Be not alone in they shed

Bank Holidays, don't you just love'em?  The chance to have a day off from the diurnal drudge of whatever you get up to on a daily basis and with the radio speaking to the nation can potter in warm contemplation about in your shed, inevitably with the rain battering down on the roof.  Can't beat it.

Well maybe you can go one better by meeting up at The Potting Shed, in nearby Crudwell to celebrate the 2nd May Bank Hols on SUNDAY 25th and join in their launch of a new ale as part of "Shed Fest"?  You can snooze the rest of Monday, if you are not re-building your "Brownie Point Mountain" . . . .

What's not to like, Bank Holiday, a launch of a new cask ale and the possibility of some ad hoc singing?  More to follow.  Maybe see you there?

Swedish Cheese Fest!

It's been a while since we last communicated and this past month has been quite a quiet one on the Magnificent front as we stock our instantaneously evaporating "Brownie Points" before the very merrie month of May and June tear us away from our loved ones for many, many adventures.

But that is not to say that we have not been up to our usual tricks, singing and doing those slightly unusual things associated with all things Magnificent.  And that includes singing, with Swedes, and LOTS of cheese!

The past Saturday 11th April we hosted a 30+ strong mixed choir from Gothenburg in Sweden who were visiting hereabouts at our wonderful local hall at the rather wonderful Gateway Centre. 

The location was provided thanks to the lovely Jill, long suffering wife of our dearly beloved "Absent Bob", who remarkably graced us with his presence on this occasion!

And to the right you can see it in all its glory with the Swedish choir Celinkoren gracing us a series of songs from their wide and varied repertoire.

A lovely location to perform in, with the fantastic beams that lent a touch of the Scandinavian long house that matched the beauty of the performance as two groups of strangers enjoyed each others' company through the shared medium of song.

The only question remains, "and what of the Cheese"?  Well, we thought, how can we entertain and honour our guest, and what better way than to celebrate with a whole cornucopia of English cheese (apart from the one imposter from Wales that someone sneaked in!)?  A terrific scent and range of cheeses, that we could only start to do justice to by sampling as many as possible.

And the final question, "would you buy a used cheese from these gentlemen?"

Friday Night is Music Night #3

'Tis that time again when FNIMN Friday Night is Music Night cranks back into action...

The session is an opportunity to avoid staying in on a Friday night watching BBC4 and a chance to learn some more songs and hone some old favourites all in relaxed atmosphere with very convivial company.

The approach will be very informal with a couple of blokes acting as Meisters of Ceremony, coaxing people through a warm up then teach a new song, sing some others, teach another song and then sing a bit more. 

Sheets with the worms and (possibly) tadpoles (words and music) will be provided.

Open to all who would like the excuse to go down the pub and sing a bit, so bring along WAGs & FoBaFoBs (Friends of Blokes and Family of Blokes).

We will aim to start around 20:30 and see how it goes.  So be there, and be at the start of something possibly, er, Magnificent.

Master Class with Malkhaz Erkvanidze

From one master to another, here you can see  Malkhaz Erkvanidze on the right in action at Ashton Keynes School Hall passing on some of his experience and wisdom to our great master, our belovéd ChoirMeister Chris Samuel.

A good number of the blokes turned up dutifully garbed in Magnificent T-Shirts along with a number of non-Magnificent, but one the less magnificent blokes, and were taught two pieces.

The first was a truly special example of Georgian choral singing, a singular Mraval jamier that was quite a challenge for all assembled with its shape shifting polyphony and intricate parts.  We managed to get through it in one piece but it was quite a challenge though hopefully has laid the groundwork for us to return to it and conquer it with guidance from Mr Samuel.

The second piece, Aliloi, came together very quickly and despite only getting a couple of run throughs sounded reasonably pleasing by the end of the session.  You can judge for yourself by listening to it at https://soundcloud.com/the-magnificent-ak47/adiloi?in=the-magnificent-ak47/sets/malkhaz-workshop-march-2014.

Master Class with Malkhaz Erkvanidze this Thursday

Just a reminder that we are very proud to be organizing a "Master Class with Malkhaz Erkvanidze", one of the top people in the world of Georgian singing who has been at the forefront of the revival of Georgian folk and medieval sacred music for the past 25 years, pictured right.

The event will be held on Thursday 6th March in the Ashton Keynes School Hall, opening around 19:15 and starting around 19:45.  Tickets for this special one off Master Class cost of £10 per bloke, £5 per Mini-Bloke (kid) available on the night.

Non-blokes are welcome to attend but because of the nature of our all bloke group we have asked that he focus on pieces more suitable for our range, so please bear that in mind.

This should be viewed as an unmissable opportunity to learn from one of the greats of this genre so to book your place, email themagnificentak47@gmail.com and we will sort out the details.

More about MALKHAZ ERKVANIDZE

He is one of the world's foremost authorities on traditional Georgian folk and sacred music. Born in the central mountainous region of Imereti, Malkhaz grew up singing folk music in his family and with a local master-singer named Benia Mikadze. 

His unique background growing up in a family singing tradition allowed Malkhaz the opportunity to develop an ear for indigenous Caucasus tuning systems. A graduate of the Tbilisi State Conservatory, he has spent much of his professional life rescuing traditional Georgian orthodox chants suppressed under Soviet communism. 

His seven books of Georgian hymns and folk songs have been published with CDs,and he has written many articles about the distinctive musical structure of Georgian polyphony. In 1988 Malkhaz founded the Anchiskhati Choir, dedicated to preserving the authentic Georgian tuning system and traditional singing styles. Malkhaz currently teaches at the Tbilisi State Conservatory and consults for and directs numerous choirs, including Sakhioba Ensemble, with whom he has produced five albums

Spotted at the BBC 2 Folk Awards 2014

Did you enjoy the BBC 2 Folk Awards 2014 the other night?  If you are lucky to have one of those modern colour tellies that have a "magic red button" you might have been able to bear witness to the spectacular that had luminaries like The Full English who feature an Alfred Williams song on their album.

If you were even luckier you might well have actually been there in person to witness the return of the, er, magnificent Fisherman's Friends after their tragic events a while back.  

And we know someone who was that lucky man, namely Chris Samuel, sat here in the audience with his good lady wife and captured as the camera swept round the audience during Fisherman's Friends rendition of our popular shanty "North North Wiltshire", which they have nattily re-titled "South Australia" to help ingratiate themselves with that particular market*.

Can you spot him?  And whose T-Shirt is he wearing . . . ?

* P.S. On checking our facts much of that sentence may not be completely accurate - the bit about Fishermen's Friends and South Australia.

BlokeFest 2014 cranks into action

"BlokeFest cranks into action" shocker according to a recently spotted update on http://www.blokefest.net

At long last, we hear you say . . . what have they been doing??!!  

Well, to be fair, with our insider knowledge we can reveal that they have been busy behind the scenes plotting during the long winter nights and are about to emerge butterfly-like from their chrysalis to flutter around and enliven the summer with their beauty and delicate ways.

A more believable image is that they are about to emerge "bear-like" from their pit of a cave and collective slumber, scratching their nether regions, yawning and stretching before launching into devastating action to produce this year's event that promises to have More Men! More Singing! More Stuff!

Check out the updates and complete the Expression of Interest form at the bottom of the page to get ahead of the rest of the blokes to have a better chance to secure your place when they finally open up official registration.