The Bournville Clarinet Choir was founded in 2015 in the Bournville area of Birmingham by Nigel Wood. This was made possible by a vision award for the development of community projects by the Bournville Village Trust. The choir has become a well-established ensemble, consisting of around 20 clarinettists, and the line up of instruments includes the entire clarinet family, ranging from the tiny E flat clarinet down to the impressive contrabass.

 

The choir gives several concerts in the local area throughout the year, often collaborating with other local groups and soloists. We also play at events such as the Bournville Christmas festival and the national heritage open days in Bournville.

 

Much of the choir's music is composed or arranged by Music Director Nigel Wood, but some of the members have been inspired to create additional arrangements. We play an eclectic mix of styles, including popular classics as well as more traditional pieces.

 

In 2017 the Bournville Clarinet Choir was featured in the More4 TV series 'All Gardens Great and Small' and played at a National Garden Scheme open day. In early 2020 the choir released its debut EP recording 'A Taste of Bournville', which features new compositions as well as re-imagined arrangements of classical favourites.

 

Throughout the Covid 19 pandemic the choir has kept in regular contact by continuing to hold rehearsals and meetings via zoom and has produced several virtual music videos. In June 2020 our virtual video of 'Dance of the savages' was named lockdown video of the week by the Clarinet and Saxophone Society of Great Britain. This has maintained a strong sense of cohesive spirit amongst the choir and we are now very much enjoying playing together in person again.

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