Parkside Singers of Ampthill

Parkside Singers of Ampthill have competed in the Bedfordshire Festival of Music Speech & Drama for 4 years BC (= Before Covid). We look forward to future Festivals.

            Our recent years BedMus Festivals...

 2022   Bedfordshire Festival of Music. (Class 13) FIRST

 2021   No Festival - COVID

 2020   Bedfordshire Festival of Music. (Class 13) PLACED 2nd

 2019   Bedfordshire Festival of Music. (Class 13) DISTINCTION  

 2018   Bedfordshire Festival of Music. (Class 13) COMMENDED

 2017   Bedfordshire Festival of Music. (Class 13) COMMENDED

The Bedfordshire Festival of Music Speech & Drama 22

Bedford Festival of Music, Speech and Drama 2022:  Class No. 13: Community Choir

        Performers: Parkside Singers of Ampthill

Adjudicator’s Comments/Feedback

Like a Rainbow Shining

Sopranos, what a lovely delicate first entry, and how well you warmed the sound and made the phrase grow and colour!  When the lower voices joined you, the full choral sound was attractive, well balanced and very well modulated.  Throughout, your words came across with considerable clarity.

Last Night of the World

Gentlemen, you started the performance with a nice relaxed warmth of choral tone though the rhythm could have been just a shade more unified (the odd voice moved off the syncopation easily in bar 10 for instance).  The whole piece gelled very well and grew to a fine climax before sequeing into:

Bui Doi

This was a well judged performance with the storyline being told with precision.  The connected choral sections were well balanced and, from bar 46, you really showed what you were made of, as you sang unaccompanied.  This was a stirring performance.  Thank you.

Christopher Field (adjudicator)  5/3/22

Placed:            1

Category:        Commended

After 2 years of Covid, Lock-Down, and Zoom rehearsals we finally got singing together again LIVE last July. During that enforced diaspora the leadership of Dave and especially Helen kept the choir together until we were ready to sing as a choir again. We were rusty and breathless. Then we had an objective to aim for and focus upon. With 6 months of rehearsal we have taken three well-chosen songs and learned to sing them. Sing them well enough to wow an audience of SINGERS, and enough to impress an adjudicator. We sang with commitment, diction and concentration. The choir thank James for his accompaniment and Andy for his saxy bits. Above all we thank Dave and Helen for direction, encouragement and insiration. AND.... VERY WELL DONE CHOIR  for a superbly exected festival programme. We WON. We deserved to. The whole choir can be justifiably very pleased and proud. And a special thank you to those who could not attend on 5th March, but have sung with us and helped the performers learn and prepare the pieces.

The Bedfordshire Festival of Music Speech & Drama 2020

Extract from Adjudicator’s Comments (BFMSD 2020) the last before Covid

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Flying Free
A beautiful legato line and attractive phrasing.  Good use of dynamics.  The tone is generally warm and free.  Work hard at the diction – consonants need more crispness.   However, free vowels throughout.  What a beautiful piece – thank you for bringing this.

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Castleford Ladies
Much better diction here.  A fun song with some effective storytelling.

African Prayer
This needs a stronger opening.  Keep breath low and project!  However secure tuning and well-balanced part singing.  Again good use fo dynamics.  Keep the energy up at the end of phrases.  Powerful ending.  Bravo!