The People’s Show Choir Halesowen That Attracts More Men to Sing

The People’s Show Choir Halesowen in the Black Country has seen surprising results when it comes to the types of singers it attracts. While most choirs near to you in England will almost certainly tend to attract predominantly women, this Halesowen music group is standing out from the crowd.

With a hearty proportion of male baritones, its thankful choir leader Chris Weber feels like he has struck gold. Here’s a closer look at why this friendly singing community is so special.

Word of mouth has helped to attract more singers from all walks of life, ages and sexes to the Halesowen branch of The People’s Show Choir(TPSC).

A strong baritone section in the choir

Based in the Midlands, on the outskirts of Birmingham and Wolverhampton, the amateur choir has continuing to grow in recent years and now has just under 100 members.

Within the TPSC family of national choirs, it’s garnered attention for having such a large proportion of baritones. There are 14 within the 90 plus singers – that’s about 15% of the choir in the baritone section.

There must be a growing popularity among men to sing in the Midlands, as nearby at TPSC’s Sutton Coldfield branch, the choir is also blessed with a strong group of male singers. That group has 16 baritones among its 125 members – around 12% of the choir.

“Halesowen’s choir has a wide demographic of ages,” explained Choir Leader Chris. “Within around 100 members, there’s a very strong baritone section, which is unusual in community choirs.

“Finding baritones is like gold dust. Without the baritones, a choir can sound weak, so I feel very lucky to lead the Halesowen Choir.

“The majority of choirs are predominantly with women, as getting men into singing can prove challenging. It’s because women are much more likely to go to a choir and sing for themselves.

“For a man, joining a choir and then being surrounded by women and being almost on their own as a baritone, well, it’s completely out of their comfort zone.

“So, when you have a good group of men and baritones, it naturally brings more men in and that spirals.

“It’s a good thing to see more men turning to singing as the many benefits include a positive effect on mental health.”

When it comes to TPSC Halesowen’s personality, Chris is glowing about the warmth that generates from this choir, adding: “Black Country people tend to have a brilliant sense of humour and that shines through with this choir. They also really care for each other.

“This Halesowen choir is very warm, nurturing and caring so it’s lovely to be involved with it.”

When the Halesowen TPSC meets

The People’s Show Choir, part of wider The People’s Orchestra(TPO) charity, has more than 20 groups nationwide including in Scotland and Wales.

Among those is the Halesowen branch, which like its sister choirs, meets every week during term time. Singers come together at The Hasbury Club, in Blackberry Lane, Halesowen on Mondays from 7.45pm to 9.15pm.

People who’ve joined Halesowen TPSC have come from all kinds of backgrounds. Singers have included Dr Nick Makwana, nicknamed the ‘Dancing Doctor’ by other singers while on the TPSC summer trip to Krakow.

He described his joy at singing for fun, saying: “you can hear your heart flying away as you sing.”

While Phillip Field sings not only with this Halesowen choir but also at two other The People’s Show Choir branches in Wolverhampton and West Bromwich.

“I don’t read music and it hasn’t stopped me,” explained Phillip. “Chris is amazing. Everything we do with Chris is great fun.”

Benefits of being part of a choir

It’s refreshing for us at TPSC to hear of choirs luring in men to their ranks. It’s also the case at the new Cardiff TPSC, which launched last year.

It has already seen a large influx of male singers coming along, more so than the number of sopranos to start with.

It could be down to the long history of male voice choirs in Wales or signs of a trend that more men are moving towards music and singing as a pastime and to relax.

Chris added: “I think it’s so important for men to be singing and I’m always pleased when I see that our choirs have attracted plenty of male voices.

“It’s important because mental health in men is a big issue that gets overlooked and we know how good singing is for mental health.”

Research has found that singing can provide health benefits ranging from stress relief to being a mood booster, an emotional release and provide cognitive stimulation for the brain. It can also help physically with breath control and strengthening muscles used when singing.

The social and learning aspects of being part of a choir can help people grow their confidence and self-esteem, feel less lonely or isolated and make them feel happier as part of a welcoming community.

TPSC sessions start with fun and light-hearted warm-ups before practising songs and then a break for a hot drink or soft drink and chatter before more singing. The emphasis is on community, fun and being open to all.

For anyone interested in doing a taster session or joining The People’s Show Choir at Halesowen, see more here. The Halesowen TPSC meets at The Hasbury Club, 91 Blackberry Lane, Halesowen, B63 4NZ, on Mondays in term time from 7.45pm to 9.15pm.

There are more than 22 choirs run by The People’s Show Choir and you can find your nearest choir here if you interested in singing for fun or as a sociable activity to get out the house.