07/18/2014
We are home and happy about our success at Ely Cathedral! We had an awesome time singing six Evensongs, a full-crowd concert in the Lady Chapel at Ely, and a Sunday morning Eucharist, at which we sang the John McCreary’s Hawaiian Mass in the Hawaiian language, the first time ever for Ely in a language not English or Latin. The Evensongs were reverent and spine-tingling. As far as we know, when we sang Queen Lili’uokalani’s The Queen’s Jubilee in our Lady Chapel concert, it was the first time this piece was ever sung in England! Singing great music in a huge, reverberant, ancient space (1000 years old) is truly indescribable–you have to be there and do it to really feel what it’s like. However, the children and adults of the choir came through like pros and discovered the greatness of what they did.
Comments from the warm and wonderful people of Ely town were gratifying: “The tone of your trebles was so clear and beautiful.” ”Why are you thanking us for singing here? We are the ones who should be thanking you!” ”You can be very proud of your singing.” ”Please come back and sing for us again!”
We were honored to have the composer of one of our Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis sets, Mark Blatchly, attend the Evensong at which we sang his work. Mark’s comments afterwards via email were,
"I was so delighted to come to Ely on Wednesday last, and was thrilled with your warm, sympathetic and lively performance of my music. I was also overcome with the warmth of the reception you all gave me; I shall treasure the garland I received. It is wonderful to think of my music being sung on the other side of the world, and to think of you all travelling so far to sing here. I love the sound your choir makes – and would love to hear it sing so much more."
The choir was interviewed and recorded by BBC radio personality, John Sergeant. He gave us both a live radio interview and then later aired a longer special on Sunday morning. When we (Dan and Terry Werning) were having tea at Ely’s The Almonry tea room and restaurant, two tables of local ladies both independently told us they heard the broadcast and were planning on attending our Evensong, which they did. John Sergeant also surprised and delighted us by singing an impromptu song for us accompanied by ukulele!
We are so pleased that KITV’s Pamela Young was with us on the trip, and she and her cameraman Kyle recorded many aspects of the experience. She will share these with you in upcoming news segments and a Mixed Plate story. We will also be appearing on the KITV Morning AM Show on July 29, so watch for us there!
We thank all of you for your support and good wishes. We couldn’t have done this without you! We are expecting more great things–watch for our performances in the future. We love singing for you.
And spread the word: We are looking for more treble choristers (boys and girls ages 7-13), teens, and adults–both male and female–to sing in the choir this fall! (Call us at 220-6969.) Those who undergo the exciting and in-depth training for singing in the Hawai’i Sacred Choir will be rewarded with:
Great camaraderie and new friendships
Intensive training in cathedral techniques that make us one of the top choirs on Oahu
Fun training for your child(ren) that creates in them the ability to sing incredible music, beautifully!
Puts you on track to travel to London in August 2016 to sing at St. Paul’s Cathedral, one of England’s two greatest cathedrals and one of the greatest cathedrals in the world! Join us!
