Sheffield choir sing at 30,000 feet in first international tour
A Sheffield choir spread word of the Steel City on their first international tour - singing in a Cathedral, a zoo, and even at 30,000 feet!
The Steel City Choristers, based at St Mark’s Church in Broomhill, sent a group of 45 children and adultson the tour to Berlin and Leipzig in Germany.
Members of the cathedral-style choir sang a diverse range of works for hundreds of people in six performances, including at historic Berlin Cathedral and other city churches.
They entertained crowds along the way, staging pop-up performances of The Bear Necessities outside the bear cage at Berlin Zoo and on trains.
They also sang Fly Me To The Moon by Frank Sinatra for fellow passengers on their flights back from Berlin to Manchester via Amsterdam.
Kate Caroe, Chair of Trustees at the charity, said: “On one of our flights, the pilot announced over the tannoy that we were going to sing - it was a very special moment.
“We performed at some incredible venues with much bigger audiences than expected. There were 350 people at one of our Berlin Cathedral performances.
“It was great to make connections and feel truly grounded in the local community.”
“We spent time eating, socialising and even sightseeing with people from one of the communities we performed for.”
The Choristers’ trip to Berlin was organised through contacts made in language exchanges undertaken by the choir’s young members. The same members were also able to introduce their Berlin concerts in German.
Kate added: “The locals loved that and applauded every introduction.
“People were interested in our name and wanted to know more about the Steel City. They saw parallels with the German town of Solingen, which has a rich history of cutlery-making.
“It was great to have someone from the British Embassy come to a performance to support us in promoting English choral music in Berlin.
“The trip was all about music breaking down barriers. A really important lesson for our children to learn is that music can bring people together, even across language barriers and different cultures.”
One couple who saw the Choristers perform said they were moved almost to tears and praised their singing for making ‘so many people a little happier in this world.’
The Steel City Choristers formed following the unexpected disbanding of Sheffield Cathedral Choir in 2020, with the aim of keeping choral music alive in the city.
The charity thanked Ecclesfield Welfare and Educational Charities, The Hollowford Trust and The Church Burgesses Educational Foundation for their contributions towards the tour.
Money was also raised through various fundraising challenges.
Despite this generous support, the choir had to subsidise the trip from its core funds.
A fundraising campaign called ‘Here to Stay’ to mark the choir’s fifth anniversary is planned for later this year.
The choir will be performing their music from the tour at a fundraising concert on September 20 at St Mary’s Church, Ecclesfield, at 7pm.
No need to book tickets, donations will be gratefully received on the door.
They Choristers welcome children aged 6+ who love to sing. Details of how to audition are on the ‘Join Us’ page at steelcitychoristers.org.uk