Summer Term 2025
We finished the year on a high with our end of term Summer Celebration concert, raising over £120 for East Anglia Children's Hospice. Young Voices sang three songs on the theme of travel, delighting the audience with their enthusiasm and actions! Junior Choir sang a range of songs, starting with 'Summer' and 'Fire' by Jonathan Dove, moving onto 'We'll gather lilacs' by Ivor Novello, and finishing with Bob Dylan!
Our Junior Choir also worked hard towards a concert with IKON Singers and David Hill in June, performing pieces by Stanford and Howells alongside the professional choir. They sang beautifully and listened attentively to the rest of the concert - the Faure 'Requiem', accompanied by violin, cello, harp and organ, was a real highlight!
Lots of our members have an exciting summer of singing ahead. Congratulations to Molly and Sasmithu who will be heading off on their first summer residential course with Gabrieli ROAR, performing Haydn's 'The Seasons' with an orchestra in Ely Cathedral. Congratulations also to Leander, Peter and Lucretia who have all gained places in the National Youth Choirs - they'll be off on week-long residentials around the country, performing in Coventry Cathedral and Saffron Hall. We wish them all the best of luck!
After the summer, we are pleased to announce that Rutland Youth Choirs will expand to offer three choirs: Young Voices, Junior Choir and Senior Choir. This is a really exciting development and all thanks to our growing membership of wonderful young singers. We can't wait for the year ahead!
Lent Term 2025
There have been lots of excitements this term, especially for our Junior Choir singers who were invited to perform at Leicester's De Montfort Hall as part of Rutland Music Hub's 'Big Sing'. In the first half of the concert, there were various performances from schools and youth music groups, and we were excited to perform a set of three pieces on our own: 'The Bird's Lament' by Richard Rodney Bennett, 'Poor Wayfarin' Stranger' arr. Emerson, and Bob Dylan's 'Blowin' in the wind'. It was our first performance outside of Oakham, and it was really exciting to sing in front of so many people! The second half of the concert brought over 300 singers together for a fantastic performance of Peter Davis' "Pied Piper of Hamelin" with a band. We were really proud of two of our Rutland Youth Choirs members who sang solo parts as narrators. We had a great day and would like to thank Northamptonshire Music and Performing Arts Trust for inviting us and organising the event.
Michaelmas Term 2024
We have had a wonderful start to the new academic year, with lots of exciting developments and more fantastic new members! We are now a registered charity (1208012) and are delighted to have signed a Partnership Agreement with Northamptonshire Music and Performing Arts Trust, who run the Rutland Music Education Hub. Our Director of Music, Susie, has given several recruitment workshops in Rutland schools, and we've now started a walking bus for singers from Oakham C of E Primary School so that they can go straight to choir at the end of the school day. Members of our Junior Choir can also attend our new theory club from 4.00-4.30pm.
Many thanks to Dave Hodson who kindly took some photos at our final session before half term in October.
Summer Term 2024
We were very fortunate to receive a generous grant from the Windmill House Trust this term which enabled us to offer an exciting array of events in the Summer Term. Junior Choir members spent a Saturday together during which they chose their theme, 'Sun, Moon, Sea and Stars' and came up with some ideas for the music. In rehearsals, they worked on lots of different songs - Young Voices loved singing 'You are my sunshine' and a song about pirates, and Junior Choir learnt 'Moon River' and a piece called 'Stars' in two parts. They performed beautifully in their end-of-year concert in July.
In addition to this, we enjoyed lots of extra opportunities! We had an 'Away Day' on Claire's farm in June, which included rounders, tractor rides and visiting the goslings! Junior Choir members also had two fantastic visiting singer workshops and joined professional choir, Ikon Singers, for their concert in Oakham. They learnt a selection of folk songs, including 'The Ash Grove' and 'O Can Ye Sew Cushions'.
Lent Term 2024
We have had a fantastic term and were delighted to welcome several new members in January!
A couple of highlights:
On Wednesday 20th March, we had our end-of-term informal performance to friends and family. Young Voices sang 'Sing a Rainbow' particularly beautifully, and they entertained the audience with their rendition of 'Algy Met a Bear'. The Junior Choir sang in three parts for the first time in one of their favourite pieces, 'Like A Beat of a Different Drum' by Sarah Quartel - thank you to Laurence for playing the drums! The two choirs also sang 'Do-Re-Mi' from the Sound of Music and 'Skye Boat Song' - it was a great sound and an uplifting afternoon! Thank you to Lands' End for sponsoring our new polo shirts - we wore them at this concert for the first time and looked really smart.
'On Saturday 23rd March, we had a great day rehearsing and performing the 'Chichester Psalms' by Bernstein with Rutland Choral Society. I couldn't believe how loud the organ was! I also enjoyed singing with the harp and timpani. It was fun to sing in Hebrew but also quite difficult! Between the rehearsal and the performance, we played 'stuck in the mud' in the park and games in the church hall, and we had pasta for dinner. In the concert, we performed a solo piece called 'The Bird's Lament' by Richard Rodney Bennett - it's my favourite piece to sing, and I think we sang our best!'
Written by a Junior Choir member (aged 10)
Michaelmas Term 2023
We are really proud of our young singers for all their wonderful singing! Here are some facts about our first term...
1 visit to Saxon Gardens in Oakham
2 Christmas concerts in Oakham
8 adult volunteers
10 rehearsals on Wednesdays
12 packets of biscuits
18 songs
150+ audience members across our first performances
Wishing all of our singers and their families a very Happy New Year!
Members of the Junior Choir after their Christmas performance to friends and family. December 2023.
Some members of RYC on a special visit to Saxon Gardens. November 2023.
