Category: About Us

I love to sing – Keith Turner (Baritone)

Keith is a keen, popular and strong member of our baritone section who joined the choir in 2004. Born to Welsh parents (no wonder he loves singing) in Blidworth, Nottinghamshire in 1939, this 81-year-old is as vital and powerful as a man half his age, his voice is testament to that.  His music interests are wide ranging from Welsh Male Voice choirs but also popular singers such as Nat King Cole, Matt Monroe, and Bing Crosby. Keith will sing you a favourite song as soon as you ask him. Wonderful!

He was introduced to the choir by Keith Beastall (a second tenor). His interest was sparked as it rekindled his family roots  in which two older cousins sang in choirs in South Wales. He proudly tells us that his mother had a good voice and it is this pedigree that has passed through the family. Keith was clearly excited to get involved in a male voice choir and he found that the baritone section members were very helpful in growing his confidence and ability, he is particularly keen to acknowledge the support of a seasoned baritone Derek Beastall who became his singing buddy.

His ambitions for the choir include singing more modern songs as well as the male voice classics which will attract younger members and hence perpetuate the life and continuance of the choir. His best memory was the first time the choir performed at the Royal Albert Hall in London with the Welsh Association of Male Choirs in 2009. Keith explained that it was “fantastic” how over 900 men were able to seamlessly blend whilst singing their hearts out in perfect harmony.

His working life took him all over the country as a long-distance lorry driver, but he was also  a PSV bus driver and worked in a large transport firm as a planner. In the last 7 years of his working life Keith was well known as the fish man in Asda on Old Mill Lane, Mansfield.

Keith is a true family man; he impresses on you how it important it is to “have good wife”. Keith met his wife Mary, a native of Southern Ireland, while working on the buses and he has not looked back since. They have three children, Thomas, John and Anne and grandchildren twins Danny and Grace, Paige Leigh, Olivia and Thomas. Mary and Keith enjoy frequent holidays and looking after their garden.

A wonderful character who embodies all the values of the choir of camaraderie, unity and effort, Keith advises that anyone who belongs to a good male voice choir and who is able to mix comfortably with others will make many new friends and enjoy a hobby that will uplift you and last a lifetime.

I love to sing – John Wakeland  (Bass)

16^th September 2020

John is the current Chairman of the Mansfield & District Male Voice Choir and a powerful bass singer.

Born and bred in Skegby in the year 1951, his father was a miner and his mother a housewife (a term not often used these days).  John has three sisters, two of which are older and one his twin.

As a teenager in the mid to late sixties his musical taste was influenced greatly by the groups of the day; The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Hollies, The Searchers to name but a few, but he always loved a ballad as the song lyrics told a story.

This was the time when he discovered the joy of singing, only for his own benefit, but he soon realised that he could not reach the high notes, so karaoke was not going to happen for John.

As time marched on, he married Lesley and their own family developed, (three beautiful kids), so music took somewhat of a less important role in his life.  Ambitions and aspirations took centre stage and although song was always there, it was never that important.  John was a self-employed builder/joiner for most of his working life which involved hard work, long hours and time for little else.

[perfectpullquote align=”full” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””] “So long as you can pitch your voice correctly there will be a place within the choir for anyone to sing.”  [/perfectpullquote]

Forward now to 2009 when John bumped into an old colleague and good friend who was in the choir at the time and persuaded him to join.  It was something that took his fancy but had never considered or knew anything about.  The fact there were four sections within a choir was unknown to him, i.e. all types of voice are accommodated.  So long as you can pitch your voice correctly there will be a place within the choir for anyone to sing. His ability to sing the lower notes placed John within the bass section and he settled in straight away. After a few weeks, confidence grew, as did his enjoyment and over the years he has taken on more responsibility by becoming a committee member and eventually chairman.

John explained, “The choir has without a doubt enriched my life.  It gives me a purpose daily as I must learn new songs, and it takes me to destinations far and wide which I would not normally visit.  Add to that the thrill of performing to a live audience and the appreciation they give, the camaraderie of your choir mates, and the amazing social life, I wonder “what would I do without my music” “

As a footnote John would like to say, “if you, like me, enjoy singing come and give us a try.  I can assure you; you will be made welcome and who knows it may change your life for the better.”

Gordon Blanc served the Mansfield & District Male Voice Choir for a decade as a baritone and more recently in the bass section. He has recently stepped down after serving a three year stint as Chairman and has also announced his retirement as a chorister. Gordon shares some memories of his singing with us as guest blogger:

Home and family have always been the real heart of singing in my experience.
My first recollection of music was sitting with my Dad listening to him sing with great enjoyment and two of our favourites were Show Me the Way to Go Home and I’ll Tell My Ma When I Go Home. Our world was shaken by the early death of my father when I was nine years old.

I was educated in the Irish Christian Brotherhood system and it was at school that I joined the school flageolet (Irish tin whistle) band which later developed into a fife and drum band.

Our teacher, