Worthing's Encore Vocal Choir offers open-air concert

Encore Vocal Choir will be offering an open-air concert in memory of a Worthing member who passed away during the pandemic.
Encore Vocal Choir - Kerri Chipper and Elizabeth BallEncore Vocal Choir - Kerri Chipper and Elizabeth Ball
Encore Vocal Choir - Kerri Chipper and Elizabeth Ball

Their concert in the Denton Gardens, Worthing on September 4 from 6pm-8pm will be in support of the charity MIND, with tickets available on [email protected].

Encore Vocal Choir is run by Elizabeth Ball and Kerri Chipper, and they currently run choirs in Storrington, Worthing and Felpham. They lost their Horsham choir during the pandemic but will soon be starting up a Rustington choir (mid-September).

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As Liz says, they somehow managed to keep going through the lockdowns, and this Worthing concert is their celebration of the fact, bringing all three of their choirs together.

“It is going to be an open-air concert, bring a picnic and have fun. We usually do shows inside, but we just felt that people would be happier not being too close to people and being outdoors in the open air.

“We will be singing various songs with lots of excitement. Some will be pop songs. Some will be rock songs. Some will be musicals. It is just all the things that we have been learning through the lockdowns. Everyone has been so loyal and stuck with us, pretty much the majority of people, and this will be us together.”

The pandemic for all of them has underlined just how massively important singing is.

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“Kerri and I were so thankful to everyone that came along week after week after week, every single week to the Zoom meetings. And we just said to them ‘Thank you. You have been so amazing and so loyal and so incredible to keep coming!’ and they would just say ‘Don’t be crazy! We don’t know what we would have done if it hadn’t been for these sessions!’

“It has made a massive difference to them and since people have been able to get back together singing again, there have been a lot of tears.

“Yes, we missed singing together during lockdown, but I don’t think people realised just how much they missed it and how important it actually was until they were able to get back together again. I have had a few tears myself as well. It has been a massive thing for people, and obviously it is not just the singing. It is the friendships and the community.

“During the lockdowns we would be popping round dropping off messages to people, and it really has become one big community which is why we were so sad to lose one of our members and why we are raising money for MIND now.”