We are proud to announce a grant to support The One World Choir Sheffield One World Choir benefits refugees and asylum seekers who have arrived in Sheffield fleeing persecution from a vast range of countries. This includes men and women from many African and Middle Eastern countries and we have recently had a significant influx of Ukranian refugees. There are currently 75 people on the choir Whatsapp group via which they keep in touch with their members. About 25 refugees and asylum seekers attend rehearsals on a regular basis. Secondary beneficiaries include the 15 long term Brtish residents who support the choir as well as the general public who attend the many formal and informal concerts they deliver.
The Choir applied for a grant to pay for a full day workshop led by one of the workshop leaders from the Black Lives Matter Commissioning Project supported by the Natural Voice Movement. They informed us that some of our members and their musical director were very inspired after attending their Annual Gathering last year and they wish to be part of rolling out that inspiration. “We hope that a workshop led by one of the leaders will help people feel part of a wider movement. Ideally we will focus on improving our performance skills which will build the confidence of choir members and enhance the quality of the increasing numbers of performances that we are invited to give. The main benefits of the grant will be: 1) Enhanced emotional and social well being of the whole choir, particularly the asylum seeking and refugee members.The Black Lives Matter Commissioning Project is already achieving great outcomes around bonding people together in song. The choir is already a valuable source of emotional, social and practical support for many members who are struggling either with the anxiety of an uncertain future or the battle to establish themselves in a challenging society after gaining refugee status. A workshop of this kind is an event to look forward to, to enjoy with others, to become more bonded as a community of singers. As such it will bring to everyone the individual benefits of enhanced emotional, physical and social well-being.Also, after the recent influx of many Ukrainian refugees, it is particularly important to maintain the social cohesion of the choir and ensure that that our diversity is something we celebrate and feel part of together. Workshops of this kind are an excellent mechanism for cementing those bonds and ensuring the choir continues to be a place where all members feel at home. 2) Enhanced performance skills of the choir as a whole.The BLM Commissioning Project musical directors are particularly effective at bringing people together in song and enhancing skills in communicating via voice modulation, clapping, swaying, stamping – all aspects of body language that convey feeling to the audience. This will enhance the confidence of our members and ensure the choir performances communicate togetherness, resilience and joy – all qualities that impress and inspire our audiences. 3) Enhanced fund raising potential for the choir. As the quality of our choir performances improves, we anticipate we will continue to be asked to perform at events and will be more confident in requesting payment for such performances. Whilst we have been successful to date in securing short term grants to maintain the choir, we are aware that these may not be sufficient for the long term. Enhancing our ability to raise our own funds via performances is a key component in our sustainability strategy for the long term”