Fascinating Rhythm celebrate twenty years

Close harmony singing chorus, Fascinating Rhythm, are celebrating their twentieth anniversary with a concert on 27th June at the Olympus Theatre, Stoke Gifford.

Alice Dagger, Marketing Manager of Black Cat Music, said, “We congratulate Fascinating Rhythm and wish them every success with the 20th anniversary celebration concert.”

Wimbourne, South Gloucester based Fascinating Rhythm describe their style as an all female, close harmony singing chorus with a repertoire that includes pop, ballads, easy beat and traditional barbershop. 

Tickets for the concert can be purchased online.

Sound-isolation cabin solves noise concerns for Icelandic trumpeter

Vilhjálmur Ingi Sigurðarson 

What do you do when you are a trumpet player who needs to put in some practice but live in an apartment where your children need to sleep and the neighbours are banging on the walls? Well, you could take the approach that Vilhjálmur Ingi Sigurðarson - “Will” - did and get in touch with Black Cat Music about a sound-isolation cabin. 

The AcoustiCabin Express sound-isolation cabin is designed for speedy and easy installation, without compromising the booth’s excellent sound-isolating properties. Impressive sound isolation is achieved thanks to the use of high performance acoustic materials in the slot-together patented panels. The modular, interlocking panel design permits considerable flexibility in size and footprint. 

Will, who lives with his wife and family in Iceland and is a member of the Icelandic Philharmonic, contacted Black Cat Music’s Myke Millward when he realised the noise situation simply could not continue. The email communications developed into a plan that in due course saw Will flying to Gatwick Airport, complete with trumpet of course and testing out an  AcoustiCabin Express sound-isolation cabin at Black Cat Music’s headquarters in Tonbridge, Kent. Here, Will really put the sound-isolation cabin through its paces. Myke’s colleague Martin Loft joined in the trial, playing an instrument within the sound-isolation cabin for Will to assess noise in various parts of the building, with Myke recording on an iPhone. All that could be heard was the whirring of office machinery outside the cabin! Three hours later and delighted with the results, Will was impressed with the   effectiveness of the AcoustiCabin Express sound-isolation cabin. 

In a footnote to the story Will sent us pictures of the cabin being installed in his apartment  and the message, “ The cabin works great… I´m very happy."

Countdown to MMA and ISBA Conferences

The Black Cat Music team is counting down the days to the Independent Schools’ Bursars Association Annual Conference at Celtic Manor, 13^th and 14^th May. The Black Cat Music summer roadshow will then head to the MMA Conference at Wellington College, Berkshire, May 15^th to 17th. At both events the new AcoustiCabins Express sound isolation cabin will be demonstrated on the Black Cat Music exhibition stand .

The AcoustiCabin Express sound-isolation cabin is designed for speedy and easy installation, without compromising the booth’s excellent sound-isolating properties. Impressive sound isolation is achieved thanks to the use of high performance acoustic materials in the slot-together patented panels. The modular, interlocking panel design permits considerable flexibility in size and footprint.

The ISBA's popular annual conference brings together many of the independent education sector's leading experts offering topical updates for schools plus networking opportunities and an exhibition of more than 100 professional advisers and companies dedicated to providing high quality services to the education sector.  Held over two days, the event welcomes more than 400 bursars and senior management staff from independent schools every year. As the administrative managers of schools they are the key decision-makers in sourcing their school's services and supplies.

At the MMA conference, the choices of session are always comprehensive and include over 24 different speakers with tailored wisdom for all areas of a school music department from music administrators and instrumental teachers to heads of department. The Conference always includes all meals and refreshments including a black tie dinner with entertainment. The conference trade fair is always a lively hub of activity with some thirty corporate members giving in-depth advice and showcasing the latest instruments, products and scores. However, networking is one of the key reasons that members attend and the opportunity to share good practice and ideas with colleagues from a wide range of schools, organisations and corporates is invaluable.

April savings on Bravo Music Stand

Next week is the last opportunity to take advantage of the Black Cat Music August offer to buy the Wenger all black Bravo Music Stands at a reduced price. 

The Bravo Music Stand is designed and engineered to high quality standards to provide a long, trouble-free life. Bravo’s polypropelene desk will not chip, bend or scratch and includes a useful accessory shelf, handy for keeping pencils or reeds to hand. Height is adjustable in just a single smooth motion, from 61 cm to 116 cm. Wenger’s premier heavy-duty stand can now be purchased with a 10 per cent discount on usual prices.

