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May 2024
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
Immediately following on this page you will find documents for this year's AGM. These are:
1. Convening Notice
2. Chair's Report - you can click here to download this as PDF file
3. Music Director's Report - you can click here to download this as a PDF file
The Treasurer's Report is also available to members on request.
1. Convening Notice
2. Chair's Report - you can click here to download this as PDF file
3. Music Director's Report - you can click here to download this as a PDF file
The Treasurer's Report is also available to members on request.
Click on the image above to see an enlarged view
You can download a nomination slip for the Committee here:
| Convening Notice 2024 - Nomination Slips.pdf |
Chair's Report
I can scarcely believe that another year has passed already and the AGM is almost upon us, time certainly does fly as you get older!
After last year’s AGM we had our summer concert, which went very well, with some ‘lighter’ numbers for us to perform on a very hot day in a stifling hall – the refreshments afterwards were very welcome, I seem to remember…. Hopefully we won’t suffer this year at Fairford, which is a much nicer singing environment.
We have been lucky this year to be able to move our rehearsals to Fairford, as well as the summer and Christmas concerts. It is a better environment to sing in and, not to be sniffed at, cheaper for us to hire than BJS. We have considered it for our main concerts, but the parking there is just not good enough so we are having to stick with the Methodist Church, although we are open to suggestions for alternative venues as parking there is also tricky. Thank you to everybody for making the move to Fairford so straightforward, I know that it has made some people’s journeys to the rehearsals more difficult and your willingness to travel is much appreciated.
I will echo Nick’s remarks about our concerts this past year – some challenging stuff for us to learn and Nick’s confidence in our ability to live up to his high standards is hopefully not misplaced! One of the things that distinguishes us from other Choral groups is the variety of music we perform – I know that it is not always to everybody’s tastes, but I take the view that it is good for me to learn things that I wouldn’t necessarily choose myself and I hope you think the same.
Nick is correct in his report to assume that I will also echo his comments about the need to recruit more singers if we want to keep going – perhaps we could start giving prizes to anyone who successfully persuades someone to join our ranks, especially men! It is a serious issue, however, so if we could all rack our brains to think of ways in which we could introduce potential new members to AFC, we will all benefit. Perhaps you’re a member of a Church, or other group, where you could put out feelers. It’s always worth asking.
I will also repeat remarks made in the past about ticket sales and the need to up the numbers coming to our concerts, for financial reasons if nothing else. We must all feel disappointed when we have worked really hard on our pieces and have relatively few people there to listen to us. One thought that has been mooted and which you might like to think about is the timing of our concerts – you will know that Nick’s other choir(s) have concerts that start much earlier than our main concerts and this could be something we need to seriously consider.
We have had some very generous donations this year, without which we would be struggling. My thanks to all those who have so kindly given us money in order for us to keep doing something we all love.
Huge thanks as always to Nick for all the hard work he puts into AFC, and to Rowena for tackling everything that he throws at her – we are fortunate indeed to have them both.
Last but never least – thanks to the Committee and to Frankie, we would certainly not be able to keep going without the time they willingly give in order to keep the show on the road.
Kate Atherton (May 2024)
After last year’s AGM we had our summer concert, which went very well, with some ‘lighter’ numbers for us to perform on a very hot day in a stifling hall – the refreshments afterwards were very welcome, I seem to remember…. Hopefully we won’t suffer this year at Fairford, which is a much nicer singing environment.
We have been lucky this year to be able to move our rehearsals to Fairford, as well as the summer and Christmas concerts. It is a better environment to sing in and, not to be sniffed at, cheaper for us to hire than BJS. We have considered it for our main concerts, but the parking there is just not good enough so we are having to stick with the Methodist Church, although we are open to suggestions for alternative venues as parking there is also tricky. Thank you to everybody for making the move to Fairford so straightforward, I know that it has made some people’s journeys to the rehearsals more difficult and your willingness to travel is much appreciated.
I will echo Nick’s remarks about our concerts this past year – some challenging stuff for us to learn and Nick’s confidence in our ability to live up to his high standards is hopefully not misplaced! One of the things that distinguishes us from other Choral groups is the variety of music we perform – I know that it is not always to everybody’s tastes, but I take the view that it is good for me to learn things that I wouldn’t necessarily choose myself and I hope you think the same.
