Choir Photographs.
Colin Baines - Musical Director.
Darren Hogg - Accompanist / Assistant Chorus Master.
Rehearsal Details.
Choir Photographs.
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Marian Dawes (Left) is the Chairman. |
Colin Baines (Right) is the Musical Director.
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Colin Baines - Musical Director.
Colin, our Musical Director and Conductor, studied music at Birmingham and Liverpool Universities. He has conducted the Birmingham Choral Union for over twenty-five years, directing performances of choral works from Bach's Mass in B minor to Fanshawe's African Sanctus in various major venues across the Midlands. He is also deputy chorus master of the City of Birmingham Choir.
When not working with choirs, he is a freelance performer, accompanying other choirs and soloists, playing the organ, playing keyboard and double bass in a number of dance bands and teaching piano and keyboard. He is a member of the Valentini Piano Trio and has recently played the piano in Elgar's Piano Quintet and Schubert's Trout Quintet with the Midland Chamber Players.
Colin is also a composer, having written a number of children's musicals and music for many series of BBC programmes including Let's Move and Something to Think About. He also directs the music for the Festival Arts group in Birmingham and St. David's (Pembrokeshire).
He lives in Birmingham with his wife and four grown-up children.
Darren Hogg - Accompanist/Assistant Chorus Master.
Darren, was born and educated in Birmingham. He trained at Birmingham Conservatoire from 1989 to 1993 studying organ, harpsichord and piano accompaniment with David Saint and David Ponsford. Darren was appointed Organist and Director of Music at St Augustine’s Church, Edgbaston, Birmingham, in September 2004. He is Organist at Aston University and is one of two Organists at Lodge Hill Crematorium, Selly Oak.
Darren has also performed with many other societies in the Midlands and has featured as Organist on BBC 1’s Songs of Praise, BBC Radio 2’s Sunday Half Hour and BBC Radio 4’s Daily Service. He now runs his own private teaching practice (Organ, Music Theory and Piano). Darren is a member of the Birmingham Organists’ Association and has also served on the Association council. He is a full member of the Incorporated Society of Musicians (I.S.M.) and is married to Barbara, mezzo-soprano and primary school teacher. Their daughter - Abigail - was born in November 2004.
Choir Rehearsal Details.
The Birmingham Choral Union is always interested in hearing from potential singers in ALL voices and, like many choirs, we are particularly interested in hearing from tenors and basses! The Choir rehearses on Monday evenings at the Unitarian Church, Ryland Street, Five Ways which is easily reached by any bus along Broad Street. There is also ample parking. If you are interested in singing and would like to be considered for the choir, we would love to meet you at our Monday rehearsals.
Choir Brochure (opens a new window).
This requires Acrobat Reader -
(opens a new window).
New Member Form (N.B. Needs MS Word - opens a new window).
New members, please print this, complete it and hand to Marian Brevitt at your first rehearsal.
| Time: | 6.45 pm to 8.45 pm. |
| Venue: | Unitarian Church, Ryland Street, Birmingham. |
| Contact: | Marian Brevitt, Choral Secretary, Tel: 0121 360 7793. |
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Unitarian New Meeting Church, Birmingham. |
This map will help you find Ryland Street.