Choir Members – Welcome to the Spring 2023 Season!

What’s New on This Page!

May 30: Files with Lyrics for Tenors and Basses (see below)
May 30: Minor change to When the Spirit Walks in the Room
May 26: Backing Choir songs: Dream Away and Singing Soul Connection (at top of Concert Repertoire Songs)
May 25: Hotaru Koi — WAIT! Change of Plan! — Sorry, we just decided to postpone this song to next season. See GHC-Breeze for details.
May 19: Minor change to Sing It Out!
May 18: Minor changes to Choir!, Down on the Corner and When the Spirit Walks in the Room
May 16: Updated score for Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika

Apr. 18: New Song When the Spirit Walks in the Room (way at the bottom of the page!)
Apr. 8: Updates to Choir!
Mar. 28: New Songs Choir! and Sing It Out!
Mar. 16: Change to Down on the Corner for Sopranos
Mar. 16: Say, Say Yes Tenor robots are here
Mar. 16: Contact List is up (bottom of page)

The Big PDF file (64 pages!):

The GHC Binder Contents, Part 1 (since Fall 2022)

Your binder will also have scores for concert repertoire songs, which are found below.

Binder Contents, Part 1 Includes:

Registration Form
Pages with info on the choir and our communications
“Core Repertoire” of songs with lyrics and sheet music
How To Read Music In 9 Concentrated lessons

Zoom Recordings of Practices (most recent first)

Thu June 8
(sorry, timings not indexed)

Start – Warm-Up
Sing It Out!
When the Spirit Walks in the Room
Va, Pensiero
Say Say Yes!
Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon
Down on the Corner
Choir!
Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika
Announcements
[then, we just shared Tuesday’s recording with Susan & Robert… better to watch the Tuesday recording itself]
Closing

Tue June 6
(sorry, timings not indexed)

Start – Warm-Up
Say Say Yes!
Dream Away
Sing For No Reason
My Lonely Heart
Singing Soul Connection
Sing It Out!
When the Spirit Walks in the Room
Announcements
Va, Pensiero
Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon
Down on the Corner
Choir!
Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika
Closing

June 5 Altos

June 5 Alto Sectional
(sorry, timings not indexed)

Start – Warm-Up
Dream Away
Singing Soul Connection
Choir!
Down on the Corner
Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrica
Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon
Say Say Yes!
Sing It Out!
Va Pensiero
When the Spirit Walks in the Room

June 4 Basses

June 4 Bass Sectional
(sorry, timings not indexed)
(and sorry, Dick forgot to turn on Original Sound, so the most musical bits are most unmusical!)

Start – Warm-Up
Singing Soul Connection
Dream Away
Choir!
Down on the Corner
Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika
Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon
Say Say Yes!
Sing It Out!
Va Pensiero
When the Spirit Walks in the Room

June 2 Sopranos

June 2 Soprano Sectional
Requires Passcode: sT#5x*c!

Start – Choir!
10:45 – Down on the Corner
18:13 – Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika
29:10 – Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon
36:25 – Say Say Yes!
42:30 – Sing It Out!
54:20 – Va Pensiero
1:08:45 – Dream Away
1:11:30 – Singing Soul Connection
1:15:45 – When the Spirit Walks in the Room

June 2 Tenors

June 2 Tenor Sectional
(sorry, timings not indexed yet)

Start – Warm-Up
Choir!
Down on the Corner
Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrica
Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon
Say Say Yes!
Sing It Out!
Va Pensiero
When the Spirit Walks in the Room
Singing Soul Connection
Dream Away

Thu Jun 1

Start – Welcome and Warmup

4:50 – Say Say Yes!

10:17 – Nkosi Sekelel’ iAfrica

15:55 – Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon

23:40 – Sing It Out!

31:20 – Dream Away

34:20 – Singing Soul Connection

38:00 – Va Pensiero

46:30 – Announcements

57:00 – Choir!

1:03:40 – Down on the Corner

1:10:40 – When the Spirit Walks in the Room

1:18:55 – We Got All the Love

1:22:55 – Closing

Tue May 30

Start – Welcome and Warmup

6:17 – Say Say Yes!

