We have an outdoor choir and baby/toddler friendly indoor choirs. We are welcoming, friendly and relaxed with no requirement for previous experience of the ability to read music.

[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...

This post was orginally found on our Embro Thistle Singers blog. I remember when we had Professional Development Days when I was teaching, the teachers would complain that they were more tired that day than from a whole day of teaching.  I had had...

[A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   Even though I’ve been teaching for almost 30 years, I still get affected by that glum-looking face in the third row.   ... and it's no...

If you’re a singer on your way to a voice lesson, rehearsal, or audition, it’s always good to do a bit of warming up in the car, because there are few things more annoying to music directors than singers wasting time complaining that they&rsqu...

[A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   Many’s the time I see Ann lean over to Gill (not their real names) to help her get her part right. And every time I see a pained expression on ...

[A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog From the Front of the Choir]   It’s the final rehearsal before your big concert. The warm up is over and everyone is ready to go. But a handful of singers (the usual suspects...

[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...

[A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog From the Front of the Choir] Feel like you’re on a treadmill? Constantly learning and practising and planning but never arriving? Not enough time to catch your breath between concer...

[A version of this article first appeared as a post on my blog From the Front of the Choir] I started my first community choir over 20 years ago. I used to worry that, after the long summer break, the singers would have forgotten me and wouldn’...