Choir

The formation of Ballyblack WI choir in 1987 added a musical element to the already diverse activities of the Institute. Although the first members had very different levels of musical experience, we all shared a common love of music and hoped that, by pooling our rather questionable abilities, we just might be able to form a choir to enter in the Novice Class at the next WI Music Festival.

Despite first public performance stage nerves, to our surprise and delight, we won and took our first very tentative steps towards becoming a 'real' choir! . Little did we realise that we would still be going strong today.
We have progressed since those early and fondly remembered days when singing in two parts was quite a daunting challenge. Over the years we have gradually developed in confidence and now enjoy tackling more difficult works in which four part harmony is the norm. The satisfaction which we derive from singing beautiful music together in harmony cannot be measured and it is this, together with the camaraderie and fun that we share, which ensures that attendance at practices remains consistently high.

Since we began we have had a number of conductors, each bringing her own personality, unique style and individual talents to the job. Their unfailing dedication and enthusiasm has always been deeply appreciated by the choir, the majority of which freely admit to having rather limited musical knowledge and /or ability.

Although we have built up a fairly extensive repertoire over the years, ranging from light classical, folk songs, ballads, sacred music to well-loved favourites, we try to add new numbers on a regular basis in order to maintain ongoing development and interest. This also ensures that we can provide a more interesting programme when entertaining diverse audiences in the local community and further afield. We accept invitations for the choir or a quartet/small ensemble, the latter being more suitable for smaller venues. We are more than happy to learn particular pieces in response to special requests from our audiences and always find that this always provides mutual satisfaction. Otherwise, our choice of new music is determined by forthcoming concert requirements, the WI festival syllabus and, increasingly, by members’ suggestions.

Membership remains fairly constant despite a natural ebb and flow but we are always delighted to welcome new members from within the Institute, making the point that it certainly isn’t necessary to be a 'singer' to join the ranks - we have already proved that there is safety in numbers and a lot of enjoyment to be derived for the mediocre voice. That said, we do have one gifted soloist in our midst. She is gaining confidence every year and has come to really enjoy the challenge of the solo classes at the annual WI music festival. The rest of us just bask in reflected glory!

It must be noted that we are fortunate to have a wonderfully talented and committed accompanist who has the patience of a saint and we do appreciate her unfailing support.