12:45 – Sing It Out!

31:10 – Dream Away

42:45 – Singing Soul Connection

1:01:35 – Announcements

1:08:30 – Sarah, re Caia Connection

1:12:30 – Jo re Honouring Fund

1:14:30 – Penny re Guatemala & Scarves Sale

1:16:36 – Lead With Love

1:19:08 – A few more Announcements

1:21:50 – Va Pensiero

1:29:40 – re small change in When The Spirit…

1:31:50 – Choir!

1:41:26 – Closing

May 28 Altos

May 28 Alto Sectional

Start – Five Elements Warmup

8:15 – Choir!

26:00 – Down on the Corner

32:22 – Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrica

43:00 – Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon

55:20 – Say Say Yes!

59:15 – Sing It Out!

1:10:00 – Va Pensiero

1:26:50 – When the Spirit Walks in the Room

1:37:15 – Dream Away

1:39:15 – Singing Soul Connection

Thu. May 25

Start – Welcome and Warmup

6:00 – Every Little Cell

8:00 – You Got This!

13:10 – Down on the Corner

22:27 – another run at Down on the Corner

26:41 – Nkosi…

42:11 – Change of plans and new plans!

42:40 – Dream Away

56:00 – Announcements

1:01:46 – Say Say Yes!

1:06:43 – Say Say Yes! Off Book

1:10:00 – Singing Soul Connection

1:28:01 – sing through of Singing Soul Connection

1:30:45 – Va Pensiero

1:41:10 – When the Spirit Walks in the Room

1:48:48 – Closing

Tue May 23

Tue. May 23

Start – Welcome and Warmup

8:15 – You Got This

14:50 – Down on the Corner

29:30 – Nkosi…

43:23 – Hotaru Koi*

1:05:08 – Tips on memorization

1:12:10 – *Listen to this before Hotaru Koi above!

*Robovoices for Hotaru Koi

1:15:24 – Announcements

1:21:55 – Say Say Yes!

1:29:20 – Va Pensiero

1:39:04 – When the Spirit Walks In the Room

1:39:35 – Closing

Thu May 18

Start – Welcome and Warmup

7:14 – Somewhere to Begin

14:45 – When the Spirit Walks in the Room

44:18 – sing through of When The Spirit

52:00 – Announcements

54:36 – Choir!

1:14:10 – Sing it Out!

1:27:48 – sing through of Sing It Out!

1:32:18 – This Pretty Planet

1:35:50 – Closing

Tue May 16

Start – Welcome and Warmup

6:02 – Somewhere to Begin

14:21 – When The Spirit…

51:15 – Announcements

54:00 – Choir!

1:17:03 – Sing It Out!

1:30:00 – This Pretty Planet

1:35:45 – Closing

Thu May 11

Start – Welcome and Warmup

6:10 – Spring Song teach

10:50 – Spring Song sing through

14:00 – Say Say Yes!

21:48 – Choir!

38:00 – Down On The Corner

53:36 – Announcements

56:46 – Hotaru Koi

1:07:36 – When The Spirit Walks In the Room

1:26:40 – Va Pensiero

1:38:22 – Reprise: Intro of When The Spirit Walks In the Room

1:39:57 – Closing

Tue May 9

Start – Welcome and Warmup

11:50 – Spring Song teach

19:10 – Spring Song sing through

22:55 – Say, Say Yes!

27:40 – Choir!

51:45 – Down On The Corner

1:00:30 – Announcements

1:02:34 – photos from the break

1:03:08 – Hotaru Koi

1:12:46 – When The Spirit Walks In the Room

1:34:05 – Va Pensiero

1:41:45 – Closing

Thu May 4

Start – Welcome and Warmup

5:50 – In honour of Gordon Lightfoot

10:50 – When the Spirit Walks in the Room

28:20 – “ “ sing through When the Spirit…

30:58 – Sing It Out!

