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WGMA weekend at Ironbridge, Shropshire, 2005

This workshop event took place over the weekend of 14th - 16th October at Abraham Darby School, Madeley, near Ironbridge, in Shropshire.

Some Highlights
The workshops on Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th were preceded on Friday evening by informal music making in the room above the Tontine Hotel in the middle of Ironbridge opposite the "iron bridge", singing from Praise and Glory (the Psalter) and West Gallery Harmony.

 

Mike Bailey recording the weekend's proceedings.

On Saturday morning, Mike Bailey, the WGMA chairman, opened proceedings with 'Birmingham', the WGMA "signature tune" and (appropriately) 'Trafalgar', a setting of Watts' hymn "Zion rejoice, and Judah sing" by Anton Radiger. Sally Drage then led us through an ornate setting of Psalm 122 by Joseph Key of Nuneaton. Lyn Law and Paul Gailiunas (having recently acquired printed books published by him), led compositions by David Everard Ford, in a later, quite different style,

After lunch, Edwin Macadam taught William Knapp's funeral anthem, the text taken from Job chapter 7 and consequently sometimes referred to as the "Worms anthem", followed by his good lady, Sheila, with a bright and celebratory harvest anthem based on Psalm 65. Francis Roads later taught his newly composed anthem "The Bulls of Basan", using text from Psalm 22.
On Sunday morning, instrumentalists and singers parted for a while. Paul Guppy (right) led an a capella workshop on William Billings' setting of the text "I am come into my Garden" from the 'Song of Solomon', while Mike Bailey taught the instrumentalists a suite of Sea-songs (left).


Music files: Trafalgar by Anton Radiger | Psalm 122 by Joseph Key | Ryde by David Everard Ford
Anthem from Psalm 65 from Matthew Wilkins' book | I am come into my Garden by William Billings

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