DA CAPO - Stairwell Caroling at the Rideau Hall Skating Party - 2001

Back in 2001, when Adrienne Clarkson was The Governor General, we got to do a singing Gig for the Annual Rideau Hall Skating party.

The plan was to remain inside, caroling for the guests when they came indoors to hang out, eat and drink, and warm up from the cold (yes, there was skating outside!)

Dress up time!!

Here's my Blog Post all about costuming  with tips and tricks to pulling together  a Victorian Look!

I used my Drama teacher costume scrounging skills to toggle together an outfit for myself  and encouraged Susan, Diane, Denyse and Jen to raid their own closets for pieces to create a Victorian silhouette.

The men were a problem. No, not like that. There is never anything in a guys regular closet that can approximate Victorian costume, so I went to Ottawa Little Theatre and got authentic Tail Tuxes for them. At the time, Ottawa Little Theatre was the best resource for Fab costumes on a shoestring budget.

The choir was smaller then, but not this small! The gig was a bit of a last minute request, so the most available of us went. It worked out well, with the parts divided fairly equally.

We had a wonderful time singing and soaking up the opulent Rideau Hall ambience. Sadly, we never got a photo with Ms. Clarkson, but I snapped a shot of these guys...

Rideau Hall is a living museum, and it was great to visit, but I can't imagine living there. Room after room are set up as parlours, sitting rooms, dining halls.

Huge, echoing spaces with marble floors - a bit cold and castle-like for a home.

Of course our voices echoed marvellously too. It was very easy to sing there. People were very appreciative and we wandered freely through the endless rooms, singing a couple of songs and then moving on.

Our only disappointment was that they didn't feed us.

Oh, there was food! tons of food. But, not for... the hired help.

So I took photos in the bathrooms!

Our TOP 10 videos on YouTube -- #9 "Fine Knacks for Ladies" -- Dowland

Number 9 on our TOP TEN YouTube videos.

A fun and bouncy Renaissance Madrigal, 
"Fine Knacks for Ladies".

Ottawa choir, The Stairwell Carollers, perform "Fine Knacks for Ladies", a renaissance madrigal by John Dowland (1563 --  1626).

Visit our blog or our website for updates.

Audio: Tom Barnes.  Recorded at St-Charles Church, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, June 8th, 2001

Editing: Pierre Massie

Stairwell Carollers 2013 group photo DONE!

2013 Stairwell Carollers (minus a few that couldn't make it for the pic)

Here we are on the steps of my favourite venue, St. Charles in Vanier.

Too bad it's no longer a church.

 Budget restrictions forced its closure and sent the congregation packing to a newer place of worship nearby. Sadly, St. Charles may become condos in the future -- sacrilegious to me, pardon the pun.

 Hey, I'm not Catholic, but it is such a lovely church -- all ivory and gold inside with a huge contemporary stained glass window over the alter.

Built in the classic cathedral shape, the quality of the sound at concerts was outstanding, with a wondrous echo coming back to us, filling the space with our voices.

The only reason we did not record CDs there is  the constant traffic noise from Beechwood Avenue, impossible to filter out.

Ah, well... we have lovely memories of singing there -- doing our group photo there again seems right.

Our 2007 group photo

A few choir members couldn't make it to the photo shoot -- really, just me with my camera on tripod, tiny remote clicker in hand --  so I may try to morph some of them in from old group photos.

Rex, Kelly, Maggie and Nicole are in this one from 2011

Well, maybe not that old...

way back in 2008

Ha -- love those photo effects.

Well, we'll see what wonders I can wring out of my photo program... stayed tuned...

Myn Lyking, an Old English carol, performed by The Stairwell Carollers

Stairwell Caroller scarf and cloak are one piece

Ottawa choir, The Stairwell Carollers, perform "Myn Lyking" by R.R. Terry. This a cappella setting of the Old English lullaby carol is by the choir's director, Pierre Massie.  The carollers, an a cappella group, formed in 1977 by Pierre, has earned the distinction of being ranked amongst the best of Ottawa choirs by choral critics. We are a non-profit organization, and raise funds for local charities through our concert, CD and cookbook sales.

