Who we are
Vocal Expressions Ladies Choir has around fifty members who come to Holmbridge from all over the Holme Valley and beyond every Thursday evening to share their joy in singing under the musical directorship of Kate Shipway. The choir was founded in 1997 by Catherine Williams who led the choir until her retirement in December 2010. Kate became our Musical Director in 2018 and has taken th
e choir in new directions. Lloyd Buck has been our accompanist since 2012 and we value his skill and talent - and his sense of humour! Where we sing
The choir has been invited to sing for a variety of occasions - for Old Folks' Treats, private special birthday celebrations, weddings and funerals. We have sung in a variety of venues in the Holme Valley, Huddersfield, and further afield both in the UK and abroad. Several choir members have joined with other choirs to sing at Remembrance Concerts at Huddersfield Town Hall conducted by Thom Meredith and accompanied by The Band of the Yorkshire Regiment . We have performed with local brass bands, the Holme Valley Orchestra and the National Festival Orchestra, and in joint concerts with many other choirs. Just before Covid stopped us in our tracks we had a wonderfull concert at Holmfirth Methodist Church with an amazing young harpist, Rhiann Evans. We look forward to performing again in - hopefully - the not too distant future. Charitable work
Many of our concerts and activities are in aid of charities for which we have raised thousands of pounds over the years. These include Yorkshire Lupus, Reach Out (a charity supporting autistic children in Ukraine) and The Dumpster Chorale and Valuing Life Clinic in Cambodia, where one of the choir's members has been doing voluntary work as a retired midwife. We choose a different Charity each year and prior to lockdown we had raised a considerable amount for Huddersfield's Welcome Centre. Community involvement
The choir is keen to be involved in the wider community of the Holme Valley and seeks to encourage youngsters to enjoy music making and to give young performers a platform. We have held a community fair and a harvest supper at which local schools performed and which raised funds for the refurbishment of Holmbridge Village Hall. No auditions are involved, and it is not necessary to be able to read music. We rehearse using music, but perform without. The social side of the choir is as important to many of its members as the hard work they put into learning the music and words, and this all comes together at our annual residential weekend workshop in January.