Nick is correct in his report to assume that I will also echo his comments about the need to recruit more singers if we want to keep going – perhaps we could start giving prizes to anyone who successfully persuades someone to join our ranks, especially men! It is a serious issue, however, so if we could all rack our brains to think of ways in which we could introduce potential new members to AFC, we will all benefit. Perhaps you’re a member of a Church, or other group, where you could put out feelers. It’s always worth asking.
I will also repeat remarks made in the past about ticket sales and the need to up the numbers coming to our concerts, for financial reasons if nothing else. We must all feel disappointed when we have worked really hard on our pieces and have relatively few people there to listen to us. One thought that has been mooted and which you might like to think about is the timing of our concerts – you will know that Nick’s other choir(s) have concerts that start much earlier than our main concerts and this could be something we need to seriously consider.
We have had some very generous donations this year, without which we would be struggling. My thanks to all those who have so kindly given us money in order for us to keep doing something we all love.
Huge thanks as always to Nick for all the hard work he puts into AFC, and to Rowena for tackling everything that he throws at her – we are fortunate indeed to have them both.
Last but never least – thanks to the Committee and to Frankie, we would certainly not be able to keep going without the time they willingly give in order to keep the show on the road.
Kate Atherton (May 2024)
Music Director's Report
The first use of ‘small but perfectly formed’ is believed to be 1779 in an article describing a newly discovered aquatic animal. The most recent use is by me in describing Aylesbury Festival Choir! I know we only have, at most, 2 basses but the balance is good, and the choir continues to tackle increasingly more demanding programmes with huge success.
December’s Choral Classics programme was superb with a huge range of styles from a cappella Tallis to Rutter’s Winchester Te Deum. The Rheinberger Stabat Mater was exquisite from start to finish and the Bach had a very youthful and exciting sound.
There were no soloists so the whole programme was down to AFC. Impressive!
Ben’s accompanying was, as always, superb.
The Family Carol Concert was put together, as usual, in very little time and, again, was a very happy occasion. It was the first concert in our new rehearsal venue and definitely benefitted from having a real live Christmas Dog in attendance! There was a reasonable sized audience – possibly helped by being in the school holiday and at 4pm. This year will be different so it will be interesting to compare.
The Spring Concert was met with mixed views by singers and learning those 4 works in just 14 rehearsals was very hard work.
In the end, this huge undertaking went off with a bang with very few ‘wobbly’ moments. Texts were clear, tuning was good and a little help from our soloist, Felicity, definitely gave proceedings a lift.
Rowena, substituting for Neil, performed brilliantly both musically & technically. Amazing support in concert as well as in rehearsals. Thanks Rowena!
As I write, rehearsals are underway for our summer concert: Ellington, Beatles, Gershwin and Captain Noah. I have no doubt that AFC will deliver the goods in this concert too.
Next season is going to be just as much fun: Poulenc’s Gloria, Aylett’s Elegy & Rutter’s Feel the Spirit will give us plenty to get our teeth into and then, in May, a joint concert with Amchor performing Rutter’s Requiem and Magnificat with the British Sinfonietta.
I know Kate will mention this but we’re still struggling to recruit new members. Especially basses. We may have to launch a much bigger campaign to attract new singers into what is certainly one of the most versatile singing groups in the area!
My thanks to all the committee for their support throughout the year and all others who join Team AFC to help at various times. None of these fantastic concerts would happen without you.
Here’s to another wonderful year of music making!
Nick (May 2024)
December’s Choral Classics programme was superb with a huge range of styles from a cappella Tallis to Rutter’s Winchester Te Deum. The Rheinberger Stabat Mater was exquisite from start to finish and the Bach had a very youthful and exciting sound.
There were no soloists so the whole programme was down to AFC. Impressive!
Ben’s accompanying was, as always, superb.
The Family Carol Concert was put together, as usual, in very little time and, again, was a very happy occasion. It was the first concert in our new rehearsal venue and definitely benefitted from having a real live Christmas Dog in attendance! There was a reasonable sized audience – possibly helped by being in the school holiday and at 4pm. This year will be different so it will be interesting to compare.
The Spring Concert was met with mixed views by singers and learning those 4 works in just 14 rehearsals was very hard work.
