Photo & © Maria Nehro
The sun glittered in the waves, but it was quite windy when we arrived in idyllic Skillinge, approximately 150 kilometres outside Simrishamn in Skåne, one Wednesday afternoon in July.
Shortly before two o’clock we entered the small theater, situated in what most of all resembled an old red and white painted Skåne farm, to pick up our tickets. The first of the concerts with Helen, Martin Östergren and the 20-year jubilee Sjöbacka Choir took place the night before, and this day it was time for the two final concerts.
The seats were not numbered and entrance would be from two directions, we were told. When the first one lined up in front of the door that led to the front of the auditorium, we joined in and formed a queue behind her, and in addition got a really nice chat with a Stockholm woman now living in Skåne!
Once we were let in we sat down in the front row, where a number of seats (though not ours) were reserved for the disabled.
These summer concerts was especially composed for Skillinge Theatre, but parts of the song list were certainly recognizable from the summer tour Helen and her musicians had just finished! We got to hear her sing both solo and together with the choir, plus music from Sjöbacka Choir’s own repertoire. The theme was the Swedish summer, love, the sea and countryside. Also Martin Östergren performed two numbers on his own, one of them together with violinist Mirjam Charas.
This was the program we got to hear (and at one point even participate in!)
Längst inne i mitt huvud
Morgonrocksvals
Fånga mig vind – Sjöbacka Choir
Man borde inte sova
Sommarlek- Sjöbacka Choir
Sonnets by William Shakespeare:
– Sonnet 60 – Som vågor närmar sig en stenig strand
– Sonnet 116 – Låt ingenting få stå i vägen
Duvemåla Hage
Hanna flyger – Martin Östergren & Mirjam Charas
Jag är det fulaste som finns – Martin Östergren
Sverige
Vårens första dag
PAUSE
Altarpolska – Sjöbacka Choir
I det fria – Sjöbacka Choir
Fanfar
Siv och Gunne
Så länge skutan kan gå – Sjöbacka Choir
Så skimrande var aldrig havet – Sjöbacka Choir
Jag har bott vid en landsväg – singalong
Medley:
– Vårvindar friska
– Vindarna sucka
– Här är gudagott att vara
– Kling klang klockan slår
– Lustvin dansar en gavott med de fem sinnena
– Vid vassen av den krökta ström
Som skapta för varann
Gabriellas sång
Encore:
Hemma
Vår sista dans
The Sjöbacka Choir was very professional, with talented soloists. The choir members did not wear similar clothes, but were casually dressed. Also their moves on the stage felt unrestrained and relaxed. In the songs where the choir wasn’t involved some of the members chose to sit down, while others stood straight. But it never gave a messy or disorganized impression, it only looked genial. Boel Adler conducted with great empathy, in a soft and slightly different way that made a strong impression. The choir also kept unsuspected talents when one of the members performed a piece on the cello, while some others played guitar to some of the songs.
And Helen, dressed in white pants and an orange and white speckled long dress with a button down front, showed her entire width as a performer, where her infinitely beautiful singing and strong empathy was interspersed with amusing anecdotes from the Kristina från Duvemåla days, slightly cheeky small talk between songs and even, when the songs Sverige and Hemma were introduced, a serene but clear desire for solidarity and understanding for each other. The resounding applause after the last encore showed that the audience would have liked to have heard more of Helen and the Sjöbacka Choir this afternoon. Luckily we had acquired tickets also to the evening concert.
The time in between passed quickly, and at 20:00 the last concert began. The queuing procedure from the afternoon was repeated. The average age was now significantly lower, as well as the number of wheelchairs and walking frames. Otherwise, the same program as in the afternoon was offered, perhaps with slightly more tired participants, which was not hard to understand, but even so it certainly was very enjoyable to listen to Helen’s sweet voice and the choir harmonies also this time.
When we in the darkening summer night returned to our little picturesque old farmhouse after the end of the concert, a quiet rain fell.