Half term break

In this week's bulletin, you can read about

• First half term review

• Subscription renewal details

• Dates for the diary - West Norwood Feast - April 6th

• COTH member profile - this week, one of our brand new members, the wonderful Clara!

Jan-Feb review

In our first half term of 2025 we covered a lot of ground! We welcomed some new members to the choir (we're very happy to have a few more altos on board). We revisited several songs from our existing repertoire, which our 'newbies' did very well to pick up, and we also learned 2 new songs: Hallelujah I Just Love Him So and Shallow. Before the half term break we performed at Fairfield Halls as part of their Amateur Arts Showcase.

Fairfield Halls Amateur Arts Showcase - 15 February

The event organisers were delighted with our performance so well done to everyone who took part.

SUBSCRIPTION RENEWAL

For those of you who pay by subscription on a half termly basis, it's time to renew next Thursday (27th Feb). Payment will be for 6 weeks which at full rate is £54 and at concessionary rate is £27. Thanks to those who pay by subscription. We appreciate that not everyone can so, to those on PAYG, your regular attendance will help ensure we can keep our wonderful choir up and running.

NEXT HALF TERM

We start back on the 27th February and will start singing some new songs, These will include songs from the Xmas party suggestion box as well as some ideas/recommendations from Elena. And on the subject of songs - we encourage and support input to our repertoire from choir members. As we have explained before - sometimes the choices won't work for a choir like ours, sometimes they maybe don't work with the theme we're focusing on for a particular performance but we'll try to incorporate as many suggestions from the choir as possible. Look out for a message from Naomi - she is going to set up a WhatsApp group for anyone interested in sharing song suggestions. This would be a place where you can share links to great tunes and chat through your favourite music. This is, of course, only for those who want to participate!

DATES FOR THE DIARY

SUNDAY 6 APRIL West Norwood Feast  

We are booked to sing at West Norwood Feast a 'volunteer powered self-funded street food market festival'. As you can see from their website https://westnorwoodfeast.com , this is a community event with around 100 stalls set up across three hubs along the high street in West Norwood. We will be singing on the the Artisans stage near the leisure centre at 13.30. More details to follow!

GETTING TO KNOW YOU - COTH Member Profile

Each week we'll be speaking to different members of the choir so you can get to know them a little better. Please speak to Vicky if you'd like to be featured.

Clara Cook , COTH Member

Tell us a little bit about yourself - where you're from/where you live now etc.

I was born in Japan to American parents, but we moved to West London when I was four and when I was 9, my parents and I became British citizens. I really consider myself a Londoner at heart, more than belonging to any nationality. I moved to South London as a young adult and now I live in a little house on an estate in Crystal Palace with my husband Ben and my cat Olaf. Our estate was once dubbed the ‘most ugly estate in Crystal Palace’ by the local history society but I love its brutalist architecture and actually think it is beautiful! There are over 80 cats on our estate and most of our neighbours get along well.

What are your favourite songs:

• To get you in the mood for a big night out

  I don’t go out for big nights really, I’m a more a cinema/museum/library/dinner kind of girl (although I do love to dance), but if I was to listen music while getting ready, I would probably listen to Chappell Roan. I’m really hooked on her music at the moment, and she just makes me want to dance! ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ by Queen is always a good bouncy tune to dance to while you dry your hair and put on a fancy outfit.

• To lift your spirits when you are feeling blue

Music is really important for my brain, and I listen to music for several hours every day, no matter what I am doing and especially if I am feeling blue. I think one of my favourite songs that is particularly reassuring and cheering is ‘Time’ by Jack Garratt. Its all about feeling like you are running out of time in life and then realising that time is actually on your side and that you have time left to do the things you want. The song really builds so that at the end of it you are delivered a pure shot of oxytocin to your brain when a host of trumpets start up. I also love ‘Now We Are Free’ from the Gladiator soundtrack (composed by Hans Zimmer and Lisa Gerrard) as it makes me think of the ancient world and sunny ruins and ‘The Lake Isle’ by Ola Gjeilo, which is a piece of choral music. I used to listen to ‘The Lake Isle’ during the pandemic lockdowns and imagine when I would be free to go see the beautiful English countryside again.