52:15 – Announcements

58:30 – Hotaru Koi

1:11:59 – Nkosi…

1:32:05 – “ “ sing through Nkosi…

1:36:10 – Closing

Tue May 2 – Not Available

Tue May 2 recording is not yet available (tech trouble at Zoom)

Thu Apr 27

Start – Welcome and Warmup

5:25 – Re Harry Belafonte

12:00 – sing through Turn the World Around

16:15 – When The Spirit Walks in the Room

40:00 – Hotaru Koi

48:00 – Choir!

1:04:14 – Announcements

1:07:14 – Va Pensiero

1:15:50 – Say Say Yes!

1:21:20 – Praise for the Ground…

1:27:17 – Slower – Praise for the Ground (thanks Mike!)

1:31:15 – Closing

Tue. Apr 25

Start – Welcome and Warmup

5:50 – News re: Harry Belafonte

9:15 – Turn the World Around

20:00 – When the Spirit Walks in the Room

45:47 – Hotaru Koi

55:55 – Va Pensiero

1:08:20 – Announcements

1:13:45 – Say Say Yes!

1:18:10 – Choir!

1:35:00 – Praise for the Ground…

1:45:21 – Closing

Thu. Apr. 20

Start – Welcome and Warmup

4:44 – Listen (Eel River Song)

12:30 – Sing It Out!

37:30 – Intro to Bruce’s song

47:57 – When The Spirit Walks In The Room

1:01:06 – Announcements

1:03:35 – Down On The Corner

1:19:19 – Choir!

1:30:18 – Da Pacem Cordium

1:34:35 – Closing

Tue. Apr. 18

Start – Welcome an Warmup

6:55 – This Is Home

15:30 – Sing It Out!

45:20 – Down On The Corner

1:01:30 – Announcements

1:07:15 – Da Pacem Cordium

1:09:40 – Listen to Bruce Cockburn

1:18:45 – When The Spirit Walks In The Room

1:31:30 – Choir!

1:41:28 – Closing

Thu. Apr. 13

Start – A Story from Outside Voices

3:00 – Welcome and Warmup

6:08 – Every Little Cell

7:15 – Now Is the Time

10:41 – Choir!

31:15 – Say Say Yes!

41:21 – Hotaru Koi!

50:00 – Announcements

51:34 – One Be One

54:21 – Sing It Out

1:05:50 – Praise…

1:15:08 – May It Be

1:25:50 – Closing

Tue. Apr. 11

Start – Welcome and Warmup

4:30 – Every Little Cell

5:40 – Now Is The Time

10:55 – Choir!

38:58 – Say Say Yes!

44:30 – Hotaru Koi!

51:30 – Announcements

54:53 – One by One

57:11 – Sing It Out!

1:11:05 – [see what happens when Dick thinks we should do too much new material – listen for Cathy’s frantic text-pinging (she was at home with a cold) and the ensuing hilarity…]

1:15:13 – Praise for the Ground…

1:28:36 – May It Be

1:37:55 – Closing

Thu. Apr. 6

Start – Welcome and Warmup

6:03 – Humpty Dump!

9:08 – Down On The Corner

21:18 – Sing It Out!

36:00 – Joy To Your Heart

41:40 – Announcements

46:15 – Life Is Amazing

50:14 – Nkosi…

1:05:33 – Va Pensiero

1:14:15 – Choir!

1:27:54 – This Is Home

1:36:40 – Closing

1:38:49 – Happy Birthday!

Tue. Apr. 4

Start – Welcome and Warmup

6:56 – Humpty Dump

14:50 – Funky meaning!

15:40 – Down On The Corner

28:25 – Choir!

50:30 – Sing It Out!

1:05:28 – Announcements

1:09:26 – Life Is Amazing

1:13:00 – Nkosi…

1:27:18 – Va Pensiero

1:39:57 – This Is Home

1:46:08 – Closing

Thu. Mar. 30

Start – Welcome and Warmup

6:45 – Alhamdulillah

11:00 – Say Say Yes

19:20 – Sing It Out

33:37 – Spring Song

39:35 – Pointer Sisters, Fire!

