Singing musical maestro’s Kilbrannan choir call-out
A singer/songwriter and vocal coach who has toured the United States aims to form a Kintyre choir. In January, Judith Jones moved from West Cumbria. With her husband Roy, she has built a music studio at Torrisdale but her passion is singing and she wants to set up a group, to be called Kilbrannan Soundz Rock and Pop Choir. Judith aims to stage a Christmas show and has asked anyone interested in rock or pop singing to register at Peninver village hall on Monday October 22 at 7.15pm. Judith, 58, said: ‘The pop and rock choir in Peninver will perform bi-annual concerts, where all proceeds will be donated to charity. ‘My previous choir in Cumbria regularly raised £2,000-plus per concert. Concerts are important to my students and to the choir and I have a full PA system and lights. ‘The concerts give them the experience of performing as a professional to a forgiving audience, and we give something back to the community in the process. ‘At my private studio in Torrisdale, students are taught correct voice technique based upon the latest scientific research.’ Judith, who had a show on BBC Radio Cumbria, made her Kintyre Songwriters Festival debut this spring, having first come to the peninsula in May last year. Judith said: ‘We had always gone further north, to Skye, and when we came here thought, “Wow this place is fabulous”. ‘Roy was an engineer at the Sellafield nuclear power station and when he retired last December we started looking and the move happened really quickly. ‘I started singing aged seven and used to go to festivals across northern England. Apart from a short spell as an officer in the Metropolitan Police it has been my lifelong passion.’ In her 40s, Judith, by now a mum of two, completed an Open University degree in humanities with music. She also studied further, taking numerous voice courses, including training with coaches at the London College of Music, at the Royal Northern in Leeds and the College of Music in Manchester. ‘I am member of the British Voice Association, the Incorporated Society of Musicians and the Association of Teachers of Singing. ‘I also teach stagecraft, performance, speech and some drama, especially associated with performance of musical theatre. ‘Students tend to be professionals who need help to strengthen and enhance their voices. ‘I also take older teenagers who wish to apply for stage/ music based university courses, or compete in music festivals, and people who just want to improve their technique and sing for pleasure. ‘I also teach singing grades and music theory up to grade eight. ‘I have students who have gone on to work in Hollywood, the West End, and one is appearing at the Cavern Lounge in Liverpool shortly. ‘He is still a student, and regularly takes the long and winding road to my home studio for a day’s worth of lessons.’