Bicester Choral
& Operatic Society
Rehearsal Attendance
Although an amateur choir, the quality of our performances is very important to us. We hope that you will be able to make it to every rehearsal each term, but we’re realistic enough to know that “life” gets in the way.
CHORAL WORKS: If you want to sing in a choral concert on a performance day, we ask that you attend a minimum number of rehearsals each term (typically 75%), with the final rehearsal (usually on the afternoon of the concert) being mandatory. The actual number of rehearsals that you will be required to attend will be based on the number of rehearsal slots available to us and the complexity of the music, and will be decided by our Musical Director. If you’re planning to be away/miss some, don’t forget to try and keep a “spare”, especially in case of illness! And if you know can’t make the concert day, that doesn't mean we don’t want you to join us on a Wednesday; come along, sing, and enjoy the evening! As we approach the concert day we may ask that those not singing on the concert day don't attend the last Wednesday rehearsal, in order that our MD can get a true reflection of sound/balance; we hope you'll understand this rationale. We may also ask that this final wednesday be mandatory
SHOWS: All participants in a show will be asked to provide us with a list of 'NA's (Not Available dates) at the start of the rehearsal period. These NAs can then be used to plan the rehearsal schedule accordingly. There will be some mandatory dates. If you can't make these you won't unfortunately, be able to participate in the show. There may or may not be a minimum attendance rule, depending on the nature of the show. Participation will be at the discretion of the director/committee based on complexity of show and your level of NAs.
Oxfordshire Drama Network
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10% Discount on Vocal Scores
Visit ChoraLine.com enter BCOS in the discount code box (click the green arrows next to the discount code box) on the shopping basket page of the site and you will receive a discount and see the amount saved. Click on the logo below to go to the site.
Community Champions
re 2021
Individuals/Businesses the society has recognised for outstanding contributions and assistance in helping us achieve our goals, even though they are not part of the society.
In recognition of the help and assistance they have given to the society we acknowledge the following organisations:
Sanctuary Housing - Provision of storage unit
St Mary's RC School - Rehearsal facilities
St Edburg's Church - Rehearsal facilities
Bicester Heritage / Bicester Aerodrome - enabling us to stage Mikado & Thank You for The Music under Covid restrictions
Savoir Faire - assistance with refreshments
Cherwell District Council; - assistance in proceeding with Mikado
Honorary & Life Members
Life Members
Mr Tim Lane
Mrs Vivienne Frost
Mrs S Ross
Honorary Life Members
Mrs F Austin
Mr Justin Lavender
Mrs P Liddington
Members Info
Amazon Smile
Since we signed up for Give As You Live in Oct 2016 we've earned over £2600 for the society.
It's simple - register with them and every time you shop online at over 4000 locations we get a percentage of your spend as a donation to the society! Costs you nothing! Includes Argos, John Lewis, Marks & Spencer, Ebay, British Airways, Expedia, Booking.com and sooo many more!
We've also now signed up with Amazon Smile - where you can raise 0.5% of every purchase you make with them. Click on the images above to sign up!
Future performances until end 2022 (including rehearsal dates & commitments)
Date | Concert | Location | Rehearsal Committment |
---|---|---|---|
2-4 Jun 2022 | The Cooper School | 20 rehearsals NB: show is in half term and the bank holiday arrangements are different with Thurs & Fri being bank holidays | |
15 Oct | Vivaldi Magnificat & Vivaldi Gloria | St Edburg's | SPLIT TERM REHEARSALS 6x from 8/6 - 20/7 (no rehearsal 22/6), max 3 absence in total |
17 Dec | Sleigh Bells Ring! ( again!) | St Edburgs |
anticipate 8/9 rehearsals, max absence 2 you must attend final Wednesday |
2023 | Diamond Jubilee year! | ||
1-3 June | Staged production | The Cooper School (tbc) | approx 20 rehearsals NA forms will be required from all cast |
22 July | Summer Concert | St Edburg's | 1st Rehearsal anticpated14th June |
Subs/Fees
With one eye on our costs, and the other on the nature of the music, we did not require an accompanist at all our rehearsals in 2017. Indeed, out of 41 sessions we used their services just 15/16 times by the end of this year. The nature of the music we presented in 2018 meant we needed an accompanist for around 35 sessions. This, along with normal increases in other costs, meant we had higher weekly costs to cover. 2019 presented a similar challenge and an increase from April in our weekly hall hire costs.. As you should know, our subs are set at a level to cover these weekly costs. Why are we telling you this? We had to increase our planned subs for 2020 by around 30p per week per person; the reality was of course completely different!
Our stage productions tend to have around 35 participants, compared to choral works which can have 50+. The more people singing, the lower the subs!
2021? who knows.... lets see how things play out!
2018 Subs
Show Subs (20 weeks) £80
Summer (8 weeks) £32
Autumn (12 weeks) £50
Total (40 weeks = £4.05 p/w) £162
2019 Subs
Show Subs (20 weeks) £80
Summer/autumn (12 weeks) £50
Christmas (8 weeks) £35
Total (40 weeks = £4.13 p/w) £165
2020 Subs
Show Subs (20 weeks) £90
Sept-Dec (11weeks) £50
Total (31 weeks = £4.51 p/w) £140
2021 Subs
Show Subs (5 rehearsals) £25
Summer (6 rehearsals) £30
Autumn (6rehearsals) £30
Christmas (7 weeks) £35
Total (24rehearsals =£5 p/w) £120
2022 Subs (anticipated)
Show Subs (20 rehearsals) £95
(Students £30)
Summer/autumn (12 rehearsals) £60
(Students £10
Christmas (7 weeks) £35
(Students £10)
Total (24rehearsals =£4.87 p/w) £160
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Register Your Details
Click on the button to complete our online application form
Recordings
A couple of tracks from our successful "I Was Glad" concert in April 2013
If viewing on a mobile device, switch to 'classic' view (at bottom of page) to listen
Blest Pair of Sirens
The Long Day Closes
Your Committee 2022
Role | Name | Email: @bcoswesing.org.uk |
---|---|---|
Chairman | Ian Muddle | |
Vice Chair | Liz Stiff | . |
Treasurer | Caroline Graham | |
Secretary | Nikki Fine | |
Tickets. | Laura Kingsley | |
- | Emily Brown | ' |
- | Alan Twigg | ' |
Musical Director | Martin Quinn |
Non-Committee Roles
Role | Name | Email: @bcoswesing.org.uk |
---|---|---|
Librarian | Nicky Roberts |
Constitution
Click on the button on the right for a copy of our Constitution.