Dear Singers,
I apologize in advance for the length of the announcements for this week, however, this weekly email allows us to share important information without using too much valuable rehearsal time. Please take moment to read through the entirely of the email.
Attendance reminder (excerpt from Chorus Handbook): Regular attendance is vital to the health of any chorus. Tone, blend, vocal production, and a host of other choral skills are honed at rehearsal, and inconsistent attendance weakens both the musicality and morale of the group. Membership Liaisons take attendance at each rehearsal. There may be times when unforeseen circumstances prevent attendance. In these instances, no more than three absences are permitted during the Spring semester. Attendance via Zoom will be allowed for extenuating circumstances such as illness or travel but will count as ½ an absence. Retreats count as two rehearsals for attendance purposes. Technical rehearsals are mandatory. If a member is absent from a technical rehearsal or exceeds her allotted absences, she will not be allowed to perform in the concert unless prior approval has been received from the Artistic Director. If you will be absent or plan to attend via Zoom, please notify Laura Sam at (336) 263- 7754 or director@womensvoiceschorus.org, your Section Leader, and your Membership Liaison.
Table Sales: Our next Table Sale will be held on Monday February 26. The theme will be Heart of the Home Household items, cookware, lamps, tools, garden supplies. *Must be in clean, working order. Sales will take place before rehearsal (7:00 – 7:30) and during the break. Members are encouraged to bring items to sell, as well as money to spend (Venmo accepted)! Please mark items with a price you set. Prices should be in full-dollar amounts. If you are unsure of how to price your item, we recommend 10-50% of the price of the item when purchased new, depending on condition. You may also refer to garage or yard sale pricing guides, for example here. Items MUST BE clean and in good condition – this is NOT a junk sale! Think boutique. To take tax deductions for donations, use the In-Kind Donation form. At the end of rehearsal, members can collect their unsold items. You can also bring food to sell: cookies, cakes, pies, breads, or soups. Like a bake sale, you make and price. Please include a label with a list of ingredients. Any food you make that is not purchased will be your responsibility to take home or give away. All proceeds go to the WVC Tour Financial Aid account!
Tour Announcement: We have space for five additional travelers for our concert tour of Ireland, August 2-11, 2024, and it is not too late to register to go. Some important factors to consider as you weigh your decision: (1) When you register, you will need to make a deposit equal to the first three installments we’ve already paid ($1943.40 (make your own flight arrangements) or $2912.40 (travel on the group’s flight contract); (2) any cancellations after April 1 will incur a financial penalty; and (3) if you opt to make your own flight arrangements (going and/or coming), you must do so by April 1. At Laura’s discretion, you may be asked to move to another voice part to create a balanced ensemble. Jackie Walters, our tour manager, is happy to answer any questions (jjwalters.silverspring@verizon.net). In the meantime, check out the proposed itinerary, costs, and other information in the Members-Only section of our website: 2024 Ireland Tour – Women's Voices Chorus (womensvoiceschorus.org).
Irish-themed fundraising/ outreach events March 13 and March 14: Later this week, you will be receiving an e-news announcement about two special St. Patrick’s Day tour fundraising events. On March 13, we are partnering with Hi-Wire Brewing in Durham to host an Irish-themed evening in their regular trivia night series. On March 14, we are partnering with multi-instrumentalist Eileen Regan and The Glass Jug-Downtown Durham to host an evening of live Irish music. Please forward these invitations to friends, family, neighbors, and anyone you think might be interested. Of course, attendance is optional, but we would love to see you! If you are trying to decide between the two events, keep in mind that the trivia night is a regular event and draws a committed crowd, whereas The Glass Jug music session is a special one-off event for which we are co-hosts. We appreciate all your support!
T-shirt Sale is Open: Our tee-shirt merch store is live! We have been working with a woman-owned business in Durham to produce our next set of tour and regular chorus shirts. Durham Short Run Shirts and owner Jamie Wolcott have been great to work with and I think you’ll find it easy to order shirts using the website created especially for Women’s Voices Chorus: https://durhamshortrunshirts.printavo.com/merch/womensvoicesmerch/. This link is also available from the WVC website when you log in and go to the Ireland Tour 2024 Fundraising page. We have tour shirts (womens and mens) in short and long sleeve styles, and regular chorus shirts (womens short sleeve). You can specify the size of each easily. Order some for yourself, friends, and family! If you have any problems, please let me know and I can help you with your order! Many thanks to the tee-shirt crew! Mia Prior created the wonderful tour shirt artwork. Sheila Williams, Amie Tedeschi, and Kate DeAlmeida all contributed ideas and support, and Karla helped guide the entire process.
Soliciting volunteers for March 14 live Irish music event
March 14 from 7-10pm at The Glass Jug-Downtown Durham, we will co-host a live Irish music event featuring three sets of Irish instrumental session music led by Eileen Regan and the High Strung Sessioners and short singalongs of popular tunes led by members of Women’s Voices Chorus. You are welcome to just come, nurse your pint, and enjoy the music, but if you would like to take on more of a leadership role, we’d love for you to step up! We have a singalong leader ready to go for each of three singalong segments, but we would love to include as many Women’s Voices as singalong team members as we can–whether singing a verse at the mic or mingling in the crowd to encourage more participation. Also, if you play an acoustic instrument such as a guitar, uke, or harp, and would like to accompany the singalong, we could use you!
We also would love for some engaging Women’s Voices Chorus ambassadors to take turns at our table during event, collecting donations, selling tickets to our spring concert, and giving out general information about the chorus. If you would like to help, please speak to Sarah Town (S2) at rehearsal on 2/19 or 2/26, or email her at pedritasf@yahoo.com by 2/26. Thank you!! Go raibh míle maith agaibh!!
Update on Funds Raised: Attached is a summary of the funds raised as of January 31, 2024. Thank you all for your generous support. You make WVC possible.
February Birthdays: Please join me in wishing the following singers a very Happy Birthday: Laura Sam (2/1), Jackie Little (2/3), Kinley Russell (2/4), Mia Prior (2/10), Amie Tedeschi (2/10), Amy Glass (2/19), and Carly Bunch (2/27).
Shout-out: This week we recognize Karla Byrnes for all of her behind-the-scenes work to close-out our winter season and get everything in place to begin our Spring semester. There are countless tasks required to keep WVC running smoothly and we are so grateful for her masterful work. THANK YOU! Special shout-outs to Laura Sam and Sue Regier who held Birthday fundraisers on Facebook, earning over $400 in donations to Women’s Voices Chorus!
Zoom Link for Rehearsal: You can join the Zoom Rehearsals here. Meeting ID: 858 3293 4624; Password: 121074.
See you tomorrow night!
Janet