Christmas Singing

I realised I have never done a post on my singing and how much I do this time of year.

As some of you will know I have sang in choirs since I was about seven years old so singing at Christmas has always been a part of my life.

My Christmas schedule is getting quieter as each year rolls round.  When I was at university it was crazy this time of year.  One year I did fourteen concerts and gigs in fourteen days, I had two and even three gigs on one day.  It was all good fun but as my health was deteriorating I knew I couldn't continue doing that many gigs for much longer.

Now I sing with a local choir called Cantemus and have done for around ten years.  I am one of the youngest members and very much enjoy my time with them.  The whole choir have welcomed me and have been very understanding about my needs.  I usually sit at rehearsals and in concerts and I also use music stand when performing due to the heavy books.  Since I started using a music stand I have enjoyed singing far more than ever before as the pressure has been taken off me.

This years Christmas calendar started with a weekend of singing.  We had our Christmas concert at Trinity Church in Stafford.  I had a small solo which was lovely as I haven't done one for a while.  The concert went well and the church was quite full so we were very pleased.

The next day we sang at the Light up a Life service at Katherine House Hospice in Stafford.  Every year lights are illuminated to remember family and friends who have been looked after in the hospice.  It's a beautiful service but it's always cold as it is held outside on the car park.  There were well over a thousand lights on the tree this year and thousands of pounds were raised for the hospice.

The choir also sang at Foxwalls Care Home in Stafford.  We sang for half an hour and the people who live there seem to really enjoy it as they joined in with us.

On Christmas Eve we sing in Stafford for an hour and raise money for Katherine House.  I've been doing this for about ten years and we always get a good response for the public.  By the time we finished singing at midday on Christmas Eve, my carol book is, once again, closed until the next year.