It’s all change at the top at Carlisle Community Choir as it recovers from the Covid lockdown and celebrates its 10th anniversary season.

The award-winning choir is now finally free from Covid restrictions and has begun celebrating its 10th birthday year, 2022-2023.

The highlight of the celebrations was a recent concert featuring the choir and Graffiti Classics.

Graffiti Classics bursts the boundaries of music with its hilarious all-singing, all-dancing musical comedy cabaret show.

The choir welcomed a new musical director when it opened its autumn season in September. Laura McFall graduated from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland specialising in vocal performance.

News and Star: During her time as a student, she was selected for the Charles Wood Singing Competition and was a semi-finalist in the Mozart Singing Competition in London.

Laura has also worked with some of the best singing teachers and coaches in the UK and Europe.

“I am so excited to take up my post as music director of Carlisle Community Choir. It will be a great opportunity for me to lead the choir in the years ahead,” she said.

Laura will be supported by pianist Dida Condria, who joined the choir in January.

Dida, 19, was a finalist in the keyboard section of this year’s BBC Young Musician of the Year contest and is a multiple prize winner internationally.

“We are so lucky to have such amazing professional artists in Laura and Dida to support our choir and this is especially important for our 10th anniversary,” said Linda Howard, the choir’s chair.

“It is a very important year for us to celebrate the choir’s formation 10 years ago that has brought an extra dimension to the music scene of Carlisle.”

The choir now holds its rehearsals at Botcherby Community Centre on Sundays from 3.30pm until 5.30pm. No auditions are necessary to join the choir and there is no requirement to read music.

 

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