This version of Myn Lyking will be included in our next Christmas CD, release date, October 2015.  All our CDs are available on our website in both CD form and as MP3 downloads.

Buy our CDs and help other charities reach their goals!!!

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or our website for updates.

Audio: Tom Barnes.  Recorded at St. Columba Church, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, Dec 17th, 2011.
Videographer: Andrew Mason.
Editing: Pierre Massie

CHOIR HOW-TO -- Costume -- Part Six: Spring Pastels to Basic Black

In 2005, we scooped up ice cream colours for our spring concerts and I felt quite uplifted by our look. It suited the spring mood and was very simple. However, most members had to go out and search for tops and shirts in pastel colours since they did not have anything suitable already in their wardrobe. It proved to be a daunting task for some, myself included. Maybe pastels weren't in that year, but I remember going in and out of the stores at St. Laurent Shopping center -- getting more and more frustrated as there was nothing but common t-shirts in pastel.I finally ended up in the little old lady section at SE*RS, where I found my soon to be hated yellow top.

Sigh.

The pastels served us well for a few seasons until the Steering Committee decided they wanted the group to appear more "professional". The final judgement was that this look was cheerful, but a bit casual and an executive decision was made to look for a different option.

Sigh of relief:)

Back in Black

The Big Decision was Artsy black. This choice gave us the classical musician look and reflected the status of the group. All Black has turned out to be the best and simplest costume by far. It was easy for me, as the ersatz costume lady, since the onus was on each individual to supply their own outfit. We do look pulled together and professional don't we?

We gave everyone some simple guidelines to put together thir own outfit (usually from their existing closet) The Men's outfits were actually more restrictive than the women's, since we had to put our foot down on no collars (which scream casual) and polo type shirts (golfing!).

BLACK RULES!

True Black pieces are a must.  Greenish, red or brown-tone "blacks" won't cut it -- stage lights will show up the underlying colour in the material to discerning audience members.

Men:
collared shirt , long sleeves

Everyone:
Black dress shoes
Black socks or thick hose
No overt textures -- mainly in the front row.

Women:
No bare legs, elbows, shoulders or cleavage
No sparkly or glittery elements on the garment
No obvious see through elements

We left jewellery choices up to each person, but I always wear crystals since they sparkle nicely. Most keep it subtle gold or silver. If you are concerned, just instruct your group not to wear chunky jewellery that introduces another colour to the monochromatic outfit. 

NO PRUDES HERE

The request for less skin was not made for prudish reasons, rather, for the overall look. Against the black, skin glows under stage lights and in photos, so we all agreed on covering it. For instance, elbows look knobby below short black sleeves and ample cleavage really picks up the stage lights.

We don't want to pull the audiences focus away from the music:)

Well, dear readers, this brings me to the end of the CHOIR HOW-TO -- COSTUME series for the blog.

If you need help with costume decisions for your choir, I'm only a comment or email away and I'd love to help you.

The Choir Costume series links :)

Choir Costume Part 1 - what NOT to wear?
Choir Costume Part 2 - Gowns or Gownless Evening Straps?
Choir Costume Part 3 - Girls in Tails
Choir Costume Part 4 - Period Wear -- Medieval/Renaissance to Victorian Era
Choir Costume Part 5 - Cloaks are all the Vogue
Choir Costume Part 6 - Spring Pastels to Basic Black

CHOIR HOW-TO -- Costume -- Part Five: Cloaks are all the Vogue

One sunny Saturday afternoon in December, 1997, we were booked to carol while strolling through the Byward Market (here in downtown Ottawa.) The market administration supplied one-size fits all fleece capes (deep grey-green with attached red scarves) for us to wear, in keeping with their Caroling in the Market theme. The whole choir loved them because they were cozy, festive and surprisingly clean (Holly, the clean freak, always appreciates clean costumes.)

Being a natural ripoff artist, and knowing many of the choir members were fed up with the tuxedos, I searched pattern books for the same look.

Wouldn't you know, Vogue had the perfect pattern.

