Choir practice ensures Lions are pitch perfect
One of the world’s leading musical directors was called in to keep the tourists in harmony
The British and Irish Lions’ pursuit of excellence in their attempt to win their first Test series in New Zealand since 1971 has not been restricted to preparations on the pitch.
The Talk of Rugby
understands that the Lions drafted in one of the world’s leading musical directors to help the 41-man squad with their choir sessions to perfect their four songs –
Jerusalem, Fields of Athenry, Highland Cathedral and Calon Lan
– which they will perform at official receptions.
Haydn James, a former musical director of the London Welsh Male Voice Choir for 30 years who now occupies that role for the Welsh Rugby Union, is believed to have taken choral sessions during the Lions training camps in Wales and Ireland in the two weeks before they departed for New Zealand on Monday.
James has led the singing at more than 120 Test matches at Cardiff ’s Principality Stadium and has conducted nine massed choir festivals at the Royal Albert Hall and at similar events in Cardiff, New York, Sydney and Toronto.
The Lions performed Calon Lan when they arrived at Auckland airport on Wednesday and also sang the Fields of Athenry and Highland Cathedral word perfectly at their official farewell dinner in London on Sunday night. Nightly choral practice has continued since their arrival in Auckland. Yet if James has had a major impact on bringing together such an eclectic vocal range, it seems there remains some work to do, with Wales lock Alun Wyn Jones describing the choir practice as more challenging than line-outs.
“Jerusalem is the most tricky one as it has more words than anything else,” he said. “It’s harder to learn the choir than the line-outs.”
It is understood 11 players involved in the Premiership and Pro12 finals last weekend, and who did not attend James’s choir sessions in the two training camps, will be asked to sing all four songs in front of the rest of the squad today.