Being retired, I’m one of the older members of the choir – the wide age range of our members is great, it’s a real cross section of our community. I’ve been involved with the choir since early 2014, at that time it was part of a network of choirs called Singing Nation. We became Sevenoaks Sings in 2021 and now we’re an independent choir run by its members.
I had never really done much singing. I was in the school choir more years ago that I care to remember. After University, like many other twenty-somethings at that time, I did a certain amount of folk singing with guitar, channelling my inner Joni Mitchell (!) but perhaps like a lot of people, as I ‘grew up’, I found I barely sang at all, other than with the kids, or in the privacy of the car or the shower! After retirement I found myself in a period of considerable change in my life and I needed something new and fun to do. Well, I certainly found it!
I have loved being part of the choir and seeing it go from strength to strength over the years, especially since we became Sevenoaks Sings; I think we are all more invested in its success now and there is a really good feeling of common purpose. I don’t have a particularly strong voice, and sometimes we’ll work on songs that I didn’t previously know, but it doesn’t matter. Our choir leader, Philly, is inspirational, and gets the best out of everyone. The fact that we learn by rote and so don’t need to read music is also a real confidence booster.
There is a great sense of community and friendship, and it is often said that everyone leaves rehearsals feeling better than when they arrived.