SIZING UP THE CHOIR

Since I was sewing them myself, I wanted them to "fit" the current members of the choir. I took arm length measurements and measurements from the neck to the back of  the knees. Some cloaks had to be shorter in length or arms, some longer.With these adjustments, the women's cloaks were made according to the original pattern. For the men, I added a back center panel .  This fulfilled the need for necessary extra shoulder width and arm length without compromising the overall shape of the cloak. Once again, my experience with costume held up -- I am comfortable adapting and even combining patterns if necessary to get the look I want.

Now I had the tools to judge how much fabric to buy.

CHOOSING FABRIC -- WHY FLEECE?

Running down to my favourite fabric stores, Bouclair (now defunct) and Fabricland, I searched through the materials looking for the right weight and drape. Working with costumes in theater taught me that any costume has to look right under lights and must move the way you want. I had the winter cape image in my mind and finally settled on fleece. Available in almost any colour (since it was all the rage in 1998) I found the perfect Christmas green and red.

I wish I had a photo of my ancient Honda Civic filled above the headrests with fleece. I needed a whole bolt of green and about eight meters of red. It was a challenge to drive it home, since Pete had fleece filling his rear-view mirror, I navigated.

#CHOIR #HOW-TO -- #Costume -- Part Five: #Cloaks are all the Vogue stairwellcarollers.blogspot.ca/2011/09/choir-… #sewing advice
— Stairwell Carollers (@StairwellChoir) November 5, 2012

THE DEVIL'S IN THE DETAILS

Red buttons -- a challenge to get enough of all the same button. I fear I will never find the exact button again if I need replacements!

Matching thread --  So important! Buy the BEST quality you can afford and match it to the fabric exactly in natural light right there in the store.

Red acrylic Yarn --Easy care is important if you want to add details. You don't want the item to come out of the wash with dye running or material shrinkage!

CUTTING THE FLEECE 

I laid the fleece out on the dining-room table to cut, and found I could do no more than two layers at a time due to the thickness of the fleece. Luckily the paper pattern stayed put and I had no need to pin it, avoiding damage to the delicate tissue pattern. After all, I had to make over twenty-five cloaks . (am I nuts, or what?)

SEWING IT UP

Fleece doesn't need to be hemmed, but, to strengthen the edges, I did a single line of stitches 1/3 of an inch all round -- on the scarves too.

ALMOST DONE - JUST...

A bright red button on both sides holds the cloak halves together without inhibiting the drape of the fabric.

I LOVE Vogue design!

The cloaks are not "slimming", so I decided to do a large blanket stitch by hand down the front edge of each cloak with a matching red acrylic yarn to create some vertical interest. The result seemed to "finish" the look nicely.

I finished the scarves with a hand-written "Stairwell Caroller" logo on each using liquid writer gel. I designed a sample and then worked each one referring to the sample. A bit nerve-wracking, considering this was the finishing touch to each cloak and if I messed up, I would have to replace the whole scarf.

I also used the writing gel to scribe each person's name in their cloak for convenience. Now that so many people have come and gone, the names are assigned to new people according to fit. One of those choir members has since passed on -- and his name is in a way memorialized in the cloak.

 No, I didn't mess up. On the scarves anyway. I can't  tell you how many times I had to pick pattern pieces apart because I sewed them together backwards or upside down! Assembly line production can be hypnotizing at times and Pete had to literally drag me away from the machine for meals when I really got going.

By the way...

Don't let anyone tell you that you need a fancy sewing machine to do make beautiful items.

I used my old Singer 221 Featherweight electric for everything. I acquired this machine from a secondhand store while at Ottawa University and Pete has helped me keep it working ever since.  I have sewn wedding dresses (my own and Dawn's,) and all the bridesmaid dresses for both weddings. I've sewn costumes, promotional flags, you name it, but those are other stories... for a different Blog :) That I haven't created... yet. (Collective sigh of relief)

In the end, I had enough fabric left to make some children's cloaks for a special concert. Yes, I also made a few extra adult cloaks before running out of fabric. I cross my fingers every season that I will get all cloaks back in one piece -- so far -- so good. This post better not jinx it.

WRAPPING IT UP...