45:41 – Robovoices, Choir!

51:15 – Announcements

52:48 – Choir!

1:11:40 – Praise for the Ground…

1:20:05 – Ridin’ My Bike

1:25:24 – Be Thou

1:32:50 – Closing

Tue. Mar. 28

Start – Welcome and Warmup

6:42 – Alhamdulillah

12:10 – Say Say Yes!

30:00 – Sing It Out!

57:16 – Announcements

1:01:50 – Pointer Sisters, Fire!

1:05:24 – Ridin’ My Bike

1:06:43 – Choir!

1:25:30 – Praise For the Ground…

1:37:15 – Be Thou

1:46:23 – Closing

Thu. Mar. 23

Start – Welcome and Warmup

7:25 – Come Come Whoever You Are

11:38 – Down On The Corner

22:28 – Va Pensiero

36:15 – News From Mozambique

44:13 – Bambelela

49:50 – Praise for the Ground…

1:09:50 – Stir Me Deep

1:12:10 – Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika

1:24:52 – Carry Your Heart

1:30:17 – Closing

Tue. Mar. 21

Start – Welcome and Warmup

9:30 – Come, Come, Whoever You Are

13:27 – Down On The Corner

32:30 – Va Pensiero

49:39 – Announcements

1:01:28 – Bambelela

1:04:20 – Video from Mozambique

1:07:40 – Praise for the Ground…

1:24:15 – Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika

1:36:22 – Carry Your Heart

1:42:34 – Closing

Thu. Mar. 16

Start – Welcome and Warmup

29:05 – This Is It

34:10 – Down On The Corner

47:26 – Praise For The Ground…

59:32 – Carry Your Heart

1:06:37 – Announcements

1:20:53 – Amazing Grace up tempo

1:22:37 – Say Say Yes

1:35:55 – Say Say Yes run through

1:40:35 – Va Pensiero

1:53:09 – Va Pensiero run through

2:03:30 – Holy Angels

2:10:46 – Carry Your Heart reprise

2:14:05 – Closing

Tue. Mar. 14

Start – Welcome and Warmup
11:49 – Down On The Corner
28:20 – This Is It
33:05 – Praise for the Ground…
51:25 – Announcements
54:28 – Say Say Yes
1:14:33 – Va Pensiero
1:28:41 – Va Pensiero run through*
*note Cathy’s gentle rant about rhythms
1:38:12 – Carry Your Heart
1:44:25 – Closing

Thu. Mar. 9

Start – Welcome and Warmup
8:20 – Woman Am I / Human Am I
13:30 – Praise for the Ground…
32:05 – Down On The Corner
46:10 – Mystery
53:08 – Announcements
55:50 – Va Pensiero
1:10:13 – Video clips re: Say Say Yes!
1:15:40 – Say Say Yes!
1:22:15 – Now I Walk In Beauty
1:27:30 – Holy Angels
1:35:40 – Closing

Tue. Mar. 7

Start – Welcome and Warmup
8:30 – Woman Am I / Human Am I
12:55 – Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon
33:29 – Down On the Corner
45:25 – Mystery
52:40 – Announcements
54:35 – March Birthdays
56:20 – Now I Walk In Beauty
1:01:40 – Va, Pensiero
1:29:22 – Say, Say Yes!
1:40:10 – Closing

Thu. Mar. 2

Start – Welcome and Warmup
6:23 – 5 Elements Framework Laughing
11:16 – Abdominal warmup
11:52 – An Invitation to Sing
19:20 – Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon
36:38 – Down On The Corner
45:24– Va Pensiero
1:09:45 – Announcements
1:11:41 – Friends Like You
1:12:40 – Notes on Memorizing, etc.
1:16:40 – Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika
1:27:55 – Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon (Reprise)
1:31:04 – Closing

