For I will consider my Cat Baldrick ....

Categories: uncategorized

Date: 22 April 2005 23:46:40

A week of great achievements in the Spike and Scooby household. For the big one, see 'Diary of the Rat Man' (who may now not be a rat man for much longer).

For the lesser one, we have our election posters up in the window! (They are the only ones in the street so far, and I think this is about as exciting as this election is going to get).

Back to choir on Monday night, and there's always the thrill of getting nice new scores (and disappointment if you get one of the manky old ones). After last term, which was the Messiah, and therefore just one huge book, this term we have about half-a-dozen little books and booklets. The summer concert always consists of 'lighter' bits and bobs, and we spent Monday evening practicing a couple of new pieces (new to me, many of the choir probably know them in their sleep).

I should maybe explain 'choir' here - my husband (bass, voice like fine-quality plain chocolate, has been choral singing since he was an ickle treble, fairly confident sight-reader, very good ear, can pick up tunes almost instantly) is in two choirs: a 'visiting choir' who, as the name cunningly suggests, visit cathedrals during school holidays to sing the services when their regular choirs take time off; and a local 'Choral Society' (bunch of folks of varying abilities who practice each week and put on a concert each term). Into this latter choir, the likes of me (soprano, voice like an asthmatic owl, picks up a tune after hearing it a few times and is helped in this if I have sight of the dots) are admitted and get a lot of enjoyment from it.

So, we started by practising 'Blest Pair of Sirens' by Parry. In choir in-talk this is referred to as 'Blest Pair of Nylons', but from past experience, with our concerts being held on Saturday evenings in a London church on the junction of several major roads, 50 yards from the local police station, I think 'Sirens' will probably be quite appropriate. Our rendition was rather bizarre, due to the fact that some folk had 4-part scores, and some had 8-part scores, but hopefully we will all be singing from the same hymn sheet, as it were, next week.

We also practiced 'Rejoice in the Lamb' or, as those crazy choral types call it, 'Slam in the Lamb'. Being a Visiting Choir Wife involves certain weekend afternoons of wandering round various, (mostly old and beautiful, but sometimes Derby) towns, then heading off to the Cathedral for Evensong, trying not to rustle the carrier bags one has acquired during the afternoon, and wondering how the Husband's red cassock manages to look OK from a distance and with a surplice over it, when you know what a despicable condition it is actually in. 'Rejoice in the Lamb' is an anthem one often hears at these services, being sung awesomely, and I am really excited to think that Little Old Me is getting a crack at singing it.

'Slam in the Lamb' is also fun because it has music by Benjamin Britten and words by the weird and wonderful Christopher Smart. So far we have only run through the first section ('Let Ishmail dedicate a Tyger, and give praise for the liberty in which the Lord has let him at large'), but the next section (a treble solo), has the words which inspired this entry title, and I hope isn't a breach of copyright if given here:

For I will consider my Cat Jeoffry.
For he is the servant of the living God, duly and daily serving him.
For at the first glance of the glory of God in the East he worships in his way.
For this is done by wreathing his body seven times round with elegant quickness.
For he knows that God is his Saviour.
For God has blessed him in the variety of his movements.
For there is nothing sweeter than his peace when at rest.
For I am possessed of a cat, surpassing in beauty, from whom I take occasion to bless Almighty God.

As a cat owner I find this rather touching. I'm not sure it's quite 'sound' that lying in the sun all day is a form of worship, but it's an attractive theology :-D.