Valley Voice Choir
A brief history of Valley Voice
Formed in 2010, Valley Voice has grown and evolved while staying true to its heart: sharing music with our community. Debbie Smith has led us as Musical Director from the very start, guiding us with warmth and vision. We now rehearse at Cottingham School though our journey began in the Methodist Church and in Cottingham Village Hall. While some original members remain, our sound has welcomed many new voices over the years.We’ve given concerts in Cottingham Church and Cottingham Village Hall, as well as Great Easton Village Hall and East Carlton Cricket Club. We’ve joined forces with other choirs for a four choirs concert in Wilbarston Village Hall and a three choirs concert in Rothwell Church. Our regular appearances at local events include the Great Easton Christmas Fayre, Cottingham’s summer fete, and Harvest and Christmas celebrations in Cottingham Church.
Carol singing has been a cornerstone of our community outreach, raising funds for local charities at venues ranging from Welland Valley pubs and East Carlton Cricket Club to Rural Relaxing in Medbourne, residential homes, and Rockingham Castle. Some members even participated in BBC Countryfile when it broadcast from Rockingham.
We’ve tested our voices in competitions such as the Kettering Eisteddfod and the North Northamptonshire Music Festival. We’ve sung at weddings, funerals, golden weddings, and christenings. We’ve attended weekend singing workshops — some local, some further afield — and enjoyed a bus tour funded by a generous resident that took us to several venues.
Our mission and values
According to our constitution, the objectives of Valley Voice are:To foster the enjoyment of making music of good quality with fellow members of the community and encourage social bonds between its members
To encourage community cohesions through public performances for and by the community
To be representative of our local community, taking special care that no individual shall be excluded from membership of Valley Voice or de-barred from any official capacity on the committee on the grounds of race, colour, religion, sexual orientation, disability or political affiliation
Valley Voice assists and supports charities and causes as agreed by its Committee
Less formally, we recently asked our members what they liked about Valley Voice - here are the top five themes that describe our mission and values in our members’ own words:
Strong sense of friendship, camaraderie, and belonging
Members repeatedly describe the choir as a supportive community — “a large circle of friends,” strong camaraderie, and feeling welcomed. Social connection is one of the most consistent themes.
Fun, laughter, and enjoyment
Rehearsals are described as fun, full of laughs, sometimes feeling like a “cabaret / comedy club.” Even when the work is hard, people emphasise enjoyment and humour.
High-quality musical experience and leadership
Several members highlight singing to a good standard and value the professional expertise of the musical leaders. There’s pride in the musical challenge and results.
Emotional wellbeing and mood-boosting effects
Singing is described as joyful, a fantastic mood lifter, and energising. Members note feeling better after rehearsals, even when they didn’t feel like going beforehand.
Shared purpose and sense of achievement
Working together toward a common goal, and the “magic when it works,” comes up as a meaningful benefit — contributing to something bigger and seeing progress over time.
Our musical style and repertoire
We are a community choir mainly performing secular pieces, including rock, pop, folk, and show tunes. We focus on carols and Christmas themed pieces in the Autumn term.Our selection of music is mostly based on requests from our members.
Occasionally we are asked to sing at weddings or funerals and have learned a few pieces suitable for such occasions.
For competitions, we learn music to fit with the requirements. Such events sometimes ask for something in unison, something unaccompanied or a piece in a certain style.
We are currently rehearsing ‘Rainy Days and Mondays’ (made popular by The Carpenters), ‘One Day Like This’ (Elbow) and ‘Autumn Leaves - When October Goes’ (Barry Manilow).
Leadership
Our musical director is Debbie Smith, who is a musician, vocal coach, and choral director with a lifelong passion for inclusive music-making. Debbie began her musical journey singing and playing guitar in her local church band before studying with renowned British soprano Rae Woodland. She trained in Music and Theatre Studies before completing a classical performance diploma (LTCL) at Trinity College of Music, London. Since then she has built a successful teaching career across schools and private practice, led award-winning choirs, toured and performed internationally, and serves as musical director of several ensembles, including Valley Voice choir. Her work champions singing for all.Debbie is supported by our accompanist, Barbara Hockey, who is professional musician.
A committee of eight members oversees the running of the choir. The chair of the committee is Pete Smith.
Going to the choir is a little slice of joy each week - its good for mind, body and soul. Friendly, fun and challenging.
Janet, soprano
No matter how rubbish my day, or how low I might feel, choir singing can’t help but raise my spirits. A little Tuesday therapy.
Natalie, soprano
There is a great sense of camaraderie - working together towards a common goal …
Oh the magic when it works!
Oh the laughs when it doesn’t!
Alice, alto
Valley Voice provides a very welcome opportunity to meet friendly faces, learn new pieces together, and produce music which would be impossible as a soloist. It is wonderful that we have members spanning the whole vocal range and that we welcome all musical abilities. I am constantly impressed by everyone’s continued development as performers. Our musical leadership from Debbie is truly inspirational and Babs provides an utterly dependable safety-net at the piano.
Paul, bass
There’s something magic about the sopranos. They are not dominated by one or two single strong voices, they all make a sweet tuneful sound. Never stop. It’s magical!
Phil, bass