Tue. Feb. 28

Start – Welcome and Warmup
7:24 – 5 Elements Framework Laughing
11:20 – Abdominal warmup
12:00 – An Invitation to Sing
21:00 – Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon
54:15 – Down On The Corner
1:03:30 – Announcements
1:12:20 – One More Time
1:14:05 – Va Pensiero
1:32:40 – Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika
1:37:55 – Closing

Thu. Feb. 23

Start – Welcome and Warmup
3:32 – 5 Elements
8:25 – Live In Peace
15:40 – Intro to Maggie Wheeler
18:50 – Maggie: on her song
25:17 – Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon
39:42 – Sing through bars 65 – 72
40:50 – Samba Chill
46:02 – Announcements
50:14 – Va Pensiero
1:02:54 — Full run-through (Sam’s Lullaby)
1:08:20 – Minuit
1:14:09 — How Shall We Come Together
1:21:20 – Closing

Tue. Feb. 21

Start – Welcome and Warmup
3:20 – 5 Elements
7:42 – Live In Peace
15:13 – False Start!
16:45 – Special Guest on Zoom!
17:32 – Intro to Maggie Wheeler
20:39 – Maggie: on her song
26:55 – Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon
53:33 – Sing through bars 65 – 72
56:15 – Announcements
1:06:05 – Samba Chill
1:10:00 – Va Pensiero
1:21:00 – Reprise of Live In Peace
1:25:30 – Closing

Thu. Feb. 16

Start – Welcome
5:00 – Warmup
8:40 – Five Elements Framework
17:15 – Open the Circle (Open the Zoom Call)
20:20 – Lead With Love
24:00 – Revisit These Old Stories
28:30 – Intro to season’s repertoire
35:30 – Down On The Corner
44:30 – Announcements
54:20 – How Can I Know Anything
57:32 – Va Pensiero
1:19:42 – Let Us Go Out
1:24:47 – Tiny Lights
1:29:47 – Closing

Tue. Feb. 14

Tue. Feb. 14 Part 1

Start – Opening Welcome
5:29 – Warmups
9:10 – Five Elements Framework
17:00 – Open the Circle
22:00 – Lead With Love

Tue. Feb. 14 Part 2

Start – Revisit Sunny Days
3:40 – Intro to season’s repertoire
10:00 – Down On The Corner
20:55 – Announcements
28:25 – Registration info
50:00 – How Can I Know Anything
55:00 – Va Pensiero
1:06:20 – Tiny Lights
1:12:30 – Closing

Concert Repertoire Songs

Protips: Click the Play button to play while staying on this page, or click the title (like “Down on the Corner, All Voices”) to use your browser’s player — it might offer slower and faster playback (Chrome: click “︙”, Safari: click “>>”). Click in the “slider” area to jump to any point in the song.

Bonus! Files with Lyrics

Here are study files with lyrics for all songs, from your section-mates: Tenor Lyrics from Jo in editable .docx or in PDF format / Bass Lyrics from Mike — Thanks, folks! Send submissions to Dick. 🙂

Songs to Back Up Our Guest Artists

Dream Away

by Robert Anderson

Dream Away, All Voices

Dream Away, Soprano

Dream Away, Alto

Dream Away, Tenor

Dream Away, Bass

Singing Soul Connection

by Susan Ellenton

Singing Soul Connection, All Voices

Singing Soul Connection, Soprano

Singing Soul Connection, Alto

Singing Soul Connection, Tenor

Singing Soul Connection, Bass

Songs to Sing On Our Own

Choir!

Update May 18:
– Tenor/Bass Bar 40: add “ba” instead of the rest
– Tenor Bar 47: change last note from F# to A
– Robots are now singing in the right key (up from C to C#)

Update Apr. 8:
– Three Tenor “b’dups” are now G
– Soprano/Alto Bar 32, “My” is now C

Parody of “Fire” by Bruce Springsteen, as sung by the Pointer Sisters
arranged for GHC by DJ & CB

Choir!, All Voices

Choir!, Soprano

Choir!, Alto

Choir!, Tenor

Choir!, Bass

Down on the Corner

Update May 18:
– New, fancy ending (on Extended PDF and Robots)

by John Fogerty of Creedence Clearwater Revival,
arranged for GHC by DJ & CB

Down on the Corner score PDF
Down on the Corner Extended score PDF
(no jumps, almost no repeats!)
CCR Official Lyric Video

Down on the Corner, All Voices

Down on the Corner, Soprano

Down on the Corner, Alto

Down on the Corner, Tenor

Down on the Corner, Tenor (Opt.)

