an opportunity of real, meaningful communication between the school’s Music Department and members of the Sebaya community, a true feeling of connection will be fostered. Personally I’m delighted with this new project idea and I’m sure St Augustine’s children will benefit immeasurably from the whole experience of supporting this community long term. A few years ago, a nun from Ethiopia wrote to me to say that her school children loved Nsansa Censele (which we shall be singing at the concert) and had adopted it as their school song - so I too feel a deep sense of connection with country of Ethiopia and am extremely happy to support the idea. We hope and trust that you’ll be happy to make the £10 performer’s donation which can be made at tomorrow’s rehearsal, on June 8th or on the weekend of the reunion itself. It’s about the same amount as a round of drinks for 4 people (at least in the Highlands it is!). I’m sure you would all feel that the whole experience will be well worth at least that! Finally (for now), I’m detecting a few wobbles here and there, even some sleepless nights and weird dreams (or nightmares!); please remember the spirit behind all of this. We’re celebrating 50 years of a truly great school. We’re going to have a fantastic time, meet old friends, relive some wonderful memories and at the same time provide life changing funds for an African community in dire need. We don’t want the event to be a stress, we don’t want people pulling out feeling they can’t cope! Don’t let the words become an issue - we’ll use words if we need them, so no problems there. Don’t worry if you can’t make the extra rehearsals - they are just that, extra rehearsals for those who happen to be free to come along. The programme was designed to be rehearsed and performed over a weekend, and I see no need for any of us to be feeling it’s impossible! Remember your pedigree! You’re coming from all over Britain to this take part in this event, some of you even from further afield. Once we’ve rehearsed as a full group and hit the big stage on June 22nd, we will produce an amazing result. And we’ll have a wonderful time doing it. Trust me! Peter x
Posted on: Tue, 20 May 2014 21:10:08 +0000