 Voice Factory
Fancy spending a day with over seventy 9 and 10 years olds? It's a
daunting thought, but members of the Choir did just that recently at
Voice Factory II.
It turned out to be a fun, noisy and extremely
enjoyable day spent with a group of enthusiastic children from five
local primary schools. Voice Factory II had been organised by the
Choir specifically to develop and nurture the singing skills of young
people. The workshops were held at Billesley Primary School with
expert voice tutors from Birmingham based choir Ex Cathedra on hand
to lead workshop sessions and give specialist knowledge and encouragement.
 |
| Some very contented young singers |
The
children enjoyed activities based on singing games, improvisation
and learning new songs, and were able to give a presentation of their
work to a large gathering of enthusiastic parents at the end of the day.
It was a fantastic day, enjoyed by everyone present, with the children
displaying the highest standards of enthusiasm, commitment and behaviour.
The
Schools taking part were: Billesley Primary School, Cotteridge Junior
and Infant School, Oak Cottage Primary School, Solihull, St Augustine's
Catholic Primary School, Handsworth and Town Junior School, Sutton
Coldfield.
During the sessions a number of representatives from the Choir, together
with the tutors, had been observing the pupils with the intention of
selecting some of the most promising young singers.  |
| Learning new songs |
As a result of this,
four pupils were selected from each school to receive a series of
individual voice lessons over the coming months in their schools.
Hopefully this will lead to these children being able to take leading
roles in school concerts over the next year, and the Choir is also
planning on providing other opportunities to build on the talents of
these young people.
Voice Factory II and the singing lessons which will follow,
have been made possible by generous funding from the John Lewis Partnership,
Solihull. The City of Birmingham Choir is grateful for this support and
their commitment to encouraging the involvement of young people in singing.
These
events are run by the Youth and Development Group of the City of Birmingham Choir.
The Choir is keen to continue and extend its work with young people by providing
opportunities in a variety of situations. We are continually looking for more
funding to promote these activities over the long term, and would be pleased to
discuss any suggestions from potential supporters.
Please contact info@citychoir.org.uk for further information.
The first Voice Factory took place in 2004 and was aimed at
young people in the age range of 13 to 18. This too started with a day
of workshops in a variety of singing styles attended by 26 young people.
Following this eight people were selected to have a series of professional
singing lessons. We have received enthusiastic feedback both from the
students and their teachers. There is no doubt that this scheme has
opened up singing opportunities that would not otherwise have been available. |
... superb clarity and wonderful dynamics.