Down on the Corner, Bass

Hotaru Koi — WAIT! Change of Plan!

Sorry, we just decided to postpone this song to next season. See GHC-Breeze for details.

Traditional Japanese folk song
The area around our rehearsal space, the Esquimalt Gorge Park Pavilion, is home to a Japanese garden, and is the former site of a Japanese Tea House. (see more about the Pavilion and about the sad history of the Tea House) With a nod to the connection of our new rehearsal space to the Japanese community, we bring this song, which we plan to work up to being a concert piece. It becomes a somewhat hypnotic round when done in several parts. For now, we have for you the simple melody, and the words that mean:

Come, firefly!
The water over there is bitter,
The water over here is sweet,
Come, firefly!

PNG image file of just the melody, as we printed on strips!
Hotaru Koi Notes PDF, explaining voice sections and the song Road Map
Hotaru Koi score PDF (if you really want to see it!)

NOTE: In the audio files, at 1:32 (at [F] in score) all lower voices join in.

Hotaru Koi, All Voices

Hotaru Koi, Sopranos + some low Tenors

Hotaru Koi, Alto + some Basses

Hotaru Koi, Tenor 1 + some low Tenors & Basses

Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika

“Lord, Bless Africa”, by Enoch Mankayi Sontonga, 1897
Additional words by S.E.K Mqhayt, 1927
An anthem in Zulu and Xhosa that we have sung when our concert is a fundraiser for our partners at The Caia Connection, as we plan for this June. Sheet music for this is in the Core Repertoire section of your binder (or see the Big PDF File mentioned above).

Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika score PDF (updated May 16)
Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika and Noyana score PDF (to replace the pages in your Core Repertoire)
Wikipedia article on Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika
GHC singing Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika in concert, June 2018
GHC singing Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika in concert, June 2019

Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika, All Voices

Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika, Soprano

Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika, Alto

Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika, Tenor

Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika, Bass

Say, Say Yes

By Melanie DeMore
An energetic and uplifting little tune by the amazing Melanie DeMore, who also wrote the well-known and beloved Lead With Love. Please do not share these video links outside our choir… thank you!

Say, Say Yes score PDF
A video of Melanie singing this song in three parts
(with body percussion!)
An interview with Melanie and Fran Andre (13 minutes)
Fran is one of the organizers of the Black Lives Matter Song Commissioning Project, which commissioned Melanie to write this song. They discuss the song and other important topics around songs and honouring African American music traditions.

Say, Say Yes, All Voices

Say, Say Yes, Soprano

Say, Say Yes, Alto

Say, Say Yes, Tenor

Say, Say Yes, Bass

Sing It Out!

Update May 19:
– Everyone, Bar 38 : change in rhythm (“and your will to try…”)

By Jennifer Noxon
A rousing call to the joy of song, by our choir-leader friend Jennifer Noxon of Almonte, Ontario. She taught this at a recent CCLT Reunion and we were hooked!

Sing It Out! compact score PDF
Sing It Out! Extended score PDF
no jumps!

Sing It Out!, All Voices

Sing It Out!, Soprano

Sing It Out!, Alto

Sing It Out!, Tenor

Sing It Out!, Bass

Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon

by Maggie Wheeler, arranged for GHC by DJ & CB

Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon score PDF

Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon, All Voices

Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon, Soprano

Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon, Alto

Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon, Tenor 1

Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon, Tenor 2

Praise for the Ground We Walk Upon, Bass

Va, Pensiero

Coro di Schiavi Ebrei, Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves, from “Nabucco”
Music by Giuseppe Verdi. Lyrics: Temistocle Solera
Minor edits: Dick Jackson, February 2020