When the 100 strong members of Plymouth Rock Choir were forced to abandon their weekly rehearsals at the Woolwell Centre in March last year they decided that not even a pandemic was going to stop them singing or raising funds for their favourite charities.
Under the guidance and tutelage of their inspirational leader and professional musician Richard Toomer, they continued to learn and rehearse new songs virtually adding to their rich repertoire normally performed for the residents of Plymouth.
In addition to supporting local charities with their performances Plymouth Rock Choir raise funds for a number of charities by having coffee mornings, having cake sales and various other activities throughout the year. Obviously, there was no possibility of continuing these efforts during lockdown and this was a cause of some concern among the membership.
Choir leader, Richard Toomer came up with the idea of a virtual Christmas Big Sing during which the Plymouth members would join with the members of his other choirs in Devon and also Saltash to dress up, sing and most importantly donate! To say it was a success would be an understatement with everybody joining in and an incredible £1795 was raised to be split between Guide Dogs South West and Children’s Hospice South West.
Rock Choir nationally have also been busy supporting charities. In December they released a single of ‘Keeping the Dream Alive ‘,a virtual recording of over 4,500 Rock Choir members including Plymouth Rockies. The single went straight into number 1 in the ITunes chart and all the proceeds went to the Mental Health Foundation.
In addition, and with the aim of lifting the spirits of the nation, they have reinstated their ‘Keep Britain Singing’ initiative which is a free daily sing via YouTube at 12 midday Mondays – Fridays. This is available not just to Rock Choir members but to the general public with a special weekly session for children and teenagers.
Richard and his choir members are doing everything they possibly can to carry on in these difficult times but, without exception, they cannot wait for the day when they can return in person to rehearse and perform and continue to raise money for local charities. In the meantime they are very much open for business.
The new term has just started with the membership learning the uplifting ‘Take a Chance on Me’ by Abba and the choir are still welcoming new members via the website www.rockchoir.com or richard.toomer@rockchoir.com
