Dear Parents/Carers,
I hope that everyone has enjoyed the rest of the summer holidays following the NCCGB summer course, concert and tour, and that the start of the new school year goes well for all those returning to school.
What a successful summer we have had! We all loved every minute, and I hope that your children all did too. We had a packed summer course this time with lots of things going on.
Friday Afternoons Recording
Yellow Choir recorded two songs for the Friday Afternoons Project. They should be really proud of themselves for how hard they worked. They sounded fantastic and the recording engineer was very impressed by how good they were. The recordings will be used as teaching aids for music teachers. I will send through the link to the final recordings when I have received it.
Senior Choir Recital in Bromsgrove
Senior and tour choir gave a beautiful recital in St John’s Church in Bromsgrove
Future Talent recording and date for diary for next year
Those in Senior Choir who were not going on tour, also had the opportunity to do some recording, for the upcoming Future Talent 20th Anniversary album. We are working in partnership with Future Talent, a charity that exists to remove the barriers to making music that are faced by some young people (Future Talent | Inspiring Young Musicians) We were delighted that they invited us to participate in this project.
Future Talent has also invited Senior Choir to perform at their 20th anniversary concert, which will take place at the Roundhouse in London on Tuesday 22nd April next year. If your child will be in Senior Choir next year and would like to be part of this exciting opportunity, please save the date.
Summer concert
The choir performed to a packed-out concert hall at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire on 3rd August. I hope that those of you who were able to come enjoyed the amazing performances of our children. I was privileged to be in the audience and so proud of all our staff and children and what they have achieved this year.
Tour to Germany
We had a successful tour to Berlin and Dresden. It was a lot of fun, having the opportunity to sing, sightsee, try German food and try out our German! Tour Choir were wonderful ambassadors for NCCGB. It was such a special experience for us all. The choir gave 4 concerts, the last of which was a joint concert with the Children’s Philharmonic Choir Dresden, a very fitting way to end the week. The choir received a standing ovation at every concert. Thank you to those parents and carers who made the trip to Germany to support us.
Summer photos
We had a photographer join us during the course and a selection of his photos have been put into the members’ area of our website here...There are also some photos from the tour to Germany. All photos are available for purchase here… . The deadline for orders is Friday 27th September. Any orders placed after this date will incur an additional postage charge.
Soundabout recording
As you know, we have also been collaborating with Soundabout Inclusive Choirs. Soundabout Choirs – Musical Communities Without Barriers
Soundabout’s work is focused on giving a voice to people with severe and profound learning disabilities.
Those who have been in Blue Choir in the last two years have had the opportunity to sing with them in a joint workshop during our Easter course, and we will be doing this again next year.
Soundabout have invited us to sing on their next recording. This is open to all juniors (Yellow, Blue and Green).
They are inviting choirs across the country to be part of the first ever recording of the brand-new piece called ‘Shine a Light’ composed by Soundabout’s Graduate Emerging Leaders (Learning Disabled young people). They have sent the following information:
‘Sparkle with Soundabout’ is our annual winter appeal, and this year the theme is ‘Light’. Even in the dark winter months we’re surrounded by light. Whether it’s the stars that sparkle in the night sky, the flames of a flickering fire, or the act of making music together and having the chance to shine. We want to shine a light on how music and sound can transform the lives of Learning Disabled people by creating opportunities where we can all dazzle.’
See how choirs from across the country came together last year: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gzFG_cIkzg
Participating would require each child to record their part individually. The recording will be launched on 5th December and shared to a social media audience of over 10,000 followers.
Please can you let me know by Friday 20th September if your child would like to participate.
Achievements
Solenne Barton-Carwright – Grade 4 Music Theatre with distinction
Lily Harris – Grade 7 singing with distinction
Maddie Hughes – Grade 5 Music Theatre with distinction
Nathan Hughes – Grade 8 Music Theatre with distinction
Martha Khurshid – Diploma in musical theatre with distinction
Sion Llywelyn-Davies – cast as the Shepherd Boy in Tosca at The Grange festival, including performing a solo. Sion was named in reviews in both The Telegraph and The Stage.
Oscar Mallis – Grade 4 singing with merit
Chloe Beth Norgate – Grade 5 LCM Exam with Distinction, Overall best Musical Theatre performance at the Berkshire Festival, Gold for Drum Solo at the Berkshire Festival.
Alethea Owen – Grade 5 singing with merit
Diya Ravenhill – Grade 5 singing with merit
Isaac Taj – Grade 4 guitar with merit, Grade 3 singing with merit
Congratulations to you all from everyone at NCC!
Auditions
Booking is now open for our auditions to join us in 2025. Please do share this with anyone who you know who loves to sing and who would benefit from becoming part of NCC. If everyone could share this with at least one person, it would really help us to get the word out about the opportunities that we offer.
All details can be found here: Join Us – The National Children’s Choir (nccgb.com)
Goodbye and good luck
We are sad to say goodbye and good luck to the large cohort in our Senior Choir who are leaving us this year. Many of those have been singing with us for 10 years since they joined us aged 9. We wish them all the very best in all they do. It has been a privilege to have them as part of NCCGB.
We are looking at building up an alumni network, so please do share the details with your children – further information here: Join the NCCGB Alumni Network – The National Children’s Choir
We were also sorry to say goodbye to Michele Duck, our Senior Choir Co-ordinator, who has been a vital part of our Pastoral Team for many years. Michele has been part of the choir since she joined as a chorister 20 years ago and then joined the pastoral team. She has had a positive impact on so many young people in her care. We wish her good luck and say a huge thank you for her contribution to NCC
Choirs and registration for 2025
I will send out confirmation of your child’s choir for 2025 towards the end of September, followed by registration information for next year’s courses in early October.
If you already know that your child has decided not to return, please let me know.
Dates for next year
Easter Course at Bromsgrove School
Junior Choirs Sunday 13th April – Saturday 19th April
Senior Choir – Tuesday 15th April – Saturday 19th April
Summer Course at Bromsgrove School
All choirs – Sunday 3rd August – Saturday 9th August
Future Talent concert at the Roundhouse (Senior Choir only)
Rehearsal – Monday 21st April
Concert – Tuesday 22nd April
NCCGB Summer Concert at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire
Saturday 9th August
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions on any of the above.
Best wishes
Nicole
Links
Future Talent
Summer Photos
Order Summer Photos Form
Soundabout Recording
Sparkle Video
Auditions Join Us
NCCGB Alumni Network