Singing is good for the Soul

I Love to Sing

I've loved singing since a pre-pubescent kid at school. My voice breaking at 13 years saw my choir career cut short as they had no use for an unsteady baritone. Just before leaving school my music master Mr John Blackett took it upon himself to organize a school opera in which I played a Royalist Office in "All the Kings Men".

A dress rehearsal of the Kings Men opera

Middle age saw me suffer the curse of the Ayley family - depression and after ten years of taking pills I decided it was time to tried something else. I started singing with a friend, accompanying his folk songs with dodgy harmonies and it wasn't long before I noticed the singing was giving me a natural high - rather than the Real Ale! 

After my friend took an away job driving, I felt somewhat of loss and one Christmas, while singing at the midnight service, somebody suggested I join a choir as I had a pleasant voice. Clearly not reading music left me short of joining a professional choir, so after a searching the internet I found a local community choir in Bournemouth. They are now called the "Chicken Soup Choir" and I've had the pleasure of singing with them for in excess of six years now. The are a fantastic group of people, of whom I've made many firm friends and needless to say the depression is now a thing of the past; my fix of singing every week has seen to that. 

A group photo of the Chicken Soup Choir in London

photo by Lou Pack

Singing in a choir is slightly more expensive than proscription drugs but you have a lot more fun! I now also sing with a village community choir called "Just Sing" which have just received a major boost in their numbers after singing backing vocals with the famous Operatic foursome G4.

Group photo of Just Sing at the Wimborne Folk festival 2015

Just Sing are performing again this year, in the Wimborne Folk Festival on the 10th, 11th & 12th of June, both on the main stage in the town square and in Wimborne Minster. I can thoroughly recommend singing as a cure for depression, being lonely and helping to boost self confidence - go on give it try what have you got to loose!