Jane and I have been singing with the Loughborough University choir for a little while now and, compared to other musical projects I’ve been a part of, there are a lot of relatively complex time signatures to cope with. It isn’t so much the time signatures themselves as the way they are put together. For example, a good part of tonight’s rehearsal was spent on a piece that spends a lot of time alternating two bars of 6/8 with single bars of 2/4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 1 2 3 4 5 6 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 ….

It is hard work but also quite exhilarating. Your mind can’t drop into a simple rut but has to keep making adjustments. On the other hand, particularly when the larger patterns are consistent, you start to grasp it but, because the individual beats go by too fast (when you are also trying to sing the right notes in the right places with the right words), you have to rely on your instincts. I’m sure it sets a level of adrenalin coursing round the body.