Teenah tells how singing helped ‘save her life’

Michael Alexander speaks to a Perth carol singer who has overcome mental health problems and a ‘dread’ of Christmas to feature prominently in a TV festive choir.

When Teenah Bee appears on TV screens belting out Christmas carols in the beautiful setting of the 15th Century St John’s Kirk in Perth tomorrow evening, she’ll be in her element as she and fellow members of the city’s Jambouree Choir help carry Scotland across midnight into Christmas morning.

The TV performance, recorded in November, is an early present ahead of her 29th birthday on Boxing Day when she and a friend will also be duetting in a Perth hotel.

But Christmas hasn’t always been a happy time for the 28-year-old who experienced a “rollercoaster” of a childhood.

Having recently been diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, she puts her adult mental health problems down to childhood “abandonment” issues and is keen to talk about how, since her teenage years, music has “saved” her from dark, sometimes suicidal thoughts.

“I grew up in the foster care system from a young age,” the Perth-born singer, who was “in and out” of foster care growing up, told The Courier.

“My biological parents weren’t together. My mother couldn’t really look after us properly. We were put into care, then back living with her, then into care again. It was a bit of a rollercoaster…”

Teenah certainly experienced many ups and downs throughout her childhood. Attending three different primary schools in Perthshire, she found it hard to make friends. Her brother was adopted while her sister was sometimes in the same foster home as her and sometimes not.

“I used to dread Christmas as the adverts on TV showing happy families used to make me feel quite sad,” she said.

It was while she was at Perth High School, however, that she discovered music and “fell in love with it”.

“When I was in first year, a friend of mine played the trumpet and I thought ‘I’m going to be like her, I’m going to play the trumpet!’” she said.

“I was in school bands, orchestras. Then when I came to third year and choosing subjects, I started singing and playing the trumpet.

“I just really enjoyed it and with that got the chance to tour Italy with another choir, which was amazing.”

Teenah had to leave the youth choir at 18. However, that’s when she discovered the Jambouree Choir – an outfit formed in 2005, which has 30 members ranging in age from eight to 27, drawn from the Perth area.

Having recently been made redundant as a department store supervisor, her illness means that sometimes she has no motivation to leave the house and will spend days in bed.

“My diagnosis of borderline personality disorder is linked to abandonment issues as a child and undiagnosed depression,” she said, adding that while she’s managing the condition now, it can be hard to maintain relationships as she worries people around her are going to “disappear”.

But when it comes to choir practice on Thursday nights, that’s when she gets “this buzz”.

“The endorphins you get when singing are amazing,” she said.

“It’s something to go to every week. We are like a big dysfunctional family! It’s really good fun to be around people who love to sing.

“For anyone that’s suffering from any kind of mental health problems, definitely music has changed my life and saved my life. It’s something quite wonderful actually!”

Teenah will be spending Christmas with her sister and nieces – and she’s looking forward to watching tomorrow’s screening of the concert performance, which includes her doing a solo verse of The Aye Carol.

Introduced by Sally Magnusson, six well-known carols – Once in Royal David’s City, Hark the Herald, O Come All Ye Faithful, See in Yonder Manger, As with Gladness and O Little Town of Bethlehem – are sung by a large congregation from all over Perthshire, accompanied by Alba Brass.

Jambouree perform songs from Scotland and Malawi.

Chansons, a Perth-based chamber choir, sing Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day and two other songs.

Edna Auld, founder of the Jambouree Choir, said: “Teenah showed real musical and artistic ability from the time she went to secondary school both as a trumpeter and singer.

“Her singing voice gradually developed into a beautifully mature soprano sound. She is outstandingly talented.”

David Strachan, executive producer at Tern TV, which has made Christmas Celebration, said: “It’s lovely to work with community choirs, but extra special to work with a choir of people like Teenah who have started from no experience and worked hard to get to such a high standard.”

Christmas Celebration airs on BBC One Scotland tomorrow, from 11.40pm to 12.25am.