• To belt out at the karaoke

Sounds crazy but ‘Gangsta’s Paradise’ by Coolio. I have had the most non-gansta life you can possibly imagine, but being a millennial, that song was part of my childhood and I know it by heart. Another song I know the words for (but probably should not attempt to sing) is Mariah Carey’s ‘Fantasy.’ The song brings back memories of being 13 and dancing to it with friends in my living room, although I had no idea of the concept of a romantic ‘fantasy’ at that age!

Are there any types of music you're not keen on and why?

I like almost all genres of music. Folk music, opera, classical, house, EDM, pop, rap, country, rock, sea shanties, bardcore, you name it, I probably could find something to like about it. But I will admit I struggle with super heavy heavy screaming metal music. For me, its important if a song has a tune and I would prefer it if the lyrics made some sense. Remember that song by The Killers that goes ‘Are we human or are we dancer?’ WHAT does that mean?!! WHY? Nonsensical lyrics sort of drive me a little mad.

What brought you to Choir on the Hill and how long have you been singing with us?

I have been looking for a choir to join for a long time and I really was looking for one local to me. Many of the choirs I found were just a bit to far for me to travel to during a weekday evening and honestly, I wanted to meet more women locally and perhaps make some new friends! Choir on the Hill looked so appealing because of how open, friendly and kind it seemed. I have only been coming to the choir since January, but I am so glad that I have, because singing every Thursday with such nice women has lifted my heart, helped with my asthma and given me so much joy.

Which female musical artists do you admire and why?

I particularly admire women musicians and performers who have something to say and are committed to their art and their own creative vision, even when they are encouraged to become more commercial. I grew up listening to Joni Mitchell, Alanis Morisette, Jewel, Sheryl Crow, Imogen Heap and Dar Williams, all of whom are great songwriters. Today I admire Lady Gaga, Chappell Roan, Aurora, Paris Paloma, Florence and the Machine and Marina for their artistry and for daring to be authentically themselves in an industry that tells women not to be too weird, too arty, too angry or too outspoken.

Who are your female role models?

I have been inspired by many women over the years, but two women in particular really touched my heart. While I was doing my masters, I did a research project into two working class Edwardian women Ruth Slate and Eva Slawson, who were beloved friends and wrote letters to each other between 1897 and 1917. Both of these women were born into poverty and had very little opportunities, but they struggled and fought to gain an education, to work, to achieve sexual freedom, to participate in politics (Eva was an early member of the Labour Party) and to fight for women’s rights (they were both Suffragists and anti-war campaigners). They were not famous and there a no memorials to them. If their letters and diaries had not been found and published, they would be forgotten to the past. But through their writings, I really felt like I got to know these two wonderful creative, strong, intelligent, thoughtful women and I just felt so connected to them in a difficult period in my own life. Sadly, Eva died young and Ruth never wrote in her diary again after Eva died. You can read more about them here if you are interested: https://www.historyworkshop.org.uk/womens-history/reading-and-writing-friendship-ruth-slate-and-eva-slawson/

Tell us a surprising or little known fact about yourself.

I am the host of a podcast! It was on hiatus for two years because I was enrolled on a MA in Public History, but I am hoping to start it up again in the next few months. The podcast is called The Tales We Tell. It is all about the role of women and gender in film, television and fiction. I absolutely love guesting on other people’s podcasts as well, talking all about gender, history, scifi, tv and film. My mum has always said I have the ‘gift of the gab’ and talk way too much.

What is your favourite thing about being part of Choir on the Hill?

This is a hard question, because my experience has been overwhelmingly positive so far and I like lots of things about the choir! But I guess I would say I love the singing and the camaraderie! When do we get the chance to sing collectively in everyday life? Not often! I love that I don’t have to be a professional singer to be part of the group and when we all sing in harmony I think we sound beautiful together.