In February this year we launched the BRAND-NEW Inch House Community Choir! We meet on Tuesday evenings, 7-9pm, termly. We’re two terms in and we’ve had a lot of fun and a couple of public performances already - at the Inch House Easter Fair and at Bridgend Farm in July. Now that the Inch House Community Choir has become a well-established feature, we look forward to regular choir performances at Inch House for residents of the Inch and surrounds to participate in, or simply enjoy attending. We are aiming to build on numbers for the autumn term – starting on Tue 29 August at Inch House. All are welcome to join and no previous experience of choir or reading music is necessary. The choir is led by Heather Macleod, an experienced singer, vocal tutor and choir leader who has recently moved to the Inch area. Heather kindly agreed to answer some questions for our Newsletter. ‘Heather has a relaxed, fun method of leading, there is nothing technical, fussy or formal’ Hello Heather – and thank you for supporting this new initiative. Can you please tell us a little bit about yourself and your singing career? I’ve sung, toured and recorded with bands since I was seventeen and, nearly 40 years later (!?!?!), I still do it, and still love it! Singing in harmony is my favourite thing and so I found myself working with lots of backing vocal sections and then forming The Bevvy Sisters with three lead singers (a la Scottish Beverley Sisters). As my daughter has grown up, teaching singing has featured more. I teach 1-2-1 vocals for Edinburgh Uni and have my own roster of students. I’ve also loved working with choirs and have helped several choirs start up. I formed the Soundhouse Choir, also based in Edinburgh, in 2016. It’s a very large choir and so I’m not scared of numbers! I hope lots of people turn up to try out our brand-new choir at the Inch! The bigger the better, and the easier it all becomes! Are there any particular types of music / singing that you think will best suit our choir, especially at first while it is finding its feet? Feel-good, uplifting and tuneful songs. These could be in any style. I tend not to work with classical or heavy metal! Apart from that, if it’s a good singable song, then it’s in! I do all the arrangements myself and make recorded parts for people to listen to after learning in the room (the best fun bit!). The main thing is to enjoy singing. It’s not at all about having a ‘good’ voice. No experience is required and as I teach by ear, i.e. I sing it, you sing it back – there is no need to read music either. Choir singing is quite often more popular with women; any messages for the men out there? I don’t know what makes this the case and there really should be a study done on why, but that is true. What I do know is that the more male voices there are, the better. The bass end of the choir is a vital part of the sound, giving a sure bedrock for the song and a huge contribution to the richness and balance to the tone of the choir. So come on the men!! This will be an adult choir in the first instance; but is there an opportunity to widen this out to include young adults or children as well, in future? Anyone over 16 could come along in the first instance. If it all goes well this term, then we hope to continue and have an informal performance in the Summer. If there is interest from younger groups we could look to involve them initially in that occasion, by joining in with a couple of songs, which I could teach separately. I’d love to see Inch house have a provision for all to sing. In terms of programme and teaching, adult and children’s choir are quite different. What do you think about Inch House as a choir / performance venue? GLORIOUS! It’s an absolute GEM of Edinburgh. What a treat it is to be able to sing in the big main room with those windows overlooking the park. The acoustics are gorgeous we’re feeling at home there already. It’s a big room and it would be amazing to fill it! ALL WE NEED IS PEOPLE TO COME ALONG AND GIVE IT A GO! ‘The Inch House Choir is a lovely gathering of local folk! With Heather’s enthusiastic encouragement we were making a beautiful sound from the off. It’s a great way to listen, relax and focus your mind. And it’s delightful meeting new folk too!’ Next term starts with a FREE taster evening on Tue 29 August – Tue 03 October 7-9pm. For more information, registration and booking: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/inch-house-choir-six-week-autumn-term-2023-tickets-689536120097?aff=ebdshpsearchautocomplete