The choir cloaks -- or as David Rain calls them , our "Cloaking Devices" have turned out to be both comfortable and versatile. Onstage, most of us wear a light weight shirt underneath and, since churches tend to be on the cold side, most of the singers find them cozy but not too warm. For an outdoor venue, such as Sparks street, the cloaks are perfect, protecting our throats -- important when singing out in the cold air!

Thirteen! years later, the cloaks still look new, and even with machine washing and drying at the end of each Christmas season. 

Next - Part 6 

The Choir Costume series links :)

Choir Costume Part 1 - what NOT to wear?
Choir Costume Part 2 - Gowns or Gownless Evening Straps?
Choir Costume Part 3 - Girls in Tails
Choir Costume Part 4 - Period Wear -- Medieval/Renaissance to Victorian Era
Choir Costume Part 5 - Cloaks are all the Vogue
Choir Costume Part 6 - Spring Pastels to Basic Black

CHOIR HOW-TO -- Costume -- Part Four: Period Wear -- Medieval/Renaissance to Victorian Era

Pierre and Holly at Rideau Hall, 1901 -- uh, I mean, 2001

Who doesn't love to dress up? Lots of people, I guess. Luckily I jump at the chance to wear costume. At least I used to. When I was ... younger. Anyway, this post features one-shot costumes. All period pieces -- all for specific occasions.

Doing costume for theater productions at Ottawa U taught me some invaluable tips and shortcuts.

1. If it can't be seen it doesn't matter. Always have safety pins (for sudden costume malfunctions), petroleum jelly (for shining shoes, slicking hair etc) and duct tape (for hems and edges) on hand.

2. For Period costume -- I always teach my Drama students to look at the Silhouette of each period. The web page below from the National Arts Centre explains this better than I could here.

3. Do some research! Here's the link for a great page. They have tons of info -- and are master costumers.

4.Dig through available closets and jewellery boxes -- use your imagination before you spend money.

In Renaissance-inspired costume rented for a song from OLT From Left -- Pierre, Mike, Dawn, Me, Diane, Marjorie, Denyse, Donald and Simon

We were on Regional Contact so many times, and we usually wore our regular scarves and sweaters. But for one show, in 1993, we got to dress up in a range of outfits from Medieval to Victorian . Costumes again provided by Ottawa Little Theatre. The only difference was, I didn't have to drive down to OLT at King Edward Ave and Rideau Street to pick up the outfits myself.  Joel Haslam had the costumes there, all ready for us to try, when we arrived at the Billings Estate to start filming.

In 2001 we were invited to sing at the Governor General's skating party at Rideau Hall. FUN! Costume fun, anyway...but that little bit of local gossip will have to wait. We're focusing on COSTUME here. Focus.

The men wore OLT's tail tuxedos and we girls raided our wardrobes, my schools costume cupboard and local thrift shops. I reminded the girls that "VICTORIAN" means COVERED from top of the head to the toes. Cinched waists, High necks, ruffles, bustles and gloves maintained the proper silhouette for the Victorian Era. "Good enough for Jazz", as my dad used to say.

More details on former Governor General Adrian Clarkson and the Rideau Hall skating party gig in a future post.

NEXT... Part 5 our now-famous Christmas CLOAKS become reality thanks to a wonderful Vogue pattern!

The Choir Costume series links :)

Choir Costume Part 1 - what NOT to wear?
Choir Costume Part 2 - Gowns or Gownless Evening Straps?
Choir Costume Part 3 - Girls in Tails
Choir Costume Part 4 - Period Wear -- Medieval/Renaissance to Victorian Era
Choir Costume Part 5 - Cloaks are all the Vogue
Choir Costume Part 6 - Spring Pastels to Basic Black

CHOIR HOW-TO -- Costume -- Part Three: Dressing the Choir, Girls in Tails

On and into the late 90's, where we depended on the generosity of Ottawa Little Theatre, and Costume Mistress, Sue McKinley, for tailed tuxedos. Well-cared for, basically antique, tuxedos.We looked fabulous -- and very festive, as well as formal.

Another confession -- I always wanted to dress in "Tux 'n Tails", and these were authentic! Once a theater person, always a theater person.

