By Casey Neill
The Yarra Valley Singers have been sharing tunes and forging friendships for 30 years.
They’ll perform at Healesville Memo Hall on Sunday 12 August to mark the milestone.
Shirley Wendt was at the group’s first rehearsal in 1988 after friends encouraged her to get involved.
She lived overseas for a time but has been back in the group for the past decade.
Husband and wife Don and Jeanette Box also joined to sing with friends, during the choir’s first year.
“I was in the church choir and that was the only singing I’d done before I came to this,” Don said.
He’s known as the librarian, as he looks after the extensive sheet music collection.
“There’s always something new. There’s always something different to learn,” he said.
Musical director Belinda Gillam Derry first joined the singers in 1996.
She stepped aside in 2007 due to illness, but returned in 2012.
“I get a real boost out of singing,” she said.
“To be able to share that with lots of other people is an absolute joy.
“It’s really good for boosting people’s moods.”
She said her singers had ailments ranging from depression and anxiety to a double lung transplant and heart disease.
Ms Gillam Derry said they couldn’t necessarily participate in physical activity but found a valuable social outlet in singing.
She said the concert program would include the group’s most significant and favourite works from the past three decades.
“The program includes early music, classical, folk, pop, show tunes and new works which were written specifically for Yarra Valley Singers,” she said.
The evening choir meets in Lilydale on Wednesday nights has about 80 members.
A daytime choir formed in March this year and already has about 30 singers at rehearsals at Montrose Town Centre each Tuesday.
Ms Gillam Derry hopes this will grow to 50.
“The daytime choir was established specifically to cater for people who would like to keep or start singing in a choir, but may not want to be driving to rehearsals at night any more,” she said.
“The repertoire is mainly popular, well-known songs in three parts and the music is learnt at a more relaxed pace than the evening choir.”
Yarra Ranges Council this year awarded Grants for Community funding to the Yarra Valley Singers to record a CD and present the performance program covering the best of the past 29 years.
The group recently secured four-year funding through the council’s Partnership Program, which will support the group to continue and grow their work within the community until at least 2022.
The performance will start at 1pm and afternoon tea in the foyer will follow.
Tickets are $22 for adults, $18 concession and free for under-16s, though they still need to book a seat.
Book on 1300 368 333 or at boxoffice@yarraranges.vic.gov.au.
