Wellspring! The Way of Water
What is Wellspring?
Wellspring! The Way of Water is a celebration of the life-giving, healing and spiritual power of water. The piece was commissioned by Millfield School in the rural southwest of England near the historic town of Glastonbury, famous for its natural springs and wells. The first performance was in nearby Wells, where four million gallons of fountain water flow every day down the sides of the High Street, and whose beautiful cathedral is surrounded by water, including springs, pools and a well house.
Appropriately, the work opens with the sound of tuned glasses of water, played by members of the choir. The four pitches (C, B, G and E) become a recurring theme or leitmotif of the piece. Although each of the ten movements explores a different aspect of water as well as a different style of music, these four notes create a thematic connection throughout.
Wellspring is the 6th in the popular series of 40-minute community choral works for SATB chorus, massed unison children’s choir and instrumental quintet. This time Alexander and Joanna present choirs with the opportunity to sing in a range of musical styles including folk, gospel, minimalist, jazz and Taizé. Just as water itself changes shape to fit the vessel it occupies, so we need to adapt our singing according to whatever style of music we are performing. How to do this is the main focus of our popular choral workshop ‘You can sing...but can you swing?!’ To book one or both of us to run a workshop with your choir or to book the Call Me Al Quintet to play for your concert, please email info@lestrangemusic.com.
Duration?
c. 40 Minutes
What is it scored for?
SATB choir, unison children’s choir, jazz quintet (piano, bass, drums, vibes and cello)
Do I need to have a jazz quintet to perform it?
Yes but you don’t need to find the musicians yourself. You can hire Alexander L’Estrange’s Call Me Al Quintet. For more information, send us a message via the Contact page.
I’m interested, show me the music!
What does my choir need to learn & perform Wellspring, and how much does it cost?
You need a set of vocal scores and a set of band parts to perform Wellspring, and these are published by our own company, Andagio.
Vocal Scores may be hired at a cost of £2.75 per copy for the first month, plus P & P. This includes a licence for one performance. The fee for each additional month of hire is £1 per copy. Copies for use in a workshop (singing day) can be hired for £1.30 per copy. Vocal scores are also available for purchase from our sheet music shop for £12 per copy - but do ask about bulk discounts. Send us a hire enquiry below.
The Children's Choir Part, consisting of a special PDF with rehearsal audio is available to download. Just click on the button below! There are also FREE Body Percussion/Choreography VIDEOS (for songs 2 & 10) - we’ll send you a link to these after you purchase the Children’s Choir Bundle, along with some other bonus video rehearsal material!
The Instrumental Parts (vibes, cello, piano, electric/double bass and drums) are available for hire at a cost of £150 per month plus P & P. This includes a licence for one performance. The fee for each additional month of hire is £45. An additional performance is £90. Please send us an email enquiry here. N.B. Book Alexander and the Call Me Al Quintet for your performance and we will waive these costs!
If you need to take any of this information away to discuss with your choir or committee, simply download the concert organiser's pack below.
Is there anything to help my choir learn the piece?
Yes, part-learning tracks for the SATB choir are available from the CD/Download Store.
Workshop Opportunities
Why not book Alexander L’Estrange to come and work with your SATB choir and/or children’s choir prior to your performance? For more information see the Workshop Leader page.
Where is Wellspring being Performed?
If you're unsure about anything we'll be glad to help. Just send us a message.