"In the 21st century what does an ordinary 23 year old girl do with her time? Pole- dancing? Or how about singing in a choir? Well I do both but one is only after huge amounts of alcohol. I'll let you judge which!
Choral music is still a strong tradition in my home town Maesteg. There are several choirs even in our small community but I belong to the new all-female choir called Harmony. I joined this choir a year ago because it was different. I mean we don't even have a conductor and the age ranges from 17 to 70, so we sing traditional acappella music, pop songs, gospel and songs from the musicals.
We recently had our first annual concert. I was so nervous; especially since I had been roped into a solo but when I saw the sea of smiles and a sell-out concert the feeling was indescribable. The years work was worth every second.
This choir is more than just coming together to sing - we are a group of friends.
At practice you never know what to expect - like flashing frilly knickers from Marks and Spencers!
We socialise outside of choir and wherever we go we have to have our sing song or failing that, Norma will always be there ready and willing to sing Buddy Holly.
Each member is a quirky character. Shan is the Joker of the pack, Janice is the chairperson and therefore the Queen bee and Wendy our Musical Director is our Ace!
I love to sing and in doing so I feel that I am helping to preserve a very important Welsh tradition.
The best thing about a mixed age choir is we can preserve the traditional past and yet change the stereotype. Our aim is to bring choir singing up to date and to make sure that it is enjoyed for future generations."
