GBRT Community Choir

Looking for a community choir in Market Harborough? With nearly 100 members, GBRT Community Choir is a welcoming and friendly choir for adults aged 18 and over. Whether you've sung in a choir for years or haven't sung since school, you'll find a warm welcome, plenty of support, and a fantastic community of people who love making music together.

We sing a wide range of music, from popular films and musicals to pop, rock and contemporary choral favourites. We work hard in rehearsals, but laughter, friendship and enjoyment are just as important to us as the music. Alongside our rehearsals, we enjoy regular social events, trips and performances, and many members have formed lasting friendships. Our dedicated pastoral team helps new members settle in quickly, ensuring everyone feels part of the choir from day one.

We perform regularly across Leicestershire and beyond, and have enjoyed unforgettable concert tours to destinations including Barcelona, Maastricht, Lake Garda, Umbria and the Rhine Valley.

If you can hold a tune and are willing to learn, we'd love to welcome you. Our Musical Director provides rehearsal recordings for every voice part, making it easy to practise at home and build confidence between rehearsals.

Join the Choir

For practical reasons we sometimes have a waiting list for some sections - please register by clicking the link below and we will get in touch as soon as a place is available.

• A friendly choir family 
• No auditions or choir experience needed
• You don’t need to be able to read music
• Rehearsal tracks to help you learn the songs
• Pastoral team to help you settle in

REGISTER HERE

FAQs

When and where are rehearsals held?

7-9pm on the 2nd, 4th and sometimes 5th Sundays in term time at Meadowdale Primary School, Meadowdale Road, Market Harborough LE16 7XQ

Is the venue accessible?

Parking is available in the school car park, including three designated accessible spaces. There is step free access to the hall and an accessible toilet is available. There is a short break in the middle of the rehearsal. The choir uses sheet music but alternative formats are available on request - please speak to Tracey or Sue.

How much does it cost?

£45 per term which covers venue hire, Musical Director, Accompanist and music. 

When are membership subs due?

Subs are due on 2nd January for the spring term, 1st May for the summer term and 1st September for the autumn term. 

Who can join?

Anyone aged 18 or over. 

Do you have a waiting list?

For practical reasons we have capped membership numbers at 100, so we sometimes need to operate a waiting list for new members, If you would like to join, please do register and we will get in touch as soon as a place becomes available.  

Do you offer a taster session?

Yes, we offer the first session as a free trial.

Do I need any musical experience?

No, anyone who loves singing and can hold a tune is very welcome. You don’t need to read music as Tracey records each part for choir members to sing along to. 

Do I need to bring anything with me?

Please bring a pencil and a water bottle. 

Do I need to audition?

No we don’t hold auditions, just come along!

“As a relatively quiet and shy person, the choir was instrumental in helping me make new friends, learning a new skill, boosting my self confidence, and improving my memory when singing without music. Singing in harmony is just exhilarating and gives me a huge sense of achievement. I would recommend singing in a choir to everyone, especially those who think they can't sing. GBRT is so much more than choir.”

Musical Director: Tracey Holderness

Tracey is a singing teacher and vocal coach from Market Harborough. After graduating from Sheffield University with a BMus, she gained a Post-Graduate Diploma in Musical Theatre from Arts Educational in London.

Tracey has worked for eight years as a professional singer during which time she performed as a soloist with light operatic companies and performed in a wide variety of musical theatre productions, most notably in the Rocky Horror Show and Return to the Forbidden Planet, both in the UK and Europe. Tracey teaches singing both privately and as a specialist teacher visiting several schools in the area.

Tracey has accumulated vast experience with amateur musical groups and companies including delivering technique workshops to adult choirs and leading Musical Theatre courses. She is the original conductor of the GBRT Community Choir and has toured with them to Barcelona, Bruges, Maastricht, Lake Garda, Rhineland, Fruili-Venezia Giulia and Umbria.

Accompanist: Rod Iliffe

Coming from a musical (and, a long time ago, science) background, Rod has a wealth of experience from running and accompanying the musical side of chapel, children's, youth and college choirs, choral groups, youth theatre and many stage groups, in both classical and theatre music. 

He is a piano and keyboard teacher, a writer, arranger and orchestrator, and conductor. In collaboration with his partner Kendal Kirkland he has written and arranged many works for performance, including A Requiem, Song of St Francis, Heloise (a concert length musical work first performed in Southwark Cathedral), Veni Creator Spiritus, and Songs of the Passion which grew from the music written for the Christ in the Centre open air performances in Leicester in the early naughties. 

He is also Musical Director of Amicorum, an upper voices ensemble made up of experienced choral and semi-professional singers from the Northampton area.

“I can’t imagine my life without the choir. Singing and socialising with such a wonderful group of friends brings me real joy.”

“Tracey's skill, knowledge, beautiful voice, enthusiasm, sense of humour and energy is infectious. She brings out the best in us.” 

“Singing with GBRT is special. We all share a love of making music but it’s the friendships we share as one big choir family that makes it truly special.”