Happy Holidays - Joyeuses Fetes

Activism

I sometimes wonder if I am doing enough here to help others. When I lived in San Francisco I helped building some houses for "Habitat For Humanity" and I helped out at the kitchen of "Glide", (a church in San Francisco with a wonderful Gospel choir) that serves meals to the homeless 3 times a day. Since I moved to San Diego I have not volunteered for anything other than events for the Chorus I sing with. Which brings up something that our Artistic Director said a few weeks ago that made me realize that in our own way we are helping out. Some people are very good at picketing and talking to the media, walking in the streets, knocking on doors and help to make changes. Others are not. And although I realize that there are times when all of us should voice our opinion when what matters is numbers and not necessarily content, maybe I am doing my part by entertaining and teaching tolerance and love of others and helping bridge the gap between the different communities through our music. Activism has several faces and each one is as important as the other. GMCSD participates in some events throughout the year and one of them is the "Tree Of Life" lighting ceremony every December 1st on World AIDS Day.


"The Chorus marked World AIDS Day on December 1 by singing at the annual lighting of the Mama's Kitchen Tree of Life in the Village Hillcrest plaza. The ceremony drew about 300 people and featured distinguished speakers, including Mama's Kitchen Executive Director and GMCSD member Alberto Cortés. Attendees lit candles and observed a moment of silence to remember AIDS victims and to pray for the millions more who are affected by HIV.
Mama's Kitchen delivers free, nutritious meals daily to thousands of San Diegans who are living with advanced HIV, AIDS, and other critical illnesses. For more information, see mamaskitchen.org."

I do wish I had more time to volunteer and help out in a more immediate way, but maybe our small contribution with our music is more appreciated and needed than I realize.

Winter and Hell Week

Winter is definitely here! I have been flying to other parts of the country where the temperatures are much lower than ours and where they are deep in snow or rain, so I try to keep things in perspective but it is chilly. No more shorts and t-shirts for a while. Sweaters and long sleeves shirts are coming out of the closet. Today the weather is overcast and gray although yesterday we had blue sky and sunshine. The temperature this week will not go over 63 degrees with lows in the 40s. Not really California heatwave. We get so used to the usual hot and beautiful weather, that when the temperatures drop, we feel as if all of a sudden it is below zero. The drop between daytime and nighttime is very noticeable though, and you better prepare if you will not be coming home at the end of the day before going out. Layers, they say, layers...


Yesterday was the official start of our "Hell Week". A little ironic in the 45 degrees weather. I spent the whole day with my iPod listening to our songs and trying to finally learn the lyrics. The concerts are this coming weekend and by now we should all be "off music". I have been having a hard time with this show. Either I am getting old and cannot learn as easily as I used to, or I just cannot "bond" with some of the songs. I will go with the latter!!! There is one song that I just do not like at all so I was having trouble memorizing the words. There are others that are just hard for some reason. The lyrics do not really tell a story. They just seem to be a random collection of words (I am sure they are not, but that is how they come out)and this makes it hard to recall what is coming next. But yesterday I guess all this non-stop listening paid off a little. In the shower I caught myself singing 2 of the ones I was having the hardest time with. Well now I know the words but after last night rehearsal I still have some trouble spots with the notes. My location within the Chorus does not help me either. I am seating on one side next to a singer that I never hear so I cannot rely on him for help, and on the other side and behind me are other sections (2nd Tenors and Basses) which I hear plenty. It is hard not to take their notes when you are not sure of yours and all you can hear is theirs. I guess I need to work a little more on my music between now and Saturday. I was overall happy though because I was in panic mode after last week rehearsal and realizing how much I did not know. Last night I was definitely confident enough and as our Artistic Director always say, "if you are going to sing the wrong note, at least sing it loud and clear so we can fix it"!