Playing the saxophone The Cafe Trio grown to Octet down to Sextet

[rhysonsax]

My reading of the DCMS guidance is that the max size of an amateur group indoors is 6 people. But more than one group is allowed. Can anyone tell me what this means? Does the sax section count as a “group”?

What Making Music UK have said is quite sensible and it is what we are doing for our big band of 17 players.

• Managing numbers safely within social contact limits: “those attending do not mix beyond what is permitted by the social contact limits”
  • This means that the total number of people attending a rehearsal can be more than the social contact limit – but that they must always remain in sub-groups within social contact limits.
    So, the social contact limit at this step will be 6.
  • Making Music advise that you go further than this and treat everyone as a sub-group of 1 – and do not allow for any mixing at all. This will mean your rules can be very simple and clear and make the rehearsal much easier to manage

So each of us will be in a sub-group on their own and not mixing, either within the section or with other sections.

Rhys

 

[Jeanette]

What Making Music UK have said is quite sensible and it is what we are doing for our big band of 17 players.

• Managing numbers safely within social contact limits: “those attending do not mix beyond what is permitted by the social contact limits”
  • This means that the total number of people attending a rehearsal can be more than the social contact limit – but that they must always remain in sub-groups within social contact limits.
    So, the social contact limit at this step will be 6.
  • Making Music advise that you go further than this and treat everyone as a sub-group of 1 – and do not allow for any mixing at all. This will mean your rules can be very simple and clear and make the rehearsal much easier to manage

So each of us will be in a sub-group on their own and not mixing, either within the section or with other sections.

Rhys

That's what we do too.

Jx

 

[Tenor Viol]

My reading of the DCMS guidance is that the max size of an amateur group indoors is 6 people. But more than one group is allowed. Can anyone tell me what this means? Does the sax section count as a “group”?

Yes, I think that's what it weirdly means. So tomorrow, strings are entering one door and we must not mix with the woodwind... who will enter by a different door.... Bonkers.

 

[rhysonsax]

Yes, I think that's what it weirdly means. So tomorrow, strings are entering one door and we must not mix with the woodwind... who will enter by a different door.... Bonkers.

Silly unless all the strings live together in a happy bubble and likewise the woodwind.

Simpler and safer to be in bubbles of one as per the Making Music guidance.

Rhys

 

[Tenor Viol]

Silly unless all the strings live together in a happy bubble and likewise the woodwind.

Simpler and safer to be in bubbles of one as per the Making Music guidance.

Rhys

We've said we won't mix

 

[MandyH]

We don’t mix.
Everyone arrives at 2m plus intervals, heads to their socially distanced chair & remains there (toilet visits, with face coverings allowed)
During the break in rehearsal, we remain seated, or go outside & stay apart.

 

[Jeanette]

Whoop had our first meet since March 2020.

It was fantastic to see you guys again and all things considered I think we played pretty well. Certainly some work to do but it was fun.

Nice cakes too 🙂

Jx

 

[Tenor Viol]

The conductor’s arm held up despite dodgy shoulder. More than can be said for his embouchure. To break them in gently, we played a piece with a 4/2 time signature...

 

[Tenor Viol]

It is debatable whether there was more sax playing or cake consumption....

 

[Vetinari]

It was cakes won the day. Birthday, lemon drizzle and chocolate brownies. .

 

[trimmy]

lemon drizzle .

The lemon drizzle was a winner with the Mrs, she wants to put a order in for xmas meet

 

[Tenor Viol]

Monthly sax moot yesterday afternoon. We're all rather rusty, some of us more than others... But we did OK. I bought a sax arrangement of Orlando Gibbons' "O Clap Your Hands" several years ago, but we've never played it before. Yesterday we had a go at sight-reading it - something that we wouldn't have tried in the past. It's a fine example of English polyphony from the C17th.

View: https://youtu.be/pV9vKNVwsvk

 

[Tenor Viol]

Today the octet was a quartet due to various people having other commitments... So they had to suffer me on alto and a bit of tenor, rather than bari and tenor...

 

[Jeanette]

I love it when we are all there but occasionally a smaller group gives us time to work on issues and hear each other more 🙂

Jx

 

[Tenor Viol]

We also took to the stage...

 

[trimmy]

work on issues

What’s up love, I’m a good listener 😉

 

[Vetinari]

What’s up love, I’m a good listener 😉

Just the audience we need

 

[Tenor Viol]

First meeting of the year. Good to be back. I tortured them with some renaissance pieces like this

View: https://youtu.be/sXv067CJzC0

 

[Jeanette]

And @trimmy chose a very nice red to go with our postponed Christmas meal.

Jx

 

[Jeanette]

Title changed to Octet as we have now found another sop player to join us 🙂

We had a good session yesterday though were missing @chadders and @nickh hopefully we will all make it in March. I need to play longer at home as my embouchure was very tired towards the end yesterday.


Jx