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Newsletter of November 2016

Supported by

Welcome to our November Newsletter!

Since our last newsletter in January, Jan Rogers has handed over the task of organising the

newsletter to me. On behalf of the committee and the whole choir, thank you, Jan, for all your

hard work and for doing such a brilliant job.

Bradley Haynes

Anzac Dawn Service

Monday 25th

April 2016

It was a misty morning and thankfully the rains didn’t eventuate. The hush and sombre

excitement of the many people gathered set the scene. Speeches were delivered and wreaths

were laid with quiet reverence. A Kappella Munda then sang the New Zealand national

anthem in Maori and English and two verses of the Australian national anthem. Although it

wasn’t planned that way, we ended up singing ‘Sing You’ after the final speeches, which

ended the ceremony perfectly. We were honoured to be asked to sing on this occasion.

Choir singing ‘Sing You’. Photo and recording by Mike Cheffins. The recording was placed

on the A Kappella Munda Facebook page.

This Issue

Anzac Dawn Service

St. Barnabus, Kalamunda

Maxine’s Funeral

New Norcia Weekend

VoiceMale Minifest

Zig Zag Festival

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St. Barnabus Kalamunda

Sunday 12th

June 2016

A Kappella Munda was asked to sing at the dedication of the narthex at St. Barnabus church

in Kalamunda. The evening started with the choir joining the congregation at evensong, which

was greatly appreciated by Reverend John Ward. We then moved to the entrance and Bishop

Jeremy James knocked on the door with his staff as part of the ceremony. Through the entry

the bishop and the reverend blessed the narthex, which with much exuberance became a fairly

wet affair. After the blessings there was a small stand-up dinner with drinks at which the choir

sang.

Photo courtesy of St. Barnabus, Kalamunda

Maxine Price’s funeral

Thursday 4th

August 2016, 3:30pm at Bowra and O’Dea in Midland

Moira Martin was the celebrant and did a fantastic job under the difficulty of Maxine being a

friend.

Friday 29th

July saw the passing of our dear friend and choir stalwart Maxine Price. She was

an AKM original. A steady, kind hand, someone you could rely on without question. She

served well over 15 years as choir secretary, and it wasn't until she stepped down last year that

we realised just how much work she had quietly shouldered all the years – we had to replace

her with three people. Maxine, we will miss your talent, your smile, your steadfastness. Our

thoughts are with your family at this time of sadness. May your spirit always sing with us.

Beni’s Eulogy

Maxine organised an unruly bunch of altos into a

"Dazzling Diamantes" routine with amazing skill. She

had such a gift for music and fun, and her loyalty to the

choir meant that she always put 100% into everything

she did for us. Thank you, dear friend. We miss you so

much.

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Quotes

She will be greatly missed – beautiful voice and heart.

Such a lovely lady who will be sorely missed.

… Sing in heaven, beautiful lady.

… she was a woman whose energy belied her years and had a great sense of fun.

Our "Diamond Girl" RIP. You will be sadly missed.

New Norcia

5th

to 7th

August 2016

The New Norcia weekend was a great success this year with everyone who went having a

good time. Friday night was wet, which made the evening fire a joy. The food was, as always

with A Kappella Munda, plentiful and pleasurable. With a few bottles to lubricate the vocal

cords after dinner we sang like little songbirds until late.

The next morning we had breakfast at our leisure, and then all got together to sing once more.

The weather was more favourable, so after the singing we sat in the sun and had lunch.

Marcia’s Eulogy

Maxine was the backbone of AKM for years. She was a

fantastic organiser and she was the one responsible for so

many birthday events. She organised the fabulous

“Diamante” medley and the “Sisters Rap” – a knockout!

Also the “Mr Postman” number and the sexy “All that Jazz”

gals. She was a dynamo. She is deeply missed by all of us...

gone too soon... we love you, Max. xx

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After lunch a few then chose to walk around the grounds. We gathered again when David and

Jen arrived and they told us about their adventures at the Gravity Discovery Centre, with the

Leaning Tower of Gingin. As a group we then walked around the grounds looking for places

for photo opportunities, which in such a beautiful place wasn’t hard at all.

The afternoon was then spent singing again. The evening came all too soon, as it does, and

with our adventure half-way through and almost done, it was time to celebrate. A Kappella

Munda turned 22 years old. With, of course, more singing and more bottles of choice, it was a

complete birthday event with the cutting of a cake.

Most people left the next morning, but the small group who were left had the joy of trying out

the acoustics in the Abbey Church. According to Moira Martin, it had an amazing sound.

“What a wonderful weekend with the nicest group of people one could ever wish to meet.

Thank you all for the friendship, great food, wine and song that we shared.”

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VoiceMale Minifest – Saturday afternoon concert

Saturday 20th

August 2016, 2:30pm

A Kappella Munda performed at the VoiceMale Minifest at St. Paul’s Church Hall, 162

Hampton Road, Beaconsfield. The other choirs on the program were: Starlight Hotel,

VoiceMale, and the Lost Quays. Starlight Hotel is a choir made up of people who have come

together through the good work of St. Patrick’s community support services. The enthusiasm

and joy of their performance was inspirational. At the end of our performance VoiceMale

joined us for a rousing version of Asikhatali before their set. The Lost Quays finished the

program with sea shanties, taking us back to the whaling era with salt water and life at sea.

A Kappella Munda and VoiceMale singing Asikhatali

Message from Digby:

Hi everyone,

Thank you for putting on such a sterling performance! Our energy and verve was beautiful to

behold, and I had a number of people including Monica Lacy of VoiceMoves saying that our

performance was the best she had heard of us for a while. Many thanks also to Leeann for

rescuing me when my vest and black shirt disappeared, and the hardy people who came to the

party and joined in the singing of Rachel's music. If everyone is enthusiastic about it, it'd be

good to do the minifest again next year!

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Zig Zag Festival

Sunday 30th

October 2016

The last event in this newsletter, but by no means the least, is the Zig Zag festival, a tribute to

the dedication of one of our very own, Celia Cheffins, who has put the event together since

2004, making this her 13th

festival. Prior to this, she coordinated the East Fremantle Festival

on George Street from 2001 to 2005. Without her energy and verve, the Zig Zag would never

have become the key cultural highlight that it is. It is so much a part of Kalamunda’s

landscape and soul. Thanks to Celia!

This year’s theme was Stirk Island 2116, a reflection on a future scenario of Kalamunda

Special Thanks!

On behalf of all of us in the choir, I would like to give a warm and heartfelt thanks to our

illustrious leader, Digby Hill. Without you, we would not be what we are, Fantastic!

Thank you to Mike Cheffins, who takes time out of his own busy schedule to take photos and

sound recordings of A Kappella Munda. The photos in this newsletter are supplied by Mike

unless otherwise stated.

A last thank you to Catherine Schwerin, who took over the president’s job when Felicity Hill

stepped down, and to the dedicated team on the committee, without whom A Kappella Munda

would not function.