On Thursday last week, I spent the afternoon at the Great Western Hospital in Swindon in order to promote and launch my latest Workplace Choir. As the majority of staff work different shift patterns we held two introductory sessions throughout the course of the afternoon in order to try and give as many people as possible the opportunity to come along and find out more. With the help of my good friend and nurse Harriet McCulllough, we were able to advertise this session throughout the hospital but until the day still weren’t quite sure how many would turn up.
Well to my delight at the first session approximately 25 people turned up. Not only that we had several people who had been ‘sent by their department to find out more’. Not knowing who or indeed what to expect, I had prepared a short warm up exercise in 3 parts to give people a chance to sing. Designed to be fairly simple, within a few minutes we had 3 part harmony going on and this in itself attracted a few more potential choir members through the door. After half an hour, having done some singing and listened to me spouting on about the purpose of the choir and some of my ideas for how it could work, we had a long list of names from people who wanted to join! The choir will be un-auditioned and the plan is to try and include as people from as many different parts of the organisation as possible. Obviously if numbers get out of hand we may have to consider a plan B!
At the later session in the afternoon we had a further dozen or so people turn up which confirmed in my mind this was clearly a very well received idea and something which hopefully will prove extremely popular.
Purpose of the Choir
Setting up a choir is in itself easy enough, but I am very keen for the GWH Choir to have a clear purpose. Obviously it goes without saying that primarily it is about bringing people together to sing and have fun. However, there is a more serious side to this choir. My plan is for the choir to perform at the GWH and throughout the local community with the purpose of raising money for the Trust or charities which the Trust supports. Not only that, the presence of a choir at the Great Western should be great publicity for the Hospital.
The first official meeting / rehearsal of the choir is this coming Thursday (23 January 2014) at 17.00 in the Chapel on the First Floor. The choir is open to all staff and volunteers at the GWH so please do come along.