Finsbury Park Singers member subscription – Autumn term 2024

Description

This subscription is for the Autumn term 2024 onwards and is available only to current choir members – please do not share this link with anyone outside the choir.

Any remaining places for the Autumn term will be available to book from Friday 14th June for Finsbury Park Singers’ Summer term members. Bookings will open later for former choir members and singers on the waiting list. 

You are warmly invited to sign up for a subscription membership with Finsbury Park Singers, led by Charles MacDougall.

Rehearsals will be every Tuesday at St John’s Highbury Vale School, Conewood Street, Islington N5 1DL from 7.30pm to 9pm.

Repertoire will include a range of styles in 3-4 part harmony. There are no auditions and all singers are welcome.

If places in your voice part are fully booked, please email assistant@hannahbrine.co.uk to be added to the waiting list.

Where?

St John’s Highbury Vale School, Conewood Street, Islington N5 1DL (nearest tube Arsenal)

When?

Tuesdays, 7.30pm to 9pm. Term and concert dates to be confirmed. To be valid for the Autumn term 2024, your subscription needs to begin in May 2024. The cost is £30 / month, equivalent to £120 per term (3 terms per year).

Provisional term dates are (NB these are subject to change):

Autumn term 2024
10-week term beings 17 September
End-of-term concert on Friday 13th December at St Mary’s, Upper Street

What’s included?

• Rehearsals
• Sheet music/ lyrics for all songs (which we will supply)
• Rehearsal mp3s where appropriate

Cost

£30 per month

The payments are applied as follows:
January, February, March, April – payment for Summer term. First payment must be made in January.
May, June, July, August – payment for Autumn term. First payment must be made in May.
September, October, November, December – payment for Spring term. First payment must be made in September.

Any places not booked on a subscription basis by the end of May 2024 will be available to book via a single £120 payment when the regular bookings open in mid-June.

If your monthly payments are cancelled, suspended or the payment is not completed, your membership will be cancelled and your place offered to another singer on the waiting list.

If you find you are not able to join for a term you can cancel your subscription up until 14 days before the date of the first rehearsal and you will receive a refund of the fees paid for that particular term, minus an administration fee of £10. Please note that if you leave the choir we cannot guarantee that a place will be available in subsequent terms.

If your voice part is fully booked, please do not book another voice part unless you are willing to sing that part – instead email assistant@hannahbrine.co.uk to be added to a waiting list.

Please note that the cost of the term is fixed regardless of when you join, we do not offer a pro rata rate or pay-as-you-go option, or refunds for missed sessions.

Bursary scheme

A limited number of bursaries are available for adults aged 18+ who would like to attend the choir but due to their financial situation are unable to do so. To apply, please complete the online bursary application form.

Questions and answers

Q: Who can join? The choir is open to anyone. You don’t need to be able to read music. Teaching tracks (mp3s) for many pieces are provided electronically. We encourage new members to join us up to week 3 of any new term – please note that Finsbury Park Singers has been oversubscribed for the last few terms so there may not be space to join after the beginning of term, however. In our experience,  it may feel a little overwhelming to join after this time. This is at our discretion, so if you are a very experienced singer or feel you can dedicate the time for learning, do still drop us an email please to discuss.

Q: Is there an audition? No, but for new members we offer a quick informal voice range check to help determine which section you are best suited to (soprano, alto, tenor or bass).

Q: Will I be able to keep up? Rehearsals can move at a fairly fast pace, but if you are new or returning after a break, be assured that you will find things quickly get easier, especially if you make use of the mp3s provide, and listen to other recordings of the pieces. Many of our singers don’t sight read fluently, but learn a lot by ear. Choral singing skills take a little while to build up, but like any language the more we immerse ourselves, the more fluent we become. If we think that you would benefit from more support, there are avenues of support and opportunities that we can offer. These might include recommendations of singing lessons or music theory lessons.

Q: I’m going to miss a couple of the sessions – is it still OK to come? Yes. So long as you practice at home using the scores and mp3s, that is fine.

Q: Will there be a performance? Yes, there will be an end-of-term performance. 

Q: How do I book? Please book by selecting your voice part and following the steps through the checkout process. You will be sent all the information you need by email (please keep an eye out in your ‘junk’ and ‘spam’ folders.)

Terms and conditions:

1. There are no refunds on membership fees. 

2. Singers should be able to commit to attending 70% or more of rehearsals and are asked to sign the register at rehearsals each week.

3. We often perform without music. Singers are asked to put in the appropriate amount of time outside of rehearsals to memorise words and learn your parts. There is usually a little bit of homework each week to revise a couple of songs to ensure we are making progress at each rehearsal. Mp3s of parts for some of the pieces are supplied to help with learning – we do not supply mp3s for all pieces and you are encouraged to read the music and improve your music reading skills.

4. Singers are required to ensure they read the weekly newsletter and communicate with us regarding any additional resources or learning.

5. When you sign up to join the choir, you agree to Hannah Brine using your data for the purposes of communicating with you about choir matters plus forthcoming events and news about the choir and Hannah’s activities. Your contact details will also be shared with the section leader so that they can send information about section-specific events (e.g. sectionals). If you do not wish to have your contact details shared for these purposes please email assistant@hannahbrine.co.uk.