In 2009, Rufus, our musical director, was approached to set up a choir in Hemel. The first meeting on the 10th November attracted 30 people to a small room in Astley Cooper School, and so Dacorum Community Choir was born. He makes no secret of the fact that it took some considerable persuasion from the School Head to embark on this project. However, he is so glad that she did persevere. DCC quickly became an integral and valued part of his working week.
How lucky we were.
Rufus was recently appointed Artistic Director of the renowned English Chamber Choir. The extra workload has meant that he’s been forced, reluctantly, to give up some of his other commitments. The quote above is taken from his Facebook page and marked his standing down as Musical Director of the Hardynge Choir.
I joined D.C.C. in 2013, at the age of 72 and I didn’t think singing was for me, but I so wanted it to be. The help and support I got from Rufus, Judi and the rest of the choir took me on a musical journey which has changed my life.
In the fifteen years since our inception, we have grown in size, we now number over 100, range and ability. But the main thing we’ve gained is our absolute joy in singing together and our ability to communicate that to our audience. We have indeed become so much more than the sum of our parts.
In August we’re embarking on tour to Shropshire. Of course there will be singing, with two performances over the weekend, but tours are also a fantastic way to get to know other people in the choir really well. They are filled with laughter and fun (though of course we take the music seriously).
Singing is not all we do together. We also run social events. On July 4th we went on a boat trip to Hampton Court for the RHS flower festiva
l (see image above) and two weeks later we held an energetic Ceilidh, dancing to Cloudburst, with Wendy Harrup and Paul Moran (both choir members).
Our rehearsals are on Tuesday mornings in term time at the Church of the Resurrection in Henry Wells Square in Grovehill. You’ll find us there between 9.45 and 11.35 in the morning. We’re on our summer hols now but we’ll be back on September 3rd. We welcome all comers, men and women, total beginners and experienced singers. If you’d like to join a friendly choir with an inspiring leader, just come along and give us a go.
Have a good summer!
For further information see, www.dacorumcommunitychoir.org and our Facebook page, Dacorum Community Choir, or ring 07402 181182 if you’d like more details.
