 July 10th-12th saw 29 choirs comprising over 700 people, descend on the Yorkshire coastal town of Whitby for the 27th National Street Choir festival. Most of songs were written by musical director Rebecca Gross with Billy Bragg’s International and a traditional African numbers thrown in.
During Saturday afternoon, choirs busked around the town centre entertaining appreciative passersby, including numerous dogs and a horse. The evening saw a concert in which all of the choirs sang for each other offering a mix of traditional material, self penned compositions and a few pop songs.
I am a member of Kadenza, a women’s choir from Bolton led by Moira Hill, an active socialist, who first started the ensemble in her kitchen. Now twenty strong, it has relocated and developed a repertoire to appeal to young and old alike.
The fun continued on Sunday, with a variety of workshops available giving a chance to acquire new skills and learn new songs. In recent years Manchester, Gateshead and Brighton have hosted the festival (or fesitval as our goody bags proclaimed – could these become collectors items?) This time Whitby did the event proud. Thanks are due to James Fearnley, Rebecca and Mark Gross and the whole team for their hard work and hospitality. Next year’s venue has yet to be decided.
- Heather Dunn
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