CHOIR The Choir work suffered many hindrances during the year, not the least ofthem being Mr. Harper's absence in England on studyleave and the consequent need to adjust to a temporary deputy choirmaster.In the second term the withdrawal ofmost ofthe senior boys involved in public examinations left vacancies, particularly in the bass line, that were not readily filled, and a further blow was that in course of time the breaking of voices reduced the trebles to half their original number. Fifteen survived to take part in the Carol Services. I am grateful to those who stayed and to those who came in to the tenor and bass departments later in the year. I am sure that they must feel well rewarded by the happy compliments with which the two Carol Services were received. The keenness the whole Choir showed in undertaking the work of preparation was certainly mostencouraging to me and Irejoice that it had such pleasing results. The Choir made an effective contribution to the Service for the Reception of New Members in September by starting it off with the singing ofthe anthem"O how amiable are Thy dwellings", to a setting by Vaughan Williams. It established a very appropriate key-note for this important special occasion. A visit to Durban during the fourth term to hear the Vienna Boys Choir was much enjoyed. G.M.O. CAROL SERVICE The Choirmaster, Mr. Gram,was faced with many problems in that, as usual, over half the trebles found their voices suddenly broken, and several tenors and basses decided that they had other things to do. New and quite inexperienced singers had to be en listed, and fortunately Messrs. Reece, Metcalf and Jeannot came to the rescue, so that in the end, and after a good deal of hard work, it all turned out all right. But it is a little disconcerting that in a school of460 there are fewer choristers than when we had ICQ. This is not through lack of talent but through sheer lack ofinterest and willingness to help, and we hope that the pendulum will soon swing back. The Carol Services themselves were very much enjoyed. Under the circumstances Mr. Gram was wise to stick to some of the old traditional tunes — and, after all, these do create the Christmas atmosphere better than modern or more complex tunes. Prefects 80
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