In the end, this huge undertaking went off with a bang with very few ‘wobbly’ moments. Texts were clear, tuning was good and a little help from our soloist, Felicity, definitely gave proceedings a lift.
Rowena, substituting for Neil, performed brilliantly both musically & technically. Amazing support in concert as well as in rehearsals. Thanks Rowena!
As I write, rehearsals are underway for our summer concert: Ellington, Beatles, Gershwin and Captain Noah. I have no doubt that AFC will deliver the goods in this concert too.
Next season is going to be just as much fun: Poulenc’s Gloria, Aylett’s Elegy & Rutter’s Feel the Spirit will give us plenty to get our teeth into and then, in May, a joint concert with Amchor performing Rutter’s Requiem and Magnificat with the British Sinfonietta.
I know Kate will mention this but we’re still struggling to recruit new members. Especially basses. We may have to launch a much bigger campaign to attract new singers into what is certainly one of the most versatile singing groups in the area!
My thanks to all the committee for their support throughout the year and all others who join Team AFC to help at various times. None of these fantastic concerts would happen without you.
Here’s to another wonderful year of music making!
Nick (May 2024)
May 2023
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
Immediately following on this page you will find documents from the 2023 AGM. These are:
1. Chair's Report - you can click here to go directly to it, or here to download this as PDF file
2. Music Director's Report - you can click here to go directly, or here to download this as a PDF file
The Treasurer's Report is also available to members on request.
1. Chair's Report - you can click here to go directly to it, or here to download this as PDF file
2. Music Director's Report - you can click here to go directly, or here to download this as a PDF file
The Treasurer's Report is also available to members on request.
Chair's Report
I am pleased to be able to reflect on another successful year for AFC, in my first stint as Chair of the Choir. My grateful thanks are especially due to Mike for leaving the Chair’s position in such good order and for supporting me (i.e. telling me what I ought to be doing) throughout the year, I couldn’t have wished for better guidance.
The world seems to have moved on from Covid at last, although there are still cases cropping up every now and then as a reminder of what we went through. We’re fortunate in having had a very good health system to deal with that and hopefully we will have learnt much to help us deal with a future pandemic, should we be unlucky enough to have another in our lifetimes.
Musically, we have had a good year – fantastic performances of ‘Messiah’ and the two Requiems, with a carol concert and performance at Bullingdon Prison thrown in for good measure. The summer term is a nice contrast to the rest of the year. I am glad that we as a choir are able to perform such a wide variety of music rather than sticking to the ‘old favourites’, although this presents its own issues regarding attendance at concerts.
I will echo Nick’s words here in emphasising the need to increase our numbers – not only to help ensure the survival of the choir in terms of subscriptions, but also to avoid the necessity of having to use ‘bumpers’ in the concerts. If you’ve had a chance to look at Lyn’s Treasurer’s report you will not have failed to notice that AFC would be in a much more precarious financial position were it not for some very generous donations over the last few years. Our concerts rarely make a profit, audience numbers and concert costs being what they are. I was especially disappointed with the audience numbers at the last concert in April; I thought we performed really well and it was a great shame there were relatively few people there to see it. This is the responsibility of all of us in the choir, we can’t sit back and say ‘other people will sell tickets’ – it’s down to each and every one of us to do our best in this regard.
To continue this point, we on the Committee are always ready to hear about any ideas for publicity, advertising, ticket sales etc; please don’t feel that you need to be on the Committee to suggest ideas, we are all in this together in our desire to see AFC keep thriving.
We continue to be extremely fortunate in our Musical Director Nick and Accompanist Rowena, their expertise and talent is remarkable and we should all be very grateful that we have them on board. I can’t imagine how the Duruflé might have gone under some previous Musical Directors I have known… I think their enthusiasm and belief in us is a massive boost to how we do perform and I would like to thank them hugely on behalf of the Choir for the work they do.
My thanks also go to everyone on the AFC Committee, they do a fantastic job behind the scenes keeping our collective show on the road. Many thanks also to Frankie for keeping our tea breaks supplied with the necessary comestibles!
I look forward to another successful and exciting musical year.
Kate Atherton
The world seems to have moved on from Covid at last, although there are still cases cropping up every now and then as a reminder of what we went through. We’re fortunate in having had a very good health system to deal with that and hopefully we will have learnt much to help us deal with a future pandemic, should we be unlucky enough to have another in our lifetimes.
