www.gmpmvc.org.uk
History of the Greater Manchester Police Male Voice Choir
Founded in June 1974 with little more than a dozen members, the Greater Manchester Police Male Voice Choir has since seen many changes in its ranks, but still musters up to thirty singers for concerts locally and throughout the UK, as well as overseas. Some founder members are still going strong, and a few others have clocked up over thirty years of service.
They have made several recordings themselves, and featured on those of other artistes and organisations. The first EP (on vinyl – remember those?) was in 1979, with another following three years later. Tapes followed in 1992 and 1994, whilst their latest rendition was also available on CD, now happily sold out, and negotiations are under way with a recording studio for another selection to be released as soon as possible. The choir were very pleased to appear on an LP with Bryan and Michael of “Matchstalk Cats & Dogs” fame, as well as one for the NSPCC entitled “Coppers for Kids”, and especially delighted to accept an invitation from Her Majesty the Queen to sing on a CD in aid of the Deep Sea Fisherman’s Mission, of which she is the Patron. They now claim to sing “By Royal Appointment”!
Continued success in concert has led to appearances on BBC and Granada Television programmes as well as local radio, whilst our choristers’ handsome faces have also been seen on TV screens in Sweden and Finland.
The Choir have been honoured to take part in many prestigious occasions, such as the triennial concerts for Cancer Research at London’s Royal Albert Hall in 2006 and 2009, having sung there twice before in Festivals of Police Male Voice Choirs to benefit various other charities. All of these concerts had live recordings, sales of which helped to raise many thousands of pounds, reaching over £100,000 for each of the last two events. They have graced the stages of the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham, as well as the city’s Symphony Hall, Preston Guild Hall, the Royal Pavilion in Llangollen, the Sheffield Arena, Shrewsbury Music Hall, and the Bridgewater Hall, Manchester. They also sang many times in their home city at the Free Trade Hall, sadly no longer a wonderful concert venue having been converted into a hotel.
They have made several recordings themselves, and featured on those of other artistes and organisations. The first EP (on vinyl – remember those?) was in 1979, with another following three years later. Tapes followed in 1992 and 1994, whilst their latest rendition was also available on CD, now happily sold out, and negotiations are under way with a recording studio for another selection to be released as soon as possible. The choir were very pleased to appear on an LP with Bryan and Michael of “Matchstalk Cats & Dogs” fame, as well as one for the NSPCC entitled “Coppers for Kids”, and especially delighted to accept an invitation from Her Majesty the Queen to sing on a CD in aid of the Deep Sea Fisherman’s Mission, of which she is the Patron. They now claim to sing “By Royal Appointment”!
Continued success in concert has led to appearances on BBC and Granada Television programmes as well as local radio, whilst our choristers’ handsome faces have also been seen on TV screens in Sweden and Finland.
The Choir have been honoured to take part in many prestigious occasions, such as the triennial concerts for Cancer Research at London’s Royal Albert Hall in 2006 and 2009, having sung there twice before in Festivals of Police Male Voice Choirs to benefit various other charities. All of these concerts had live recordings, sales of which helped to raise many thousands of pounds, reaching over £100,000 for each of the last two events. They have graced the stages of the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham, as well as the city’s Symphony Hall, Preston Guild Hall, the Royal Pavilion in Llangollen, the Sheffield Arena, Shrewsbury Music Hall, and the Bridgewater Hall, Manchester. They also sang many times in their home city at the Free Trade Hall, sadly no longer a wonderful concert venue having been converted into a hotel.
Some of the well known artistes with whom they have appeared are Frank Carson, Roy Walker, the Haughton Weavers, the Band of the Royal Marines, the United States Army Band, the White Russian Army Band, (formerly the Red Army Ensemble) and the Bolshoi Arts Company, whilst Masters of Ceremonies for their concerts have included Stuart Hall, Tom O’Connor, Richard Stilgoe and Frank Thornton of “Are You Being Served” and “Last of the Summer Wine” fame.
Our merry band of vocalists are experienced travellers, having been to Sweden four times, with Finland and Germany both visited twice, always singing at least one item in the native language, whilst reciprocal visits have been made by Police Choirs from each of these countries. Closer to home, four tours have been undertaken to both Scotland and the Isle of Man, with others to South Wales (where Mancunian Welsh was considered far superior to theirs by the hosts, Porthcawl Male Voice Choir), North East England, and the West Country. Special mention must also be made of North Wales, where the concert in Llandudno has been an annual feature since 1983, always commencing with a rousing rendition of Land of My Fathers sung in Welsh and closed by that splendid hymn tune, Cwm Rhondda.
Such is their popularity that concert bookings are often taken at least a year in advance, and the members are both proud and privileged to have assisted in raising many thousands of pounds for numerous organisations and charities, including The Deep Sea Fishermen’s Mission, Scope, The Rainbow Trust, Rochdale Springhill Hospice, Bury Hospice, Francis House Children’s Hospice in Manchester and various Cancer Research Charities, as well as helping many local schools and churches in their endeavours.
Our merry band of vocalists are experienced travellers, having been to Sweden four times, with Finland and Germany both visited twice, always singing at least one item in the native language, whilst reciprocal visits have been made by Police Choirs from each of these countries. Closer to home, four tours have been undertaken to both Scotland and the Isle of Man, with others to South Wales (where Mancunian Welsh was considered far superior to theirs by the hosts, Porthcawl Male Voice Choir), North East England, and the West Country. Special mention must also be made of North Wales, where the concert in Llandudno has been an annual feature since 1983, always commencing with a rousing rendition of Land of My Fathers sung in Welsh and closed by that splendid hymn tune, Cwm Rhondda.
Such is their popularity that concert bookings are often taken at least a year in advance, and the members are both proud and privileged to have assisted in raising many thousands of pounds for numerous organisations and charities, including The Deep Sea Fishermen’s Mission, Scope, The Rainbow Trust, Rochdale Springhill Hospice, Bury Hospice, Francis House Children’s Hospice in Manchester and various Cancer Research Charities, as well as helping many local schools and churches in their endeavours.
Many members of the public often think of a Male Voice Choir as being a rather serious bunch of individuals who sing dreary and old fashioned songs. We like to think that in our case nothing could be further from the truth, as our repertoire is very varied, covering from Handel to the Beatles with a great deal of variety in between. It’s fair to say that there is something for everyone, whatever their age or taste in music, and our concerts always include a fair bit of comedy and ad-lib humour which helps us to make many friends in all walks of life wherever we go.