Tuesday, October 21, 2008
New Year, New Cats!
WOW!
We’ve been doing this for a few years now, but never have we had such a well attended round of auditions! Over 50 people came to audition for The ‘08-’09Alleycats. With so many talented singers, we had some tough decisions to make, but we think it will make ‘08-’09 the best year yet for The Alleycats. We’ve got some exciting shows coming up later on this year, which we will be keeping you updated via the website, but now, to the matter at hand!
Without further ado - Welcome to the new Alleycats for ‘08-’09!
Rebecca Tindal-Carill-Worsley, Soprano
Laura House, Soprano
Sophie Jarvis, Mezzo
Emma Wilson, Alto
Philip De Winter Shaw, Tenor
Adam Gordon, Tenor
Cameron Dobbie, Bass
x The Alleycats
Thursday, September 11, 2008
WANTED: New Alleycats! (Auditions 1-3 Oct)
The ‘08-’09 a cappella season is starting up, so it’s that time of year again: AUDITION TIME!
The Alleycats will be holding auditions for SINGERS and BEATBOXERS:
WED, THUR, and FRI of WEEK ONE at 17.00 in YOUNGER HALL
That’s 1st - 3rd October at 5:00 pm in the big building on North St where you matriculate.
All you need to do is show up after 5:00 prepared to sing a verse and chorus from the song of your choice. You’ll fill out a little questionaire, we’ll chat, it will be great.
If you are a BEATBOXER or VOCAL PERCUSSIONIST come with a few basic beats prepared to perform solo OR come prepared to improvise VP along with an Alleycats’ song.
Even if you’re a singer who has never tried VP or a vocal percussionist who has never tried singing, why not have a go! (Remember if any of us could beatbox, we wouldn’t be holding auditions in the first place!)
We will be making a copy of the audition questionaire available on the website very soon, so check back here next week if you want to fill your copy out in advance and then bring it in with you!
Friday, September 05, 2008
The end to an incredible year!
Hello!
The Alleycats have just finished their five days at the Edinburgh Festival entertaining crowds of people from all corners of the globe. It has been an incredible few days with almost 100 copies of Meow! Thats What I Call Music sold (in fact I reckon that there is a copy of Meow! in every continent!). We started the week with a performance at the Scottish National Museum to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the new building and were very well recieved, with both guests and other performers enjoying our performance (the free bar may have helped a little...)
We met lots of lovely people from all over the planet and were even lucky enough to meet a real life a cappella celebrity! We were singing ‘Zombie Jamboree’ when we noticed someone come up and start to sing with us. We initially thought that it was just some weird guy who wanted to get involved, but it turned out that it was Charlie Evett (an ex-member of Rockapella) who had helped write the song we were singing! We were all slightly awestruck and amazed that he had liked what he had heard and had got involved with our performance, but it definately was a highlight of the week! We also met an Alleycats fan from West Lothian who had come through with his family to watch us sing after seeing us on Last Choir Standing. It is always nice to meet people who appreciate what you do, and he has since said that The Alleycats have given him the drive to join a local choir which is brilliant! (all the best Aidan!)
The festival saw the end of the current litter and we have already started to spread. Izzy has left for the middle east, Adam and Ben have moved down south, Jessie is back in the USA, Alan is looking for a job and Cherith is working away in Edinburgh. The rest of us are preparing for another year of singing, dancing and trying to make next year as successful as the previous one! The last 10 months have seen; The Alleycats become a mixed group, numerous performances across St Andrews, the recording of our latest album, applications to reality TV shows, Corporate performances, International Festivals, and most importantly the formation of lasting friendships! Thanks to everyone who has helped us this year (Jesse Duley, Suzi Digbey, Myleene Klass, supporters and friends) and a big special thanks to our MD Bec who has been simply incredible!
We are looking forward to next year when we can do it all again! I
Thanks again!
The Alleycats,
P.S - If you like the sound of what we do and are coming to St Andrews University to study then why not come along and audition for The Alleycats in Younger Hall on the 1-3rd October between 5-7pm!
P.P.S - If you still haven’t got out latest album then we have to ask why not? You can buy it from the ‘Our Music’ section of the website!
Sunday, August 03, 2008
Alleycats at the Fringe! 20th - 25th Aug
Hey guys!
That’s right, everyone book your tickets to Edinburgh, because The Alleycats are going to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe for the 20th - 25th of August! (We sure like exclamation marks don’t we?) ...OK don’t get too excited. The Alleycats will be heading down to Edinburgh for the end of the Fringe, where we’ll be performing on the Royal Mile, busking all around Edinburgh, doing a few private shows, and promoting Meow, That’s What I Call Music! We’ll be keeping a journal of the trip here in The Alleycat NewsBlog, so if you can’t come to Edinburgh to see us, stay tuned to hear all about the Fringe direct from us.
If you’re going to be in the area, come look for us! For those of you that have only seen us on BBC One’s Last Choir Standing, this is your chance to see the full Alleycats’ repertoire, for those of you that have seen us in St Andrews, this is your chance to see and hear everything that’s new for the Summer!
You can find us in the same spot (Busking Alcove # 1) at least once every day:
AT BUSKING ALCOVE ONE
Wed 20th thru Sat 23rd - 4:30 pm
Sun 24th and Mon 25th - 1:15 pm
And when we’re not up on the Royal Mile, come look for us on Princes Street or Rose Street, where we’ll surely be singing for our suppers!
Musically, as ever,
The Alleycats!
Saturday, July 05, 2008
A Crazy Month for The Alleycats!
Hey guys!
It has been a crazy time for The Alleycats these past few weeks. We thought with summer holidays we’d have a bit of a break, but instead we’ve been working harder than ever - rehearsing, busking, selling CDs, and trying to get things ready for the first episode of Last Choir Standing! We were all worried at first because we have a gig in Derbyshire, playing at a large party, this weekend, and we thought we would have to miss our first TV appearance, but luckily, the family who hired us were just as excited as we are, and so, as we speak, the entire group (minus Tyler, who had to disappear out of the country) are crowded around a TV in someone’s living room watching BBC1.
Apart from that, things have been hectic anyway, but we now have the Online Alleycats Shop up and running with international shipping for our latest album, and very soon mp3s of our songs available to purchase. It’s still up in the air, but if enough people buy Meow, That’s What I Call Music! this month, it means we’ll probably be able to perform at the Edinburgh Fringe in August, which everyone is excited about!
Anyway, we want to get back to watching BBC1 so we can see how we do in the first round of Last Choir Standing, hopefully you’re watching too (but if not, remember you can still catch up next Saturday, when it’s on at 7:00 pm on BBC1!
Love,
The Alleycats!