Musically, we have had a good year – fantastic performances of ‘Messiah’ and the two Requiems, with a carol concert and performance at Bullingdon Prison thrown in for good measure. The summer term is a nice contrast to the rest of the year. I am glad that we as a choir are able to perform such a wide variety of music rather than sticking to the ‘old favourites’, although this presents its own issues regarding attendance at concerts.
I will echo Nick’s words here in emphasising the need to increase our numbers – not only to help ensure the survival of the choir in terms of subscriptions, but also to avoid the necessity of having to use ‘bumpers’ in the concerts. If you’ve had a chance to look at Lyn’s Treasurer’s report you will not have failed to notice that AFC would be in a much more precarious financial position were it not for some very generous donations over the last few years. Our concerts rarely make a profit, audience numbers and concert costs being what they are. I was especially disappointed with the audience numbers at the last concert in April; I thought we performed really well and it was a great shame there were relatively few people there to see it. This is the responsibility of all of us in the choir, we can’t sit back and say ‘other people will sell tickets’ – it’s down to each and every one of us to do our best in this regard.
To continue this point, we on the Committee are always ready to hear about any ideas for publicity, advertising, ticket sales etc; please don’t feel that you need to be on the Committee to suggest ideas, we are all in this together in our desire to see AFC keep thriving.
We continue to be extremely fortunate in our Musical Director Nick and Accompanist Rowena, their expertise and talent is remarkable and we should all be very grateful that we have them on board. I can’t imagine how the Duruflé might have gone under some previous Musical Directors I have known… I think their enthusiasm and belief in us is a massive boost to how we do perform and I would like to thank them hugely on behalf of the Choir for the work they do.
My thanks also go to everyone on the AFC Committee, they do a fantastic job behind the scenes keeping our collective show on the road. Many thanks also to Frankie for keeping our tea breaks supplied with the necessary comestibles!
I look forward to another successful and exciting musical year.
Kate Atherton
Music Director's Report
This could well be a short ‘do it yourself’ report: start with “AFC were” and then insert many superlatives!
It’s been a fabulous season! Messiah was terrific fun and AFC showed just how agile they can be when they try. They also managed to conserve energy enough to get through such a long programme!
Carols were good but weren’t particularly well attended – personally I’d like us to do a more formal concert – coupled with some more ‘aggressive’ marketing for ticket sales & membership. Something to consider as we move forwards.
Taking a small group out into the community (Bullingdon Prison’s staff Remembrance Day Service) was a positive experience and I think we might have a regular annual ‘gig’ there.
Our (almost all) French programme was quite remarkable – totally different challenges to Messiah: complex and close harmonies, rhythmically taxing, huge dynamic range required plus sensitivity to changes of tempo. And that was just the 3rd movement of the Duruflé!!
AFC certainly rose to the challenge and, with Ben’s superb accompaniment, the concert, musically speaking, was a huge success. I don’t think I’ve ever been prouder to be AFC’s MD than after that concert.
Our summer programme is shaping up nicely with a very contrasting set of songs. This will also be a ‘tester’ stylistically speaking – early indications, however, are excellent.
Next season will bring new and exciting challenges: a very mixed bag of choral classics in the autumn and then a programme of music from 5 British composers (2 of whom are still alive and 1 of whom will be at the concert) in the spring of 2024. I have no doubt that AFC will tackle all these with their usual enthusiasm.
Please be ambassadors for AFC and spread the word – we DO need to increase our numbers. Another 10 members would bring increased subscriptions and bigger audiences. If those 10 included 2 more basses and 3 more altos, the balance of the choir would be better & we could probably save on importing ‘bumpers’.
My thanks to all the committee who continue to be incredibly supportive, to others who help behind the scenes to make AFC run smoothly, and to all of you for your continued enthusiasm! Here’s to another year of fabulous music making!
Nick Austin (May 2023)
It’s been a fabulous season! Messiah was terrific fun and AFC showed just how agile they can be when they try. They also managed to conserve energy enough to get through such a long programme!
Carols were good but weren’t particularly well attended – personally I’d like us to do a more formal concert – coupled with some more ‘aggressive’ marketing for ticket sales & membership. Something to consider as we move forwards.