Full details and the offer, which applies to the black stand and black base versions is published on Black Cat Music web site. 

New AcoustiCabin serves as recording booth in Sweden

AcoustiCabin used as recording booth sits in the corner of the office.

The recently launched AcoustiCabin Express sound isolation rooms are proving ideal for recording purposes in a Stockholm office.

Gustaf Hård af Segerstad in Stockholm told us that they had installed an AcoustiCabin in the office which is proving ideal for educational recordings.

The AcoustiCabin Express sound-isolation cabin is designed for speedy and easy installation, without compromising the booth’s excellent sound-isolating properties. Impressive sound isolation is achieved thanks to the use of high performance acoustic materials in the slot-together patented panels. The modular, interlocking panel design permits considerable flexibility in size and footprint.

The new cabins provide an affordable self-install solution for home studios, school music practice rooms, recording studios, voiceover rooms and vocal booths. They also fit the bill for confidential meeting rooms, language laboratories, examination rooms and medical testing.

Junior School Choirs Competition plays to full house in Tonbridge

One of the choir from Slade School collects the first prize from the judges.

Back after a successful debut last year, The River Centre in Tonbridge welcomed the return of the Junior Schools Choir Competition. Staged by Tonbridge Lions Club and sponsored by Tonbridge based Black Cat Music’s AcoustiCabin division, the competition featured seven local choirs numbering two hundred and sixty five children singing in front of sell out audience of three hundred and fifty that included many family and friends.

Tonbridge Lions Club told us, “The judges, Mike Kent-Davies, Nancy Gillio-Terry and Jean Allen, had a difficult task as all the choirs were so good in many different ways. They complimented each choir for the high standard of the performances and said it was wonderful to have so many junior singers in the area. First place was awarded to Slade School; second place went St Margaret Clitherow School and with the judges unable to separate the remaining schools equal third place went to Sussex Road School, Cage Green School, St Stephens School, Woodlands School and Hadlow School. Lion President Neal Charlesworth and his wife Janet presented the prizes. Each school received a cheque to help their music development.”

Alice Dagger, Marketing Manager for Black Cat Music, the leading supplier of music performance equipment for education in the UK, Europe and Russia said, “On behalf of our new AcoustiCabins business, we are delighted to provide sponsorship for this successful local event and congratulate everyone on achieving such a high standard of performance.” AcoustiCabins are affordable sound isolation rooms, recently introduced by the company to provide sound proof practice space in schools or at home without disturbance to others close by while offering a ventillated, acoustically controlled internal room for singers and musicians to practice in comfort.

On behalf of the Lions organising committee, Ken Thomas said, “We were delighted that the event was a great success again with all the choirs performing really well and was enjoyed by all those who attended.” He added, “Tonbridge Lions Club would like to thank AcoustiCabins who provided sponsorship for the event.”

Great feedback on Black Cat Music folders

It seems that Black Cat Music’s customers just love our music folders, especially when gold-blocked with the name and crest of their choir, band or orchestra. So much so that many write to tell us how delighted they are when they open the parcel and see their new folders for the first time. 

• Jim Jefferson of Barrow Steelworks Band contacted us to say,  'The Band were delighted with the music folders.'
• The Orchestrate Project told us, “Received our shipment of orchestral music folders from Black Cat Music. They look stunning!”
• Kristen Callaway of Wimbledon High School says, “The orchestra folders have arrived safely and are great - thanks so much!”
• “Order arrived today safe and well.  The folders look great.  Many thanks.” says Chris Stone from Thornden Community Wind Band.
• “Our fabulous performance folders have arrived in time for Friday's concert; thanks, Black Cat Music,” the Cecilian Choir at the University of Kent told us.
• “Just to say thank you for all your help and support with this order which we received last week,” says Frances Belamy of St Peter's Catholic School.
• And a final word from Jo Black, St. Mary's School Calne Opera Ensemble. “The Opera Ensemble was very happy with their music folders, so thank you very much for them.”

The visual impact that can be created by a set of smart new matching music folders offers a cohesive identity to your orchestra, chorus, band or choir. The hard-wearing leatherette covers enhanced by hand stitching and brass-bound corners are sure of a long life protecting your music and keeping it together. Choose your style and size, whether for orchestra or choir, some with options such as expanding pockets or retaining strings, pencil pockets and windows. And there is a choice of colour – Concert Black, Royal Blue or Cardinal Red.