- Summer Term is nearly here! (Dawlish Rocks, Generation EXE, Sweet Honi)
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Date Posted: Fri, 19 Apr 2019
Hello everyone,
Hope you have been enjoying the school holidays and lovely sunshine we've been having.
Work is underway creating new song arrangements ready for Summer Term, plus plans are coming together for various performances, parties and workshops with another flashmob performance in Exeter looking likely.
First back are SWEET HONI on Easter Monday - don't forget we have a choir rehearsal! Bank holidays have been included in our schedule due to our big gig coming up with Honiton Town Band at The Beehive on 6th July. Tickets are on sale now and with two large and popular local groups performing we are expecting a sell out event. Follow SWEET HONI on facebook and for current members we also have a facebook discussion group.
Next are GENERATION EXE on Wednesday afternoons, 1:15 - 2:45 p.m. in St Thomas, Exeter. The all-female singing group are looking to attract some more younger members and have introduced half termly and also pay as you go options to better suit busy lifestyles with children and variable work hours. Facebook fans and followers click here and our discussion group for members can be found here.
Last, but certainly not least are DAWLISH ROCKS. Now settled into their new home at The Welcome Inn, they are kicking of term with a "BRING A MAN" week (new women welcome too of course!) and the following week on 1st May they are taking part in Dawlish Walking Festival, with a bit of singing on the go. Check out their facebook page and group chat via these links.
New and returning singers are welcome at all groups for a free taster session and we look forward to seeing you at one of our rehearsals or performances soon.
- The three choirs meet! (Dawlish Rocks, Generation EXE, Sweet Honi)
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Date Posted: Fri, 21 Dec 2018
All three choirs sang together at Exeter Christmas Market on the 8th December. It was a windy and wet evening, but everyone sang together with great Christmas spirit. Well done to everyone that was able to make it and stick out the challenging conditions
First up, Generation Exe sang a couple of songs on their own, as they have a different repertoire.
We then added a few more female singers to great effect with a fun rendition of "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" - a very appropriate title!
Finally, we got everyone on the stage for White Winter Hymnal and then Sweet Honi and Dawlish Rocks continued with their rock and pop repertoire.
Here we have Emma singing the solo in "Like A Prayer" and there were a good number of people watching us, too. Shortly after this the weather turned to quite heavy rain and we took the decision to cut a couple of numbers from our set and short cut towards our finale, a mash-up of "Poison" and "You Give Love a Bad Name"! Many of the crowd stayed out in the pouring rain to enjoy the singing and support the choir. Fantastic!
Finally a quick pack up was enabled by our wonderful roadies and then the hard-core choir members moved into the tavern to enjoy some mulled beverages. A great end to our term and a lot of fun all round.
We're now looking forward to getting back to rehearsals from 14th January. Check under our events section for all the details.
- UK Choir Festival - Exmouth 2018 (Dawlish Rocks, Sweet Honi)
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Date Posted: Sat, 6 Oct 2018
On Saturday 29th September the UK Choir Festival came to the South West for the first time. Just down the road in Exmouth, twenty of us booked tickets and went along for a day of vocal workshops. We had not originally intended to perform as we didn't think we would have the balance of voice parts or songs ready to go so early in the term. However, the festival were keen to encourage more groups to get up and have a go and our singers were really keen to do just that. Here they are on stage and preparing to sing in front of the vocal coaches and hundreds of singers from other local choirs. We sang White Winter Hymnal and received a fantastic response from all of the coaches and attendees. Here's what they said:
Russell Scott:
Loved the rhythmic start. Nice build of voices. Lovely blend of sound. Engaging and nice ooooohs. Good men, too!
Once started keep claps to a minimum or more together. Try opening vowels more to help with colour. Perform more to the audience.
Ula Weber:
Confident start with body percussion. A lovely, unforced sound and a good balance between voices. A simple song, done well. I'm about to start this piece with my choir. I now can't wait!
David Lowe:
Good rhythm from the choir. Group breathe together, therefore the words were very together. Lovely part singing.
Bazil Meade:
Beautiful group sound. The group relaxed as the performance continued, showing more enjoyment.
What a great day and topped off with a successful performance! We'll let you all know straight away when we have the date for next year! Kathy
For more information, see: www.ukchoirfestival.com
- BBC Music Day 2018 (Dawlish Rocks, Sweet Honi)
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Date Posted: Thu, 4 Oct 2018
The theme for BBC Music Day this year was "The Power of Music to Change Lives" and one BBC initiative was Platform to Perform, involving forty choirs at forty railway stations across the UK at various times during BBC Music Day on Friday 28th September 2018.
