It was Rudyard Kipling who wrote:-

"If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you, if you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, but make allowance for their doubting too;"

The Melbournaires take the annual conventions very seriously and use them as an opportunity to focus on improving barbershop skills through knowledge, (keeping their heads), and casting aside any doubts that performance enhancement will become fact with hard work and dedication.

Ian and Alex putting the Chorus through preliminary exercises

Now that sounds like a mission statement, but there are many people helping to make a dream become a reality. Most importantly, our MD Ian Lushey regularly puts in so much time and effort to bring us to a standard, and this year again we have been blessed with the services of the very talented Alex Morris. Those who have worked with Alex previously will understand his methods. Never short of a laugh, (what's the point if you cannot enjoy the beauty of singing well together?), he gets his points across in ways that even the most non-musical class participants can come to grips with. Something that stays in the mind from former years is that as a respected judge, you know that anything Alex teaches will be used against you in competition if you get it wrong.

"Ian seems amused at the antics of Alex.

So we are very much looking forward to the Sydney Convention, and know our colleagues there will make it a success. Best wishes to all participants, and above all, enjoy your singing, enjoy the atmosphere, and enjoy the cameraderie. The last four lines of Rudyards famous poem "If" seem highly appropriate:-

"If you can fill the unforgiving minute, with sixty seconds worth of distance run,

yours is the earth and everything that's in it, and - which is more - you'll be a man, my son!"

Good luck from the Melbournaires.

Terry Phillips