Taking a small group out into the community (Bullingdon Prison’s staff Remembrance Day Service) was a positive experience and I think we might have a regular annual ‘gig’ there.
Our (almost all) French programme was quite remarkable – totally different challenges to Messiah: complex and close harmonies, rhythmically taxing, huge dynamic range required plus sensitivity to changes of tempo. And that was just the 3rd movement of the Duruflé!!
AFC certainly rose to the challenge and, with Ben’s superb accompaniment, the concert, musically speaking, was a huge success. I don’t think I’ve ever been prouder to be AFC’s MD than after that concert.
Our summer programme is shaping up nicely with a very contrasting set of songs. This will also be a ‘tester’ stylistically speaking – early indications, however, are excellent.
Next season will bring new and exciting challenges: a very mixed bag of choral classics in the autumn and then a programme of music from 5 British composers (2 of whom are still alive and 1 of whom will be at the concert) in the spring of 2024. I have no doubt that AFC will tackle all these with their usual enthusiasm.
Please be ambassadors for AFC and spread the word – we DO need to increase our numbers. Another 10 members would bring increased subscriptions and bigger audiences. If those 10 included 2 more basses and 3 more altos, the balance of the choir would be better & we could probably save on importing ‘bumpers’.
My thanks to all the committee who continue to be incredibly supportive, to others who help behind the scenes to make AFC run smoothly, and to all of you for your continued enthusiasm! Here’s to another year of fabulous music making!
Nick Austin (May 2023)
November 2021
CAR PARKING
Car parks in descending order of proximity to Aylesbury Methodist Church.
(Those marked with a * now have the facility to use either the RingGo or GroupNexus app using your mobile).
1. * Cooper’s Yard (Buckingham St, adjacent to AMC) – 1-3hrs £2.00, 3-4 hrs £3.50, 4-5 hrs £5.00, over 5 hrs £8.00.
2. * Whitehall Car Park (top of Oxford Rd) – up to 5hrs £2.50, over 5 hrs £4.00
3. * Sainsburys – FREE after 6.00 pm
4. * Exchange Street, (next to cinema) – 3hrs £2.50, 4hrs £4.00, 5hrs £5.00, over 5 hrs £8.00
5. * The Junction (Cambridge St) – FREE for first 2 hrs, 2-3 hrs £2.00, 3-4 hrs £3.00, 4-5 hrs £5.00, 5-8hrs -
10.00
6. * Multi-storey (Walton St) – 3 hrs £2.00, 5 hrs £2.50, over 5 hrs £4
If you would prefer to download this information to read offline, you can download it as a PDF file here:
CAR PARKING
Car parks in descending order of proximity to Aylesbury Methodist Church.
(Those marked with a * now have the facility to use either the RingGo or GroupNexus app using your mobile).
1. * Cooper’s Yard (Buckingham St, adjacent to AMC) – 1-3hrs £2.00, 3-4 hrs £3.50, 4-5 hrs £5.00, over 5 hrs £8.00.
2. * Whitehall Car Park (top of Oxford Rd) – up to 5hrs £2.50, over 5 hrs £4.00
3. * Sainsburys – FREE after 6.00 pm
4. * Exchange Street, (next to cinema) – 3hrs £2.50, 4hrs £4.00, 5hrs £5.00, over 5 hrs £8.00
5. * The Junction (Cambridge St) – FREE for first 2 hrs, 2-3 hrs £2.00, 3-4 hrs £3.00, 4-5 hrs £5.00, 5-8hrs -
10.00
6. * Multi-storey (Walton St) – 3 hrs £2.00, 5 hrs £2.50, over 5 hrs £4
If you would prefer to download this information to read offline, you can download it as a PDF file here:
| Car Parking Near Aylesbury Methodist Church |
It may be helpful to use this map to locate the listed car parks in relation to our normal concert venue of Aylesbury Methodist Church. Click on the image for an enlarged view.
To give you an idea of the work our Press & Publicity rep gets involved with, here is our latest press release for return to live singing...
August 2021
Older news items
...and here is the press release for our summer 'online' term
The Committee is pleased to announce that Sir David Lidington has kindly accepted our invitation to become President of the Choir. David has been a familiar face in our audience, and has been noted to sing along at times. More Handel coming up then...
