Just try and sing together

Annemarie Homan

I got my first taste of a cappella / close harmony singing when I had just moved from the country to the city to study at the university and I saw that a choir was having auditions for new members. I just tried and was accepted (yay!).
But after just one minute into the first rehearsal my mouth just dropped. What's happening? What is this?? Why have I never heard this kind of singing before? Why didn't anyone tell me this existed?? This is AWESOME!! Polyphony with the most intricate melodies and it sounded so beautiful and those were just the warm-ups!
After that I was hooked. I think for life. The joy of singing a cappella is that you can just do it. You don't need to set up or tune your instruments, you don't need a stage or concert hall. All you need is your own voice and if you're lucky a couple of others to make the sweet harmonies.

Now that I live in Italy, I miss singing with the a cappella groups I sang with in The Netherlands. Last summer I decided to go the Solevoci Camp near Florence, where The *awesome* Swingle Singers hosted four incredibly inspiring days of workshops, discussions and of course singing. I went there on my own. There were a couple of groups there and I felt more than a little jealous. I also wanted to sing in a group again!
Lucky for me there were more like me who had come there on their own and we decided to try and sing together. It was mostly improvising, but we had so much fun! Enjoying the musical company and working up the courage to also sing in front of the other groups. It was kind of the predecessor of The Single Singers. Let's call it The Single Singers v0.1.

And now we are just 18 days away from The Single Singers 1.0!!

Annemarie Homan
Mezzo-Soprano

There's no turning back now

Why would an Italian journalist, 51 years old, doing in his life everything but sing, decide to join the Single Singers? I have no idea. It must have been a momentary lapse of sanity.


But in any case, I know I did the right thing. Ever since I was a little boy I've listened to every kind of music, from classic to rock. I love a cappella music: Swingles records have been in my house since I was young (thanks to my father Beppe, a jazz listener), and in recent times I have developed a great passion for a lot of groups. Vocal music has the characteristic to recreate a song, giving to it a new life. 

Michele Manzotti

So let's start a different thing, it's time to do it. I have a great fear, but at the same time I'm very much looking forward to Saturday 14^th january!

Don't miss The Single Singers debut!


Michele Manzotti, aspirant bass

Alone but not lonely at LACF: The Single Singers!

Whenever I visit a festival alone I have mixed feelings. I enjoy the concerts and workshops very much but..... I want to be on stage myself! I want to sing! Not just listen! That’s why I’m so glad that Annemarie Homan (Dutch friend living in Italy) came with this fantastic idea of creating the “Single Singers”. For all vocals coming to London A-capella Festival without a group. Together we spread this idea on twitter and facebook. And during the last six weeks people have started to join our group. How great is it that we managed to create an international group of 20 professional and very experienced singers. Now, during London Acapella Festival 2012 I’ll be able to sing and perform myself! And not just with anybody.... So proud that we’re going to sing, among others, with ex-swingle and current member of The Magnets Jes Sadler (London), Hans Cassa of Montezuma’s Revenge (Holland), Tor Martin Antonsen from Apes&Babes (Norway) and Cory Slutsky, owner of Voices Only (US). And so nice of the organisation of LACF to give us performance-time on Saturday evening, right after the Swingles-concert!

We selected the songs we’re going to sing and the sheetmusic has just been distributed on dropbox, so we can start rehearsing! All individually behind our own pc’s from our own homes around the world. Just printed the scores. I love discovering new music, figuring out the voice I’m going to sing, working on the hard parts till I get them right.... Can’t wait to get together in London to put all these beautifull voices together. Have to study now!

Emily May 't Hoen

Hope to see you in London at our performance, January 14 at 10.00 pm!

Emily May ’t Hoen

Alto in the ‘Single Singers’