Ladies are still on song as choir marks 25 years (From Cotswold Journal)
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Ladies are still on song as choir marks 25 years
2:00pm Friday 21st September 2012 in News
Members of Blockley Ladies Choir line up to celebrate their silver anniversary.
TWENTY-five years after they first got together, the members of Blockley Ladies Choir are still in fine voice.
The long-running group, which boasts a healthy membership of more than 30 from within Blockley and further afield, is planning to celebrate its milestone year by throwing a Silver Anniversary Concert on Saturday, October 13, at 7pm.
After initially forming in 1987 to take part in WI activities, the choir has gone on to perform hundreds of concerts around the region, including appearances at music festivals in Bath and Cheltenham.
It has also hosted dozens of choral workshops, with guest conductors, for choirs throughout the area.
Jean Ellis, the choir’s secretary, believes it is a simple love of singing that has kept the choir so strong for so long.
“A love of music and a desire to sing is all we ask for in members.
There are no auditions and you don’t have to read music,”
she said.
“It’s also quite a caring choir with a lovely sense of community.
We socialise and it is a good place for people to come and make new friends.
“I think it is an amazing achievement to have a village choir with such a small catchment area doing what we do and for so long.”
She also credited some of the choir’s durability to the enthusiasm of conductor Jenny Davey, who has been a member since the beginning and still makes the journey to Blockley for rehearsals every week despite having retired with her husband to South Wales.
The choir rehearses every Tuesday evening and has an extremely wide repertoire, taking in everything from classical pieces to show tunes and folk songs.
The next chance to see them in action is at the anniversary concert in St George’s Hall, Blockley.
Tickets cost £10 including a two-course meal, bar and raffle.
They can be purchased from Blockley village shop or by calling Mrs Ellis on 01386 841253.
Anyone interested in joining the choir should also call Mrs Ellis.
