During the Coronavirus Pandemic, singing together outside your home is not safe so here are some activities you can take part in online led by Stoke Sings friends and people we recommend.
Local Choir leaders online singing resources
Kate Barfield and Greg Stephens are running their regular three choirs on zoom online.
Clay Chorus on Monday evenings at 8PM,
Loudmouth Women on Tuesdays at 8PM,
Village Voices (Singing for Lung Health) Group on Thursdays at 11AM.
Old members always welcome back, new people always welcome. Contact on boatband@yahoo.co.uk orhttps://www.facebook.com/kate.barfield.7
All Inclusive Community Sing A Long A Steve with Steve Mitchell leader of Inter Theatre Stoke Choir on facebook and zoom.
Monday 10.30am Guided Meditation: For anyone who wants to relax and chill out
Mon 11am Unmuted Manic Monday at the Singalong Saloon
Thurs 1.30pm Guided Meditation: For anyone who wants to relax and chill out
Thurs 2pm Muted Theme Thursday – silly hats or costumes a must
Fri 11am KRAZY KARAOKE
Steve’s Personal Meeting Room on Zoom https://zoom.us/j/8575066086
Subs/Donations welcome
https://www.facebook.com/SteveMitchellUK
Staffordshire Community Virtual Choir has daily videos, singalong sessions, ‘rehearsals’ and concerts on facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/3486356648105280/
Potters Community Choir virtual singing group open to new members. Contact Teresa Phillips email potterscommunitychoir @ gmail.com
Singing Bears Online for children and parents with Stoke on Trent Libraries on Mondays and Thursdays at 11am. https://www.facebook.com/stokeontrentlibraries/ Here are the previous sessions https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZ2uu4wgMUY&list=UUx7e0DxniN82fuLLorsuWmw
Shan Jones and Martin Jones, (Jones and Jones music) have written Friendship in the Air for his two choirs to perform in lockdown. The Broughton Community Choir and Ashton Sings (Ashton Hayes Village Choir) create a virtual performance of the specially written song for our times. He is very kindly sharing the music for anyone who wants to sing it. https://www.facebook.com/jonesandjonesmusicpublisher/videos/169582587741645/
Martin Jones is continuing his community choirs online.
National online singing groups and resources
The Sofa Singers is a free & weekly online singing event from James Sills that brings hundreds of people together from around the world to spark joy and human connection. The Sofa Singers brings together hundreds of people in real time for 45 minutes of simultaneous singing. Registration opens every Sunday at 5pm BST for the sessions that week. https://www.thesofasingers.com/
Gareth Malone Great British Home Chorus brings together amateur and professional performers around the country to learn songs together with free weekly rehearsals and opportunities to record yourself for a virtual choir. Watch previous rehearsals on youtube https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLaLGHvdHfRMfkl2yQNMOmp4eJCHxBAI6m and sign up for the song sheets and information here https://decca.com/greatbritishhomechorus/
The Singing Mamas SongLine quarantine choirs, song sessions on Monday Wednesday and Friday at 10.30am for all, on facebook and zoom. Short and sweet harmony songs for you to take home and keep. Songs that support and uplift. https://singingmamaschoir.com/
Singalong Songs from Penny Stone. Penny is posting songs most days to help folk who are social distancing to help slow the curve and relieve stress on the NHS. She hopes these can make you feel more connected to us all, and give you a wee voice work out as well. Each video has a full singalong song, with a bit of teaching the tune at the beginning; whether that’s a full song with harmonies or just a join in chorus will vary. https://singlouderthanguns.com/singalong-songs/
Penny has also shared lots of song sheets on her website Sing Louder Than Guns. https://singlouderthanguns.com/songs-for-sharing/ https://singlouderthanguns.com/songs-for-sharing/
Nottingham Voice Collective online acapella harmony singing workshops, led by Abi Moore. They are having a Live Acapella Challenge on the 30th May. Register to get tutorial videos, sound files and words, so you can learn the song and your harmony parts ready for the workshop. http://www.nottinghamvoicecollective.com/
Acapella with Abi is a youtube channel where Abi shares videos of the songs in parts. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-M07X6ZGOhGOgrGhzEcuhuRz5PCBqzmp
The Mouthful Way Singing Challenge is a series of collaborative videos… singing whilst self-isolating! Download MP3 rehearsal files / scores to help you learn one of the parts of your chosen song, record yourself singing, send your recording in and they turn everyone’s contributions into a single collaborative video which they upload to Youtube! https://www.mouthfulway.co.uk/singing-challenge
the Stay At Home Choir! is a growing musical community that allows music lovers from all the world to interact with and perform alongside some of their favourite artists. Sign Up to sing with 7500 members! https://stayathomechoir.com/
Massive Singlet is a singing thing with Stephen Tabernor of the Spooky Men’s Chorale. Join up to 500 participants worldwide in warmups, the learning and singing of a song (or two), a little drink break, and then a bit of sharing: thoughts, knitted things, flags, or snippets of music from you, possibly finishing with a dance track. there is classic version, kid’s version and ukelele version. https://www.massivesinglet.com/
The Global Song Circle is an invitation to people across the world to unite through the power of singing together. Through shared song, we aim to inspire people around the planet to join their voices together each month, even though we are all currently at home, and to sing as one ‘global choir’, united for harmony, peace and love. Learn the monthly song and, when you’re ready, film a version of it on your own or with your family and share it on social media. They will gather your films throughout the month and share them with the world on facebook https://globalsongcircle.com/ https://www.facebook.com/globalsongcircle
There are 8 different free singing courses with the WEA online, on offer here! and other music courses too….https://enrolonline.wea.org.uk/online/coursesearchresults.aspx?filterForm=1&filterSubject=1&CategoryID=235&SubjectID=216
Isolation Vocalisation from Flatpack Music. Classical songs and exercises will be aimed at older adults and the over 70s but everyone is welcome on facebook live on Wednesdays at 2:00pm. https://www.facebook.com/pg/FlatPackMusic
Military Wives Choirs new song ‘Together’, written by Hilary Davan Wetton for the Military Wives Choirs is a world first to embrace the internet latency of virtual music-making! Choir members from across the network have continued their music-making virtually all whilst maintaining key worker roles. This song, with lyrics written by choir members, enables them to truly sing together and feel stronger together. https://www.militarywiveschoirs.org/announcing-together-our-original-song-embracing-internet-latency-in-world-first The sheet music for ‘Together’ is available to purchase to perform with your choirs! https://www.militarywiveschoirs.org/buy-the-sheet-music-for-military-wives-choirs-together-by-hilary-davan-wetton.
World Voice Day are offering free online resources for a song My Voice Lifts My Soul for choirs and choir leaders to create their own virtual choir. http://www.julietrussell.com/worldvoice.html
This Too Shall Pass features a Song of the Day chosen by a member of the Red Leicester Choir and a list of online singing groups. Songs so far have been by Billy Bragg, Leonard Cohen, Donne Warwick. https://redleicesterchoir.com/this-too-shall-pass/
Learn “I Can Sing a Rainbow” in British Sign Language (BSL) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXBpouS6hnM&list=PLeJ0kwUqFJGBsqr6nLfmPF6BwHNpx08nQ&index=2&t=0s
Other
Judy Collins & The Global Virtual Choir recording of Amazing Grace to raise funds for World Health Organisation Covid-19 Solidarity Response Fund. Available to buy from 29th May 2020. https://www.globalvirtualchoir.com/
Credits for official Stoke Sings photographs on this website go to Tony Jones, Kim Watson, Lydia Hopwood and Jaro Ralph.
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