Messiah Choral Society of Grand Junction

Special Instructions for Singers

Things that are new this year. We have shortened the performance to just over 1 hr and changed the performance time to 5 pm on Easter Sunday. This will free up singers and audience to be able to participate in Easter Sunday family events. There will be no intermission for the shorter performance so singers and audience will be able to return home in daylight in time for dinner. New singers will be learning a less intimidating 11 choruses instead of 20 or 21. We will be singing from a white 3 ring binder containing copies of the VanCamp choruses we are singing already marked up with Dr. Howard's markings. It is about 1/2 the weight of the full VanCamp score. We will not have sectional rehearsals. We will spend substantially more rehearsal time on the choruses we are singing with the expectation that our audience will hear a shorter program but a higher quality performance.

Things that are the same.The First Methodist Church is located at 522 White Ave. It occupies the space between Grand Ave. and White so you will find it easiest to enter from Grand into the parking lot at the back of the church. The doors of the church will normally be locked at our rehearsal times so be sure to enter at the back door where someone will be present to let you in. We will be rehearsing in a large fellowship hall in the basement. If you arrive after 2:15, you may find a locked door and no one there. You may call my cell 260-4895. We will make a final check at the door at 2:30.

To register to sing:

You can pre-register with us by sending an email to messiah@bresnan.net with your name, voice(SATB), phone, address, and email. If you are a returning singer just give your name and any changes in your contact information. If you pre-register, you will have a name tag available at the first rehearsal and will only need to pick up your 3 ring score binder.

Returning Singer: We will have a room for returning singers. You can register if you have not pre-registered, pick up your 3 ring binder, and pay dues.

New Singers: You can register if you have not pre-registered, pick up your 3 ring binder, purchase a VanCamp score (or show us one you already own), purchase a rehearsal CD (see below), and pay dues (not required until the 3rd rehearsal).

Scores, Score Cover, Rehearsal CD, & Dues:

SCORES - This year we will be rehearsing and performing with a 3 ring binder containing copies from the VanCamp score of the 11 choruses we are singing. These copies include markings added to the score pages by Dr. Howard. You will be assigned a binder with choruses for this year when you register. The binder and the copies within it are the property of the Messiah Choral Society on loan to you for this year's concert. You may highlight your SATB line if you are accustomed to doing that and add markings in pencil as we rehearse. If you do not already own a Van Camp score, we ask that you purchase one so that our rehearsal/performance copies do not violate copyright laws. We will have new copies of the Leonard Van Camp score available at registration for $10. You will own that score.

SCORE COVER - The 3 ring binders will act as our score cover so there is no requirement to purchase a score cover.

REHEARSAL CD - The rehearsal CD has a piano playing the piano reduction and a small ensemble of singers singing each of the choruses. There is a special CD for each SATB voice so if you are singing alto, get an alto CD, etc. On your CD you will hear your part emphasized on the left stereo channel. By adjusting the balance control on your CD player you can control how loud your part sounds relative to the other parts. The CD is a very helpful rehearsal tool even if you have sung Messiah many times before. We offer copies of the CD for $1 each. We will use the same rehearsal CD each year so you need only buy it once.

DUES - The Messiah Choral Society is a Colorado Non-Profit corporation controlled by its members. Annual membership dues are $15 with a maximum of $40 for a family of 3 or more singers. Please pay dues by the 4th rehearsal. You have no obligation except to return your 3 ring binder, if you check us out for 3 rehearsals and then decide not to join. The revenue from dues is used to help offset the cost of the rehearsals (director, accompanist, and section leaders). In addition, upon paying your dues you become a voting member of the Messiah Choral Society empowered to elect the officers of the corporation at the annual meeting held at the rehearsal just prior to the dress rehearsal.

After you have registered, move to the next table a select the items you would like to purchase and pay the cashiers. When you have finished, have a seat in the rehearsal area.

We have spent some time organizing this procedure to process 100 people within forty five minutes.

ABOUT REGISTRATION. Each week after the first rehearsal, we create sheets of name tags for each singer. When you come to subsequent rehearsals, please find and place your name tag on your clothing so other singers can address you by name. In addition, we use the unclaimed name tags to keep attendance records. If you miss several rehearsals in a row, we may contact you to determine if you intend to sing in the performance. This is necessary for us to determine the names of the singers in the concert program and the number of risers required to seat them.

Singing in this performance is about having fun and experiencing the exhilaration of creating something both spiritual and very beautiful and then giving it away as a gift to our community. Some adminstrative hassle is necessary to pull it off.