St George's Day 2006

With the Bank Holiday Monday, this has been a four day week at work. I like four day weeks! I enjoyed a singaround at the Chichester Folk Song Club on Tuesday night. For the last couple of Tuesdays I have been accompanied by Ingrid and Alice. Both of them are blessed with lovely singing voices and Alice is looking for a new band to join having recently parted with a trio she formed with two friends. She has a beautiful voice, even excelling her mother's. On the other hand, I have no singing voice especially if singing solo and unaccompanied. I can't hold a tune in my head and can just about manage to sing along with other voices (preferably in the same range as me).

Anyway on this Tuesday night I went alone to the Club and as usual was knocked out by the range and exuberance of the music. Folk music tells the history of our country and people in a magical way. One song told of the nineteen year wait for promotion of a football club but the song makes no reference to football and will stand the test of time as a beautiful creation in its own right.

As my contribution to the evening I read two speeches from Shakespeare: Henry V's speech before the battle of Agincourt and John of Gaunt's speech from Richard II. The readings had a dual purpose because the folk club was also a way of preparing for St George's Day itself. On Sunday the local pub, the Gold Lion, is holding a day of celebration in honour of the patron saint and I have been asked to come up with a fifteen minute slot for a midday and an evening performance.

It took me half a day to come up with a rough running order which includes ruminations (humourous I hope) on England and its patron saint and bringing in Shakespeare as the great playwright was born on the day itself (and rather amazingly died on St George's Day). I chose two speeches from Henry V (rousing ones) and one from Richard II which can be perceived as a commentary on the less noble state our country currently finds itself in. An unknown audience in an unknown venue and with my own untried material makes this an ususual venture for me!