NEWS FROM THE DOWNSMEN
- Greetings to all our Friends

The Downsmen Move to Mole Valley

Eureka! The search is over. We have found a new rehearsal venue. From 7th January 2009 The Downsmen will be practising each Wednesday evening from 7.30pm to 10.00pm in the Methodist Church , Church Road , Leatherhead.

Having checked out more than 40 locations over many months, our Chairman, John Passey, who led the hunt, is highly delighted. However, he had almost given up when a phone call came from Leatherhead to say the Methodist Church had managed to find adequate storage for all our equipment. Were we still interested? When first visited, all the convenient cupboard space was taken up by other organisations. Now the venue was suddenly very suitable for our purposes.

The acoustics are excellent, and all the other facilities such as the kitchen and various spaces for section practise can all be found on the ground floor. Moreover, the team that greeted us on our final inspection made us feel that we would be really welcome to bring our brand of music into their place of worship.

Nepalese Night in Bookham

When two Downsmen put their heads together in aid of a good cause the result is worth watching. Berin Gowan, an elder of the United Reform Church in Bookham, linked up with Mike Houghton, a leading light in the Nepal Leprosy Trust as the URC had been supporting the charity for quite some time. This pair of barbershop basses came up with an evening to remember.

The programme started with The Downsmen delivering a variety of numbers either side of Mike Houghton giving a talk on the work of the Nepal Leprosy Trust. In this way the packed audience got first-hand knowledge of the crippling condition from the man who had set-up and run the hospital at the leper colony. Pity turned to admiration at the realisation that those suffering from the disease are beginning to live and work in their communities. Previously everyone would have been an outcast, reliant on charity. Now they have an opportunity to lead productive lives.

Almost £1,500 was raised by the event from ticket sales, donations extracted in return for delicious handmade puddings and the proceeds of a craft stall selling high quality goods made by the Nepalese.

Finding Four Fortunes

Last September we spent an evening at the RAC Golf Club in Epsom. We had been invited to perform three times between courses at a dinner for members and their guests.

However, we offered the first session to four young singers from The City of London Freemans School. Why? Well earlier in the year our Musical Director, Eileen Mason, had heard them perform to fellow students, in aid of the Royal Marsden charity appeal. In spite of singing in difficult conditions, in the open air with distractions all around, these young men impressed Eileen and their youthful audience. Then the quartet, called ‘The Fortunes', came to one of our rehearsals and entertained our chorus with their brand of barbershop.

They were a hit with us, and went on to gain warm applause from the diners at the RAC Club. It was a great start to the evening, and The Downsmen rounded it off in style with a wide selection of numbers from our repertoire.

Singing Has Its Social Side

“You should have come through to the bar and entertained us”. Praise indeed from the staff at the Haycutters Arms in Oxted when we took over their skittle alley one Friday night in November. We had just finished a fun evening with partners and friends, all hilariously trying to lay flat nine pins and get a decent score for our respective teams. In spite of the food and drink consumed it was agreed that a couple of songs wouldn't go amiss before departing. With a very unbalanced chorus, and without a pitch pipe, we attempted to raise the roof. Therefore it was most rewarding to get the complimentary remarks and think that perhaps we would be allowed back to do it all again one fine day.

A month later it was the turn of the Oaks Sports Centre in Carshalton to be given the treatment as we sang ‘Thank You Very Much' to the highly obliging staff. That, and a few other numbers came at the end of a Christmas dinner that exceeded all expectations. The food, the quiz questions, the company and the venue all contributed to a great night out.

 

 

Yours in harmony, John Friend PRO