Page 33 - Phonebox Magazine October 2014

Kenema
The Olney Newton Link has long directed our interest towards one small place in Sierra Leone, a country
which is as large as England with Wales. Now the misfortune of an English male nurse infected with the Ebola virus speaks of Kenema, a town with a long history of its own. The three million population of Sierra Leone is twenty five times less than ours so unsurprisingly towns and villages are smaller than ours. Newton is a trifle smaller than Olney. Almost half the country’s population live within forty miles of the capital Freetown. Kenema lies some hundred and fifty miles north east from Newton and is an attractive and fairly prosperous place with two good schools and of course the hospital where they are currently battling with Ebola. Much of the town’s prosperity arises from its diamond trade. Anyone familiar with the history of blood diamonds will realise that the discovery of diamonds was the
undoing of much that was good for Sierra Leone. The central market is a busy place. Prosperous or otherwise the local economy does not run to motor cars so where we find “man and van” for hire Kenema settles for the
huge trolleys of my photograph. In a world where the greatest misfortunes seem always to fall on the shoulders of the poorest nations we must surely hope medical science quickly lifts them clear of this scourge.
Success at National Competition
a quartet, so brings years of experience to her new role as MD for MK Acapella. The barbershop style of singing means that they don’t use any musical accompaniment (that’s actually what Acapella means) and rely solely on their voices to produce a rich harmonic blend of the four different parts that they sing. The four parts are: bass – (the low notes), tenor – (the high notes), Lead – (the melody) and finally Baritone – (which fills in notes between Bass & Lead). Although the chorus make a fantastic sound with all the guys singing, some of them like to take time out to sing as a traditional quartet. This requires even more skill since with only four guys singing there’s nowhere to hide – you have to know your part. Their repertoire is far ranging, from classic barbershop pieces through to numbers from Queen, Elton John, Beach Boys and even Irving Berlin, so there’s always something for everyone when they perform.
Singing isn’t just about making music, it also has health benefits because when you’re singing you’re actually having a
little aerobic workout with all that breathing control. Some people even say that the joy of singing with a group also has a positive impact on your emotional wellbeing and sense of belonging. So if you are interested in trying this style of singing then come along and listen or join in on their rehearsal nights. So, whether you just want to get back into singing or give barbershop a go, then please get in contact by visiting mkacapella.com or contact info@mkacapella.com.
With the most improved chorus award still fresh in their minds, they really want to keep the momentum going and extend the repertoire, as well as getting ready for next year’s competition. Before that they have their annual Christmas Concert, which will be held at Stony Stratford, St Marys & St Giles Church, on Dec 6th. They are always happy to take bookings to bring their unique sound to liven up events (weddings, fetes, birthdays or corporate events etc) so if you are interested you can make enquiries via bookings@mkacapella.com.
Geoff Bacchus
Phonebox Magazine 33