On Saturday 6th December nearly 50 people attended our festive celebration in Kings Cross London. The Eye Matter Singers who performed; Amrit, Andy, Kevin, Jessica, Olexandra, Rachel, Ron, Sam, Suzie, Accompanied by pianist,Fiona Dunn entertained their audience with an ecliptic range of songs. This originally, hybrid choir had been together for over 12 weeks, with other singers; Daniel, Faz, Gloria,, Malcolm and Sara.
Registered blind vocalist Rachel Bowden Waterstones led the UK’s only peer led singing group. Their performance had been the culmination of weeks of rehearsals and careful planning to ensure everyone was able to learn the many different tunes. One singer said that singing at home in front of a screen where everyone’s voice had a slight delay was completely different to singing together as a group. Songs included : ‘Sleigh Ride’, ‘Deck the Halls’,’It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas’ ‘Electric Dreams’ and ‘Mistletoe and Wine’. Participants could also choose to perform a solo piece like Andy who sang ’Fly Me To The Moon’,Amrit (AKA Madonna) ‘True Blue’and Suzie in her Cindy Lauper stance performed “True Colours’.
Each session was designed to suit different vocal ranges, abilities and repetition of lyrics for those unable to read the words in-front of them. On the day, rather than waving her arms like a musical conductor, verbal prompts were given both by Rachel and visually impaired pianist Fiona.
Rachel, a trained concert performer, lost her sight nearly 10 years ago and it has only been through Eye Matter that she has been able to enjoy music once again. ‘Through Eye Matter, I’ve visited more shows without sight, then with sight! Its been wonderful to have the opportunity to be both, part of and managing, this fantastic choir.”
She added, “it was wonderful to be able to sing with other people and feel part of a community group providing entertainment for others.”
Suzie Simons (Eye Matter’s Founder) agreed, “The day had the most incredible atmosphere. After rehearsing on Zoom for many weeks it was the first time the choir had performed in person together and I am so proud of them all. Eye Matter has become such a great example of a a brilliant community coming together. There was laughter and tears amongst all the fun. The audiences reactions of appreciation and enjoyment really enhanced the experience for everyone involved.”
Eye Matter would like to thank all the volunteers who helped make this day possible. A special thanks to Olgar for providing all the video evidence of this great day. If you would like to take part in our next Eye Matters Singers event which is planned for Saturday 18th July at Kings Cross and will once again involve a number of Zoom rehearsals please contact Suzie: