The popularity of choir singing is well known and a project started by Bath-based musician Grenville Jones, based on afternoon singing, is taking off across the West of England.

Grenville’s reputation as choir leader extends across the UK and it was back in 2008 that his City of Bath Male Choir reached a World-wide audience through the BBC’s popular Saturday night series, ‘Last Choir Standing’.

He says: “Together with friends who were also choir leaders, we recognized the issues that came, especially with older singers in the winter, with problems of attending rehearsals on cold dark evenings. An obvious solution to me seemed to be Singing in the Afternoon and I started the Bath Good Afternoon Choir in my home City nine years ago.

“The project then took off and there are now nineteen Good Afternoon Choirs across the West of England with plans to start more this year (2022).”

As the number of choirs have grown, they have raised many thousands of pounds for local charities and during the recent Christmas period over twenty locally-based groups were supported by the choirs, raising around £3,000.

The Good Afternoon Choirs take place across the South West on:

• Mondays - Bristol at Oatley House Hall St

Monica Trust (at the new time) 2pm-4pm.

Frome at Holy Trinity Church from 2pm-4pm.

• Tuesdays: Cheddar Valley at Shipham Hall from 1pm-3pm.

• Wednedays –

Keynsham at St John’s / Keynsham Parish Church from 2pm-4pm. North Somerset at Nailsea

Methodist Church from 1pm-3pm.

• Thursdays - Bath at Bath Central URC (Argyle Hall) from 2pm-4pm.

Grenville himself takes four of the choirs in and around Bath and the other Good Afternoon Choirs are all led by local talented musicians.

Each choir has an individual page with full information on the website: www.goodafternoonchoir.org

There are no auditions required to join your local Good Afternoon Choir and the leaders are always keen to point out that the emphasis is on fun, friendship and singing together.

Across the nineteen choirs there are over 900 singers, fundraising concerts and singing tours are being planned for this year (2022).

The choirs start back week commencing January 10th with an open invitation to any potential new members to go along and ‘discover’ your local Good Afternoon Choir.

“The members of the choirs choose the local organisation they wish to support with their concerts and fundraising and this year we will raise many thousands of pounds for deserving local causes,” added Grenville.