You know how songs and beats and riffs sometimes get stuck in your head on loop? This is what’s going roundabout in mine this week:
Tag Archives: music
Festive Fix #3 – choirs, carols and Christmasness
I had a fabulous time at the Gloria annual Christmas concert last night. It was my first time hearing them and my gosh can they sing?! They had a lovely repertoire of traditional and contemporary songs, some of which I’d never heard of before and made the experience all the more refreshing. If you missed the gigs this week well you’ll be tickled to know they’ve got a special Christmas album that you can order via the website or download on iTunes.
Looking forward to their 15th anniversary gig at the National Concert Hall in June 2010 already. By the way, they’re looking for sopranos and basses to join them – all the info is here.
If you fancy catching some carols over the next while here’s some of what’s on around Dublin:
National Concert Hall
- Wed 16, Thurs 17 & Fri 18 at 8pm – Hanel’s Messiah (returns only)
- Sun 20 Dec at 3.15 PM & 8pm – Christmas Carol Singalong
- Mon 21 Dec at 3.15 PM & 8pm – Carols by Candlelight
- Tue 22 Dec at 3.15 PM & 8pm – The Glory Of Christmas
Tickets for all these events can be booked at www.nch.ie.
Christchurch Cathedral
- Wed 16 at 7.15pm – Christchurch Christmast Concert (tickets in advance via Tickets.ie)
- Sun 20 at 3.30pm – Carol Service (no tickets required)
Pro Cathedral
- Sun 20 at 3.30pm – Carol Service with The Palestrina Choir & St. Mary’s Pro-Cathedral Girls’ Choir (in aid of Temple St. Hospital)
Dublin Gospel Choir
- 19 Dec at 11.30am – 12pm at Liffey Valley Shopping Centre
- 19 Dec at 1 – 2pm at Blanchardstown Shopping Centre
Immanuel Church
- Sun 20, 6.45pm to 8.30pm – Christmas Carol Service
If you know of any more choral goings on over the next week or so, pop em in a comment below – would love to add them in.
Happy singing!
Festive Fix #2 – Christmas wouldn’t be the same without…
It’s the season of top 5 lists more than ever this year as we crawl to the end of a decade. Here’s my list of the things that are essential to my Christmas:
- David Parkes’ Christmas Hits on repeat (cassette version too for a nice old school crackle)
- Fixing the Christmas tree lights
- Myself and the sisters wearing Santa hats *all* the time
- Drinks and chats at my Nana’s before midnight mass on Christmas eve
- The annual Christmas day swim fundraiser for the RNLI after morning mass in New Quay
The first one on that list is particularly close to my heart. It was an RTE production of the classic Christmas songs along with a cracking ‘disco’ medley at either end. The cassette has been wheeled out and left in the stereo every Christmas for as far back as I can remember and has been the sound I associate with being at home in Clare for the festive season.
I had a look online last week to see if perchance it ever came out on CD or there was still some way of getting a copy of it as I’m sure the cassette is bound to wear through sooner rather than later. To my delight and surprise it’s available on iTunes for €8.99! You can even get the individual medleys on their own if that’s your pleasure. Can’t believe it was released in 1992 – where the heck do the years go? I was still writing letters to Santa then!
Happy disco dancing 
Dolly Mixture 02.12.09
This made me giggle yesterday:
I’m loving David’s daily Lego Advent Calendar and the fact that he’s got snow on his blog
Check out the National Concert Hall for fantastic festive events and performances over the next few weeks
Devious Theatre‘s latest work Accidental Death of an Anarchist kicks off tonight – good luck folks!
