Are you passionate about community music making?

Members of the Singing In... Grenoside choir performing in the Sheffield Winter Garden.

If the answer to the above question is a huge 'YES' and you're looking for a voluntary role where you can use your experience to help grow an exciting new social enterprise, then keep reading on!

Community Music Makers CIC is a not-for-profit organisation formed in 2024 that brings communities together to make music through group activities that are accessible and welcoming. Our mission is to provide high quality, affordable musical activities led by experienced tutors that include numerous opportunities for mixing socially with others.

Last September we took on the delivery of the ‘Singing In…’ community choirs and music groups in North Sheffield, but we’ve got ambitious plans to work with more people who might be put off by the perceived barriers of joining a music making group, and we’re growing our board of directors to help us achieve that.

By welcoming additional non-executive directors to the board, we plan to widen our pool of knowledge and experience and strengthen our organisation.

We’d love to hear from people who are passionate about community music making, and the health and wellbeing benefits that taking part can bring. Previous experience as a board member or an understanding of good governance would be helpful, as would experience in grant funding. A strong commitment to inclusion is essential, and we’re especially keen to hear from individuals from underrepresented groups who reflect the diverse communities in which we work.

Non-executive directors will be placed on the public register with Companies House as a director of the company. Non-executive directors are volunteers, although out-of-pocket expenses can be paid to ensure they are able to attend in-person meetings and other events.

You’ll be expected to attend a quarterly meeting of up to 90 minutes in duration, with up to 30 minutes preparation for each meeting. There may also be the potential to take on some additional responsibilities by engaging in ad hoc working groups around specific projects.

If you want to be part of our organisation at this exciting time, please send a CV and cover letter (or a video of two to three minutes in length) to info@singing-in.com letting us know why you would like to be a part of Community Music Makers and what you can bring to the role.

We're looking forward to hearing from you!

A cracking good sing!

Many parts of the country have their own sets of local carols, but there is arguably nowhere with a set as extensive as in North Sheffield and North Derbyshire.

Going back many years, churches in England had a West Gallery, a raised portion opposite the altar, in which were positioned musicians and singers who provided music for worship. The significance and popularity of the music grew, with local people penning their own hymns. During the 19th century, tensions began to grow between church leaders and the musicians and there became a concern that the musicians were ‘enjoying themselves too much’. Out of a desire to reduce the dominance of the musicians in services, West Galleries, and the musicians who performed in them were replaced by harmoniums, and later, organs and more formal church choirs.

With the musicians and singers finding themselves with nowhere to play and sing their favourite hymns, they headed to the local public houses and began to merrily sing them there! This was particularly the case around the Christmas period, a time of real celebration, and with a few drinks inside them everyone else began to join in.

Perhaps because of the unique geography and the industry in the area, the singing of the carols in busy pubs remained strong in places such as Bradfield, Dungworth, Ecclesfield, Grenoside, Oughtibridge, Wharncliffe Side and Worrall. They were originally sung in four parts, with the sopranos, altos, tenors and basses sitting with each other in the four corners of the pub. David Elliott, one of our team who worked with us on producing our Singing In... Carols book recalled the amazing sound if you found yourself near the centre, “the perfect spot for a cracking good sing!” Different variations of the individual carols were, and still are, found nationally, and indeed locally too. You might travel just a mile up the road from Oughtibridge to Worrall to find your favourite carol sung quite differently.

Over recent decades, as people began to travel more widely and word spread about the carols, more singers joined in, with some travelling nationally and even internationally to experience the scene in Sheffield and North Derbyshire. However in the packed out pubs today, with the beer flowing and a desire from many to sing the tune, you won’t hear the harmonies quite so clearly and some people are fearful that their own local arrangements will succumb to standardisation and be lost forever.

The motivation behind preparing our Singing In... Carols book, one of our larger lockdown projects, was to make the carols more accessible in a choral setting, and we hope it will be of interest to those who want to sing them in the way they were originally intended.

If you've not done so yet, I'd highly recommend that you go and experience the atmosphere of the local carols in the pubs this December. You can find the full list of dates and venues on the Local Carols website.

Introducing Wilson - my happy musical companion

My ukulele is called Wilson. Wilson was my uncle’s middle name and he loved it. He and I had plans to go ukulele shopping together as, at the time, I only had a basic model. Although he was more of a guitar man (he had at least six guitars) he knew what he was looking for and to be honest, it would have been such a fun trip. He was outrageous and zany and sometimes a real pain, but he was one of my favourite people. Before we could go uke shopping, he died suddenly of a heart attack. It seemed only fitting that when I did get my new ukulele a few weeks later, it should be named Wilson.

Wilson is a Mainland ukulele made of mango wood which I bought at the Grand Northern Ukulele Festival in 2015. It is a beautiful instrument with a high gloss and the wood is a gorgeous orangey colour, another nod to my uncle whose favourite colour was orange. At the festival, as well as a whole host of amazing performances, workshops and masterclasses, there were stalls selling ukuleles and associated merchandise. The stall I bought mine from was a shop called Eagle Music which is based in Huddersfield. At the time they were the only supplier of Mainland ukuleles in the UK. My friends Chris and Sue who were with me also got Mainland ukes. They sound so amazing together and we have spent many happy hours since, strumming, singing and performing together.

The ukulele is such a lovely instrument to play and has enjoyed a rise in popularity for many years now. Apart from it making such a joyful, happy sound, there are several reasons for its popularity. Because there are only four strings to get your fingers around, it is much more accessible than an instrument like the guitar to learn the basics and quickly get a few chords.

Ukuleles are so small and are very easy to transport. I’ve even travelled to Spain taking only hand luggage which included my ukulele inside my cabin bag! Back in the days when I worked for a music service, I used to have to transport whole class sets of instruments in my tiny car at the beginning and end of terms. Recorders were the easiest, saxophones were pretty trying with only about 14 able to get rammed in, but I could manage over 60 ukuleles!

Getting a new one isn’t going to break the bank either. You can get a reasonable beginner’s instrument that holds it’s tuning well for about £40. Actually I think you can get a very cheap one for as low as £10 (but please don’t, it really won’t be a pleasant playing or listening experience!) And if you find you take to it well and want to upgrade, they start to sound much nicer at around the £100 figure.

In January 2020 we started a beginner ukulele group in Oughtibridge which took place after the Friday afternoon choir sessions. It was great fun, and eight weeks on the players were really making great progress on their new instruments. It felt very sad when we had to stop meeting because of the lockdown but I have kept in touch with quite a few of the players who have been having lessons via Zoom. There’s at least 70 years age difference between my youngest and my oldest ukulele pupil, and I have some pupils that I’ve only met on Zoom, but all that just adds to the wonderful variety and I love working with them all!

So if you’re looking for a new hobby do consider taking up the ukulele. I promise you won’t be disappointed. I’m often at my happiest when I’m sitting with Wilson, strumming and singing along.

And if you want any advice or want to talk to us about our ukulele lessons, please get in touch. Wilson and I would love to talk to you!