South AfriCan gospel song: "Say yes to salvation. Our home is in heaven, this is a promise, So say yes to salvation." Part of the winter Singing Safari concert, Ipswich 2013. From the singing of the Soweto Gospel Choir, arranged by Chris Rowbury. This ...  moreSouth AfriCan gospel song: "Say yes to salvation. Our home is in heaven, this is a promise, So say yes to salvation." Part of the winter Singing Safari concert, Ipswich 2013. From the singing of the Soweto Gospel Choir, arranged by Chris Rowbury. This concert was the culmination of a six-week project which creates a choir From scratch for one night only. Each winter and summer, Chris Rowbury gathers a random bunch of singers From in and around Ipswich. There are no auditions and all songs are taught and learnt by ear. Usually eight songs are learnt in six two-hour sessions and in the winter are performed at St. Peters by the Waterfront, Ipswich. http://chrisrowbury.com  less

[The views expressed in this blog are From my personal experiences From 25 years of leading non-auditioned community choirs in the UK, as well as adult singing workshops. My focus is on teaching by ear using a repertoire of songs From traditions across th...

[The views expressed in this blog are From my personal experiences From 25 years of leading non-auditioned community choirs in the UK, as well as adult singing workshops. My focus is on teaching by ear using a repertoire of songs From traditions across th...

[The views expressed in this blog are From my personal experiences From 25 years of leading non-auditioned community choirs in the UK, as well as adult singing workshops. My focus is on teaching by ear using a repertoire of songs From traditions across th...

[The views expressed in this blog are From my personal experiences From 25 years of leading non-auditioned community choirs in the UK, as well as adult singing workshops. My focus is on teaching by ear using a repertoire of songs From traditions across th...

[The views expressed in this blog are From my personal experiences From 25 years of leading non-auditioned community choirs in the UK, as well as adult singing workshops. My focus is on teaching by ear using a repertoire of songs From traditions across th...

The Mansfield University Concert Choir at the 2012 World Choir Games in their Gold Medal winning performance in the Folklore Competition.

[this is a version of a post which first appeared on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   Last week I wrote about men and women singing the same not together and How that might feel strange: Singing the same note – differently!.   ...

We are a community-based choir composed of children between ages 8 to 16 years old. The choir recently won the Gold medal for Folklore category and Silver Medal for Children's category in the 6th Grand Prix Pattaya International Choir Competition last Jul...  moreWe are a community-based choir composed of children between ages 8 to 16 years old. The choir recently won the Gold medal for Folklore category and Silver Medal for Children's category in the 6th Grand Prix Pattaya International Choir Competition last July 25 - 27, 2013 in Pattaya, Thailand.  

When I was a junior in college, my mother was fighting breast Cancer and my way of coping with it was to write a choral piece for her. I wrote “Pour Toi, Mère” (For You, Mother) which premiered at my senior composition recital. A few years later, Kevin F...  moreWhen I was a junior in college, my mother was fighting breast Cancer and my way of coping with it was to write a choral piece for her. I wrote “Pour Toi, Mère” (For You, Mother) which premiered at my senior composition recital. A few years later, Kevin Fenton programmed that piece for his choir at FSU. He shared with me his strong connection with the piece at a time when his sister-in-law, Peggy Fenton was also fighting breast Cancer. Sadly, Peggy Fenton lost her fight with Cancer in 2009. That same year Kevin contacted me and asked if I would write a piece in her memory for her husband and her two daughters. He shared with me a video of a presentation she did at the Mother’s Day banquet at her church, just a few days before her passing. The title of her presentation was “From Hats to Crown”. She shared stories about her life and the many relationship roles one plays: as a daughter, a sister, as a wife, a mother and a teacher. As she talked about each role she wore a different hat. She ended with a crown, shar...    less