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Remarkable Voices. The Power of Music

In this episode Matt and Chris focus on volunteering, speaking with Alison Brinkworth about her role, and Chris turns the tables on Matt to find out why he volunteers his time for the podcast, and Pina Colada girl shares her emotive story about how she got involved with The People’s Orchestra and The People’s Show Choirs

Matt and Chris speak with super-conductor Saphran Ali about the joy of leading The Peoples Orchestra into concert, and Jamie Parker about the complexities of his role, which reach further than you might think.

Matt is joined by new co-host Chris Weber in this episode, and they discuss the success of the Walking Choirs project and how that will continue before chatting Rusty Players Orchestra with Julian Weber, and discuss the new choir leadership in Wolverhampton with Lorna Parkhouse and Philip Field.

Matt is joined by new co-host Chris Weber in this episode, and they discuss the success of the Walking Choirs project and how that will continue before chatting Rusty Players Orchestra with Julian Weber, and discuss the new choir leadership in Wolverhampton with Lorna Parkhouse and Philip Field.

In this month’s Spectacular Anniversary Episode, our host Matt Ward is joined by Liz Read, our choir leader, flautist and sax player extraordinaire, Paige Leung, the go-to girl in the TPO office, and of course, our unforgettable CEO Sarah Marshall… because there’s no forgetting Sarah Marshall! We also hear highlights from our showstopping Mother’s Day concert at Symphony Hall and an inspiring address from our Head of Community Engagement, Chris Weber!

This month Matt chats with first violinist Mandy Toor, board member Julian Powell, and original member Annie Routley.This month Matt chats with first violinist Mandy Toor, board member Julian Powell, and original member Annie Routley.

In the third episode Matt revisits the Cheltenham Disney come-and-sing day, talks with Chris Weber about about walking choirs, finds out about the life changing work that Mariann Harris does in helping people get back into work, and find out about the ringers choir from Julie Lawrence.

We are back with the second episode of the TPO/TPSC podcast. In this episode Matt gets Nick Makwana to look back at last summers Poland tour, asks Lorna Parkhouse about the Shrewsbury Choir, and Bonnie Toner tells him about how the Cheltenham Choir has bounced back stronger than ever.

Welcome to the first episode of the TPO/TPSC podcast. In this episode we take a look at some of the Christmas 2024 events, talk with Sarah Marshall, Ula Weber and Sandra Caddick, and look ahead to whats coming up in 2025.

In a special edition of Just The Tonic, Katie celebrates World Singing Day 2022 which takes place on Saturday 15 October. We hear how singing was a superpower for opera singer extraordinaire Nicky Spence as it helped him get through hard times when he was young.

In this episode, Katie chats to Kit de Waal about her fabulous new memoir, Without Warning and Only Sometimes. It’s an honest and funny account of her childhood, growing up in Birmingham with her four brothers and sisters, her Irish mother who brought her children up as Jehovah’s Witnesses, and her father from St Kitts in the Caribbean. Kit didn’t start writing until she was in her 50s and has some excellent tips for getting started.

Katie meets singer extraordinaire Nicky Spence whose had an eventful year so far, full of personal ups and downs. His career is going from strength to strength – he’s sung with all the major opera companies – but, he tells Katie, he’d give it all up to appear on … tune in to find out!

We’re all about the word this week on Just The Tonic. Katie meets the Bard of Barnsley football club and presenter of BBC Radio Three’s The Verb, poet Ian McMillan. He’s on a mission to get everyone in the world writing – then he’ll have a day off!

Soprano extraordinaire and National Treasure Lesley Garrett has had an inspirational career in music. Support from the charity Help Musicians got her back on her feet after she suffered a serious illness in her twenties. She chats to Katie Derham about her work as a Help Musicians’ Ambassador and pulls no punches in her view of the lack of government support for the arts.

Katie is joined by star of stage and screen Sir Richard Stilgoe to chat about how live music can make all the difference to people in hospital and care homes. Richard’s Orpheus Centre uses the performing arts to empower young adults with disabilities. He tells Katie how rapping helped one young man get an important message across to his dad.

Katie’s back with a new series of Just The Tonic, the podcast that shines a light on the positive power of the arts. In series one, we looked at how music can help mental and physical well-being and in this series, we’ll explore the benefits of getting involved in other arts forms too.

In the final episode of the current series, Katie Derham finds out how music can help people in the prison system get their lives back on track.

It’s a Christmas edition of Just The Tonic with Katie Derham! Actor Emily Watson chats to Katie about her support for The Citizens of the World Choir. Emily, Oscar-nominated for her role as virtuoso cellist Jacqueline de Pré, is their patron. They provide a lifeline for refugees and migrants arriving alone in the UK, helping them integrate through the power of music.

Katie Derham explores how music education for children can be Just The Tonic. She finds out from Nicola Benedetti how music-making can help young people learn all sorts of life skills. Nicola has long been a champion of making music lessons widely available and, through her Benedetti Foundation, provided a lifeline for young musicians during the pandemic.

The People’s Orchestra open their doors to anyone in the West Midlands who wants play in their orchestras or sing in their show choirs. Being inclusive is part of their DNA. There are around 11 million people with a disability in the UK – that’s over a fifth of the population – but they are hugely under-represented in the music industry and in music education. So, are we ignoring many talented musicians who don’t fit the standard mould?

In this episode, Katie Derham finds out how being involved in making music can give people the confidence they need to have a better and brighter future. We’ve heard from players in The People’s Orchestra and from choir members in one of their many show choirs in previous episodes, but the team behind the inspirational community orchestra in the West Midlands don’t only create opportunities for people who want to play an instrument or sing. They create employment opportunities for non-musicians too. Katie speaks to behind-the-scenes staff and people they’ve helped back into work.

In Just The Tonic so far, we’ve explored how being involved in an orchestra or a choir does wonders for your mental and physical health. Results from research studies conducted by universities all over the world highlight the positive effects of being involved in music. It’s clear that music-making benefits everyone.

We’re all about the power of song! Countless studies show that singing in choirs can help beat the blues, boost your social life, reduce your stress levels and help you exercise – and, according to the choir members we hear from in this episode, it’s true!

Episode One is all about the fantastic People’s Orchestra and the work they do in the West Midlands. They’ve worked with young jazz phenomenon Xhosa Cole and legendary composer John Altman, who worked on the music for the new James Bond film, No Time To Die, and has composed especially for them.

Trailer: Music’s pretty powerful stuff. You don’t need me to tell you how much it can help us escape, or relax, comfort or energise. It’s been a complete lifeline for many of us over the past 18 months, that’s for sure. But music – and all the arts – does so much more than that. And in this new podcast series I want to shine a light on the extraordinary work that musicians do in all parts of our community to make people’s lives better. I’m Katie Derham, and I believe it’s Just The Tonic we need …