#CHOIR #HOW-TO -- #Costume -- Part Three: Dressing the Choir, Girls in Tails stairwellcarollers.blogspot.ca/2011/08/choir-… #sewingadvice #choiroutfits
— Holly Massie (@HollyWroteit) November 5, 2012

I still own a tickle trunk.

The venture was inexpensive as well -- me and my shoe-string budget brain again.

$10 rental per  tuxedo -- and we returned them to OLT unlaundered (they always handled costume cleaning)

$10 per red bow tie (purchased)

$20 per tux shirt -- I measured each singer and picked up the shirts at a local menswear store(they reimbursed me).

The Carollers supplied their own black shoes and socks/nylons -- and I was a bit more strict on the footwear to keep the formal and uniform look

Everyone was very good about the total cost per outfit and we wore the tuxes for 1997 Xmas and for the 1997 - 2001 Spring seasons. New members only had to buy the tux shirt -- and we made sure to choose a classic style that was still available from year to year.

We got so many complements! As I thought, many people liked the fact that the ladies wore the same suit as the men and how flattering they were.

However, some of the choir members were not as thrilled as I -- they squirmed under the tight collars, and perspired under the wool on stage. I've always believed one has to suffer for their art, but even I can't get my way forever, and we shifted to new ideas. Who said a change is a as good as a rest? I mourned the loss of our tuxes, but, unbeknownst to me, we were moving toward our costume destiny.

Next...Part 4  Period costume takes the stage.

The Choir Costume series links :)

Choir Costume Part 1 - what NOT to wear?

Choir Costume Part 2 - Gowns or Gownless Evening Straps?

Choir Costume Part 3 - Girls in Tails

Choir Costume Part 4 - Period Wear -- Medieval/Renaissance to Victorian Era

Choir Costume Part 5 - Cloaks are all the Vogue

Choir Costume Part 6 - Spring Pastels to Basic Black

CHOIR HOW-TO -- Costume -- Part Two: Dressing the Choir, Gowns or Gownless Evening Straps?

I know what you're thinking -- costumes cost money. Who should pay for them?  Simply, I was determined to do costumes for nothing, asking the choir members to contribute or supply as much as they could give personally.

Yes, this is not how many choirs do it. Often they raise funds to pay for costumes or trips to Constantinople. Without sounding judgmental, I think this is selfish. The kind of music we do (primarily Christmas and Sacred) represents the kind of citizens we are. We want to give rather than take, so, diatribe over, the money was not coming out of the choir coffers if I had any say.

From the get-go, I refused to wear a "choir gown". (And they are bloody expensive!) I insisted our choir was different -- we weren't affiliated with any specific church and I did not want us to appear to be of a particular denomination over any other. I was also young enough to think I'd look like some "old lady" in a choir gown -- I admit I had some preconceptions about traditional choir attire.

I persisted, the choir resisted.

And, for a while I did wear a... choir gown.

Shudder.

A complete set donated to us by Keith's church choir -- they had upgraded and we benefited.
I grinned and wore it.
For a short time.
Only for Masses.

Funny that I have no photos of us in those gowns. Well, you can imagine, flowy, dusty rose polyester. Go ahead imagine. Now go scrub the inside of your eyes with a toothbrush.

Don't get me wrong, I was thankful when the other choir donated the twenty or so robes to us -- at first it seemed to be the easy solution. But, after much whining from myself, (and I am SUCH a whiner) we settled on black and white for singing Mass and for the occasional  Spring concert.. This was easy since individual singers supplied their own version of white shirt and black pants/long skirt.

Forced to be the bad guy -- I encouraged long sleeves, pressed seams, black socks and no running shoes.

Still, some wore black jeans (not black under lights!) or snow boots -- or black Adidas.

Or white tennis shoes.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Next Part 3

The Choir Costume series links :)

Choir Costume Part 1 - what NOT to wear?
Choir Costume Part 2 - Gowns or Gownless Evening Straps?
Choir Costume Part 3 - Girls in Tails
Choir Costume Part 4 - Period Wear -- Medieval/Renaissance to Victorian Era
Choir Costume Part 5 - Cloaks are all the Vogue
Choir Costume Part 6 - Spring Pastels to Basic Black