Ailsa's Blog: Meet Our Members: Rowena
My first memory is age 7 singing in the Harvest Festival event at Primary School. I threw up over the back of my friend Janet Kershaw - sorry Janet - and was promptly removed from the stage.
My mother asked if I would like to learn the piano but I said no and for some reason that never went any further - something I regret now.
My father loved classical music and we would sit on a Sunday evening and listen to his LPs after tea, having watched the usual Dickens series on TV. My mother preferred Gilbert and Sullivan but that never got a look in!! I still have dad’s LPs in the loft with many memories attached.
On to Junior school where we were taught how to read music and play different instruments eg tambourine, triangle, cymbals and castanets. And of course the recorder. I played in all the subsequent school events where they needed recorder players. I don't remember much singing, not to say we didn’t do it.
Grammar school was much more serious and we were selected to sing in our choir - of which I was one. We took part in the joint schools’ productions of some major works in the Nottingham Albert Hall. I remember singing Carmina Burana and Aida.
At 19, I joined the WRAF and there was no serious singing for 12 years but as soon as I came out I bought a house in Milton Keynes and joined their Choral Society. The average age was between 30 - 50 and it seemed like most of them were either teachers or worked for the Open University! Our President was Simon Rattle and our founder Hilary Davan Wetton. We had nearly 120 members when I joined in 1985 and we sang in a purpose built music auditorium. I sang with them until I moved down here in 1995. We sang 4 concerts per year including a Christmas concert. We competed in an Eistedfodd one year and, much to the locals’ surprise, we won several of the categories which we entered. We also used to hire a bus and go down to the Albert Hall each year and take part in the Really Big Chorus events (usually the Messiah).
My first choir here was with the East Sussex Bach choir under John Hancorn. Unfortunately after 3 years with them I developed breast cancer and my voice was affected by the pills I was taking so I left. I then tried my hand at learning the piano but in the end my friend, who was teaching me, and I spent most of the time talking! I did manage to get to about grade 2 after 10 years!
I used to talk to Mary Mercer when we were in the gym about singing and the choir and then another friend joined the Seaford Choir and encouraged me to join as well. So, in 2019, that is what I did. And within a few weeks I volunteered to join the committee because I like to know what is going on. Françoise subsequently stepped down as Secretary and I started taking the Meeting notes, which I still do.
