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Community sing-a-long in the park

After a week of drizzle, the sun came out on Saturday for Firth Park’s summer Big Sing! with 140 people of all ages coming together to sing songs by ABBA, Elvis and other timeless favourites. A band made up of accordion, double bass, guitar and ukulele supported the singing and there was even a spot of dancing and fancy dress too. Words like ‘magical’, ‘joyous’ and ‘brilliant’ were on the tips of people’s tongues to describe their afternoon.

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Singing during the pandemic

Firth Park singing group decided to keep meeting throughout much of the pandemic with a few breaks. We got awning installed on the outside of the pavilion we used to meet inside, which gave us a little shelter from light rain… and then kept going outside throughout the winter months, which meant cold hands for this community musician!

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Big Sing! report

On the afternoon of Saturday 8th February, members of the Firth Park singing group hosted their first ever BIG SING! event at the Clock Tower on Firth Park Road with the support from the National Lottery Community Fund.

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Can singing change the world?

Coop member Amy Bowles travels to South Korea and examines the possibility of positive individual and communal change through singing.

I began singing in public in 2018 when I started working as a musician in critical care on ICU (Intensive Care Unit) hospital wards. Initially I found that when I played classical guitar people were comforted by the soothing and calm nature of the music and could enjoy moments of respite from their own circumstances within a stressful environment.

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News Professional Development

The birth of a new over 50s singing group in Sheffield

Robin Grey, member of the Community Music Co-operative talks about his recent experience setting up a new singing project in Firth Park, north Sheffield.

Last year I was approached about the possibility of running a singing club for over 50s by the local ‘Friends of Firth Park‘ user group in collaboration with Drink Wise, Age Well, a national campaign that helps people make healthier choices about their drinking as they age.

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Developing practice of a musician in healthcare

Amy Bowles, member of the Community Music Co-operative talks about her current personal development work.

In July 2019 I was accepted to take part in a Learning and Participation Fellowship at Trinity Laban in London. Fellows have six months to study, observe, try new things and push their own development all under the watchful eye of a supporting mentor experienced in their area of work.

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Time to get singing!

Singing with dementia project funding secured for 2019 launch

Thanks to a grant from the National Lottery Community Fund, The Community Music Cooperative will be launching their Singing with Dementia project in Autumn 2019. The project will bring singing and music to people living with dementia in Sheffield and Stockport, Greater Manchester in regular participatory concerts. Singing with Dementia will last for a year and concerts will take place at selected venues in both areas.