The Midlands and Wales
Meet the choirs from the Midlands and Wales region.
The Choir of Light
From: Treharris, Wales
Ages: 21 - 67
Set up by the wives, sisters and daughters of former miners, The Choir of Light hope to reignite the passion for music that once existed in abundance in their home town of Treharris. Nestled in the valleys of South Wales, the former mining town once rang with the sound of several singing groups but, since the collieries closed, only one small male-voice choir remains…. Until The Choir of Light came along!
The group rehearse in the Treharris Boys & Girls Club, on the site of the old colliery and the miners’ former social club. The choir decided to audition for Gareth in Welsh… not a language that everyone had mastered!
Sutton Hill Community Choir
From: Sutton Hill, Telford
Ages: 26 – 79
Sutton Hill community choir started life just one month before auditioning for Gareth. The group is so new that most of the members are still getting to know one another, even though some have been neighbours for years.
The choir is spearheaded by mum-of-three Rachel and the local vicar, Linda, who swapped her admin job for a dog collar eight years ago, describing her change of career as a “late calling”. As well as friends and neighbours, the choir contains two mums and daughters, a couple who’ve been married so long that they finish each other’s sentences, and Rachel’s parents who have been together for 53 years.
Radio Octave
From: University of Nottingham
Ages: 18 – 27
English student Lucy started Radio Octave at the end of her first year at the University of Nottingham. Their name is a pun on one of their favourite songs ‘Radioactive’ by Imagine Dragons. This choir is one of eight a cappella groups that have formed on campus in recent years, something Lucy attributes to what she calls the ‘Pitch Perfect’ effect.
It’s a poignant time for Radio Octave as they’ve become best friends and, this year, six of the group’s founding members will be graduating and leaving the choir behind. The members of the choir are studying everything from law, to nursing, to economics... although surprisingly no one studies music!
Emmanu’- EL Apostolic Gospel Academy
From: Leicester
Ages: 20s - 50s
The Emmanu’-EL Apostolic Gospel Academy, or E.A.G.A. for short, is a gospel choir from Leicester, made up of people from all over the world. Members hail from Jamaica, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Nigeria, Bermuda, Canada, Ghana and the U.K.
The group are all members of a Pentecostal church, founded by Bishop Mark, who moved to the UK from in Jamaica in 1992. The church and the choir are a family affair - Bishop Mark’s wife and two sons are members. His youngest son, Jordan, is the choir’s musical director and he likes to infuse their arrangements with his own jazz flavour.
Kibworth Ladies Choir
From: Kibworth, Leicestershire
Ages: 20s – 60s
The Kibworth Ladies Choir was set up in 2012 by charity fundraiser and mum-of-two Louise. Louise was bowled over when 38 ladies turned up to the first rehearsal, where they sang along to the Military Wives CD in the village hall.
Louise describes the choir as “the singing Loose Women” – they love to glam up for performances, a good gossip and treat every gathering as a chance to let their hair down, enjoying a glass of prosecco in the pub after rehearsals. The choir has come a long way and are now confident performers, who love the buzz that they get from performing together.