Exeter St David's was the station for Devon and Kathy was asked to provide the choir. It seemed fair to involve both Sweet Honi and Dawlish Rocks. In fact, this was the first time the two choirs would meet on a small scale, with less than 10 singers from each choir participating as a small group had been requested on account of building works taking place at the station!
With songs and a small choir selected from the available singers, balancing voice parts and choirs (quite an equation!) we headed to the station to be greeted by lovely staff from GWR and the BBC. It was certainly an interesting environment to perform in and TV cameras and broadcast vans can bring out some unusual behaviour from certain members of the public!
We were featured on Radio Devon and went out live for a little snippet at the end of Spotlight News on BBC1. One of our Honis, Jo Hawdon, came along to capture some behind the scenes video and photos for us.
All involved were left on a high and had a fantastic experience. It goes to show that you probably should say yes to any crazy suggestions coming your way. Don't miss a golden opportunity! Well done everyone. Well sung and well supported by all of our other choir members and fans. Thank you!
Kathy
YouTube Video URL:
- Sweet Honi & The Awesomes gig - it was AWESOME!
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Date Posted: Sun, 5 Aug 2018
What a fantastic evening at The Beehive! Local singer/songwriter duo The Awesomes joined Sweet Honi to create an evening of crafted performance and wide musical variety from the freshly penned original songs through to classic, cheesy pop that had the whole audience singing along. Just over £882 was raised for mental health charities, The Project and Mind. Thank you to everyone who assisted, participated and supported. It was a brilliant team effort.
- Dawlish Rocks by name and nature!
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Date Posted: Sun, 3 Jun 2018
Dawlish Rocks gave their first formal, public performance on Thursday evening to a packed church. The evening, organised by Dawlish Arts Festival, featured five choirs from around the Dawlish area, offering a varied programme. Dawlish Rocks kicked off the second half with three songs. The acoustics were great, everyone sang well and our two soloists, Steve and Jo, both gave strong performances. Photos and video to follow! We had a few people very interested in joining our ranks. Please get in touch ASAP if you would like to come along for a free trial session or even join us for the remainder of Summer term if you are a quick learner!
- Sweet Honi - VIDEO RECORDING NIGHT!
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Date Posted: Sun, 15 Apr 2018
- The first video evidence of our choir pub crawl!
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Date Posted: Fri, 13 Apr 2018
- Fantastic final week of Spring Term 2018 (Dawlish Rocks, Sweet Honi)
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Date Posted: Fri, 30 Mar 2018
What a great end to our Spring Term!
On Monday night Sweet Honi filmed their very own music video. Plenty of photos and of course the finished video project to follow. They looked and sounded fantastic. Everyone pitched in with the set up, pack up and we had a lovely tea break with home baked goodies - wow, we really needed refuelling.
On Wednesday night Dawlish Rocks departed their rehearsal hall early and set off to the pub! An evening of drinking, socialising and singing in three Dawlish town pubs ensued. Video evidence is being tracked down, but it was great fun and well received.
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- Over £700 raised for MacMillan at our concert
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Date Posted: Tue, 12 Dec 2017
What a fantastic evening! It was the culmination of much hard work in rehearsals and great team work from our Sweet Honi membership. Along with our guest act, Sidmouth Gospel Choir, we produced an inspiring and fun evening of music that was enjoyed by a full house! A cheque payable to MacMillan Cancer Support for £714.63 has been sent off to Utility Warehouse, and they are doubling all fundraising efforts at the end of the year. Big thanks to everyone who helped, took part and supported the event. YouTube Video URL:
- End of Term Celebrations (Dawlish Rocks, Sweet Honi)
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Date Posted: Sat, 11 Nov 2017
We're now looking forward to end of term performances and celebrations.
First up is Dawlish Rocks, hosting a celebration evening on 29th November. This will be an opportunity for family and friends to hear the progress of the new choir so far and also for potential members to get a flavour of our rehearsal and performance style.
Sweet Honi are hosting a concert with special guests, Sidmouth Gospel Choir, on 3rd December. Ticket/more info available here.
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- Sweet Honi and Brass Warriors perform at The Beehive
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Date Posted: Sun, 28 May 2017
Their final show for Sweet Honi founder and director, Andy Hague, featuring the 50+ strong chorus, "The Bumbles" (Sweet Honi's very own backing band) and guest support act The Brass Warriors
An energetic performance from the choir wowed the sell out crowd at the popular, community venue.
