baritone |
choir leader |
arranger |A portion of Chaps Choir at Abbey Road studio 2 with Jamie Doe (AKA The Magic Lantern) in January 2019
Sing
Where to sing | My choirs & projects
Bellow Fellows
Male Voice Community Choir
New members welcome! Bellow Fellows is a friendly welcoming group made up of men from all walks of life. No auditions & everything is taught by ear. We sing a wide variety of music and perform in and around the capital. Tuesday nights | Angel, N1 London. Come along for a free taster !
Harmony Live
Community singing workshops
Welcoming, uplifting and accessible day-long workshops open to absolutely everyone - located in London & Brighton (at the moment) co-led by four experienced community singing facilitators. Keep an eye on harmonylive.co.uk for new dates or sign up to the mailing list
Chaps Choir
Singing Men from London
Chaps Choir is a large male singing gang; say goodbye to the male voice choir most would recognise. Auditioned alt-male voice choir turning the male choir presentation on its head. For information about joining visit this link
Find A Choir
Looking for a different sort of choir in your area?
For a list of non-auditioned community choirs in the UK & beyond visit https://naturalvoice.net/choirs
For choirs of all flavours in the UK visitAbout Me
Since 2009 I have been encouraging people to sing together. I believe it is possible for us all to explore our innate musicality using our voice.
In 2013 I founded Chaps Choir in an attempt to get more men singing and to challenge the traditional male choir presentation. Chaps Choir has since performed in major London venues, played the festival circuit, sung on prime time Saturday night TV and collaborated with recording artists, filmographers & mental health charities. The choir's live shows, videos & recordings have been recognised around the world and offer an example of alternative male group expression.
I have delivered workshops for The Wigmore Hall, Southbank Centre, Spitalfield's Music, Wilderness Festival, The Choir With No Name, Port Eliot festival, The Good Life Experience and other events & organisations in London and the UK. Artistic & educational collaborations have included artists as diverse as Shlomo, Huutajat (Finnish Shouting Men's Choir), Omar, Joe Stilgoe, The Real Tuesday Weld, & Hattie Webb
As a regular member of The Spooky Men's Chorale and groove & jazz ensemble The London Vocal Project, I have toured Europe and North America taking part in collaborations with icons of the jazz and folk world.
In 2015 I founded Bellow Fellows, London's first non-auditioned accessible male community choir and in the same year I began working with Beating Time, delivery singing sessions in prisons.
I graduated in music from Southampton University, trained as a Spitalfield's Music apprentice and received training with the Association of British Choral Directors.- PRESSRadio/TV interviews and articles about my work
ITV News
Men singing & Chaps Choir
2016 | 4 min
BBC Radio Suffolk
Getting everyone - especially men - singing + Chaps Choir promo
2018 | 8 min
BBC Radio Humberside
How to get everyone - especially men - singing / Spooky Men
2017 | 10 min
The Independent
'...It's also the best way to meet new people. But what if you hate group activities? Simmy Richman joined the Chaps Choir for two rehearsals, and one potentially life-changing performance'
The Sunday Telegraph
'What happened to the snarling cynical Julia Llewellyn of old? Answer: She joined a choir'
CHAPS CHOIR PRESS
Indscene mention - Wilderness 2016 review
'...Chaps Choir, an all-male 50 piece choir of hotties & 'lumbersexuals' performed chart-bothering crowd-favourites that raised the hairs on the back of everyones necks.'
Drowned In Sound mention - Citadel 2016 review
'Our day starts with the bandstand and Chaps Choir, a horde of...singing men from Islington that produce a winning, lifting sound that drifts bucolically through the trees...their set a brief but sweaty whirl of headdress and rhythm'
CHART - notes to consider - 'When The Men Sing, The Silence Ends' by Alexander Mayor; photos by Matt Veal
'Away from the football pitch or the pub at closing time, men aren’t big singers. Somehow, from school age onwards, singing, that free musical instrument most of us carry around all day, gets knocked out of men. Social pressure, emotional restraint, whatever it is, it stops men from singing in public or joining choirs. In 2013, one singing tutor in North London decided to see if this sad social state of affairs could be overturned and Chaps Choir was born. Writer and musician Alexander Mayor reflects on the surprises of joining a choir, and the strange journey men go on once they decide to sing.'
Contact me for access to full piece.
POSITIVE NEWS - 'Rewriting The Man Code' by Lucy Purdy
“Singing in a choir is powerful because, unlike in sport, you don’t have to win to succeed,” says the choir’s founder Dominic Stichbury. “To succeed, you have to become part of the group.”
