Saturday April 24, 2021 The Herald Magazine 59

Beth is on song for the choir

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

Bearsden Choir: Beth Taylor Beth Taylor, 18, is one of the newest, and youngest, members of Bearsden Choir. As this past, difficult year for singers everywhere has unfolded, she has had her entire experience of being a struggling with confidence in my member of the adult choir happen singing. It helped me prepare for the online. Just completing her first year auditions for Birmingham Conservatoire studying music at the University of and it has been such a joy learning new Glasgow, she is leaving to start studies repertoire like Mendelssohn’s Elijah and in vocal performance at Birmingham now the virtual Vivaldi as well. Conservatoire in September. “It is a lot of fun, but it’s quite a bittersweet feeling that I will not have How did you begin singing, and be sung with the choir before an audience. involved with Bearsden Choir? I’ve got all my fingers and toes crossed “My mum sings with the RSNO Chorus, that that may happen in the future.” so she started me with the National Youth Choir of Scotland’s Mini Music What has been the choral highlight Makers. Then when I was eight years of your singing life so far? old, I started with the RSNO Junior “A couple of years ago the RSNO Chorus. I also learned the piano and at Junior Chorus was invited to sing at the the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland’s BBC Proms in the Royal Albert Hall. We Junior Conservatoire my first study was were singing with the orchestra and the singing and my second study was adult chorus on the stage, but the Junior anticipated but less revered Be Here Teenage Fanclub. Norman Blake says: clarinet. I’m still having clarinet lessons Chorus was up on the top tier of the hall, Now] and have a beer. Liam proceeded “Bands need to tour – even big bands, this online and I also haven’t had a singing as far away as you could get from the to do a little show singing along with a is where they make their money now” lesson in person in a year now, which is stage on the other side of the hall. pretend mic and dancing about while a really bizarre feeling. No-one could see where we were and throwing around some air guitar release of the Alan McGee biopic “I knew Andrew Nunn [Bearsden’s we were singing Britten’s War Requiem, during the playback.” Creation Stories. The band released chorusmaster] from RCS Juniors and I which is such an atmospheric piece. Nirvana shared a similarly five albums on his label in the 90s. was keen to get involved with a choir. I Singing in the Royal Albert Hall at the dishevelled aesthetic abetted by noisy “They always got behind us,” says needed some sort of singing with other BBC Proms was such an experience.” pop values. “It was amazing to witness McGinley. “Alan and Dick Green people that I wasn’t getting anywhere that phenomenon,” says Blake of spent their own money and took a risk else. I joined the choir in September And what has been the best part of Nirvana. “We knew them as a smaller on bands like us and Primal Scream. 2020 and it was the first opportunity I’ve your time with Bearsden choir? band and then we did the European The money didn’t start rolling in until had of singing with an adult choir, which “For our Inspire Sessions we heard from leg of the Nevermind tour, people were a bit later when they signed Oasis.” has been an absolute joy. I joined on conductors, composers and singers. going crazy and as the tour progressed Zoom, and we haven’t had any The experiences of Catriona Morison it just got bigger and bigger. HERE’S been no shortage of in-person rehearsals because of the and Stephanie Maitland, who is now at “Nirvana were great guys, this was ridiculous experiences that restrictions, but you can feel the Vienna State Opera, showed how you all before it became a bit too much for Blake and McGinley look radiance of the choir through the can come from different backgrounds Kurt; they were still enjoying being in back on with fondness, such computer. People are so eager to sing and be successful. Hearing about their the band,” adds McGinley. “That tour Tas the time Little Richard together.” struggle gave me huge positivity.” was the first time we went to places was introduced to them at the Hyatt The Bearsden Choir’s “virtual choir” like Spain, Norway and Sweden. After Hotel in LA, taking Blake’s hand and What has being in the choir meant performance of Vivaldi’s Gloria will be the tour, I went back to my parent’s announcing:‘Teenage Fanclub from to you during the pandemic? free-to-view online at 4pm on four-up council flat in Maryhill.” Scotland, cool!’ “If I hadn’t been singing with Bearsden Sunday May 30. It was from here that McGinley “It was a real moment for a couple of Choir I think I would have been really www.bearsdenchoir.com commandeered the family phone and boys from Bellshill and Maryhill,” he conducted the band’s business. “It says before McGinley adds: “In terms didn’t occur to me that we couldn’t of ridiculousness we did this acoustic deal with that stuff and it was great. tour in 1993 and it was like a promo Maybe it was something to do with thing with Norman, Gerry and myself that previous generation in Maryhill in the US. We had to come on after but my attitude was, ‘Yeah, come Tony Bennett and his trio in San ahead, we can do this!’ My mum Francisco. He had performed I Left would say there was a call for you from My Heart in San Francisco and we New York or LA and it would be Gary had to walk past this legend with a Gersh [former Geffen Records viola and a couple of acoustics executive and Nirvana manager]. thinking: “Aye, try following that!” Some of the Bearsden choir, which celebrated its golden jubilee in 2018 The conversation turns to the recent Endless Arcade is released on April 30