Etsy’s Holiday Guide
Band Aid – 25 years on
Tom Dunne just did a little feature on Do They Know It’s Christmas on Newstalk. Apparently it was 25 years ago today that the infamous Xmas hit was recorded. Here’s a more facts on the tune:
- Recorded on Nov 25th 1984, released on Nov 29th of the same year
- Co-written by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure
- When released it became the fastest selling single of all time in the UK
- It sold over 3 million copies on release
- It is currently the UK’s second best-selling single of all time behind Elton John’s ‘Candle In The Wind’
- Geldof took on and ultimately won over Margaret Thatcher and the British government who originally insisted on taking taxes on sales of the record
Artists on the recording:
Adam Clayton (U2), Queen, Phil Collins (Genesis, solo), Bob Geldof (The Boomtown Rats), Steve Norman (Spandau Ballet), Chris Cross (Ultravox), John Taylor (Duran Duran), Paul Young, Tony Hadley (Spandau Ballet), Glenn Gregory (Heaven 17), Simon Le Bon (Duran Duran), Simon Crowe (The Boomtown Rats), Marilyn Keren Woodward (Bananarama), Martin Kemp (Spandau Ballet), Jody Watley (Shalamar), Bono (U2), Paul Weller (The Style Council), James “J.T.” Taylor (Kool & the Gang), George Michael (Wham!), Midge Ure (Ultravox), Martyn Ware (Heaven 17), John Keeble (Spandau Ballet), Gary Kemp (Spandau Ballet), Roger Taylor (Duran Duran), Sarah Dallin (Bananarama), Siobhan Fahey (Bananarama), Pete Briquette (The Boomtown Rats), Francis Rossi (Status Quo), Robert ‘Kool’ Bell (Kool & the Gang, whose members were the only Americans to participate), Dennis J. T. Thomas (Kool & the Gang), Andy Taylor (Duran Duran), Jon Moss (Culture Club), Sting (The Police), Rick Parfitt (Status Quo), Nick Rhodes (Duran Duran), Johnny Fingers (The Boomtown Rats), David Bowie, Boy George (Culture Club), Holly Johnson (Frankie Goes to Hollywood), Paul McCartney (The Beatles, Wings), Stuart Adamson (Big Country), Bruce Watson (Big Country), Tony Butler (Big Country), Mark Brzezicki (Big Country)
It may not be your typical happy shiny Xmas tune but it’s a good tune all the same and those few opening bars still give me a little shiver when I hear it. Or maybe I have some kind of soft spot for it as it was at number 1 and blasted out over the radio the day I was born? Either way, now that I’ve heard it for the first time this year, I think I’m ready to start getting festive. Mince pies are on the menu this weekend
Adam Clayton (U2), Queen, Phil Collins (Genesis, solo), Bob Geldof (The Boomtown Rats), Steve Norman (Spandau Ballet), Chris Cross (Ultravox), John Taylor (Duran Duran), Paul Young, Tony Hadley (Spandau Ballet), Glenn Gregory (Heaven 17), Simon Le Bon (Duran Duran), Simon Crowe (The Boomtown Rats), Marilyn Keren Woodward (Bananarama), Martin Kemp (Spandau Ballet), Jody Watley (Shalamar), Bono (U2), Paul Weller (The Style Council), James “J.T.” Taylor (Kool & the Gang), George Michael (Wham!), Midge Ure (Ultravox), Martyn Ware (Heaven 17), John Keeble (Spandau Ballet),
Gary Kemp (Spandau Ballet), Roger Taylor (Duran Duran), Sarah Dallin (Bananarama),
Siobhan Fahey (Bananarama), Pete Briquette (The Boomtown Rats), Francis Rossi (Status Quo), Robert ‘Kool’ Bell (Kool & the Gang, whose members were the only Americans to participate), Dennis J. T. Thomas (Kool & the Gang), Andy Taylor (Duran Duran), Jon Moss (Culture Club), Sting (The Police), Rick Parfitt (Status Quo), Nick Rhodes (Duran Duran), Johnny Fingers (The Boomtown Rats), David Bowie, Boy George (Culture Club), Holly Johnson (Frankie Goes to Hollywood), Paul McCartney (The Beatles, Wings), Stuart Adamson (Big Country), Bruce Watson (Big Country), Tony Butler (Big Country), Mark Brzezicki (Big Country)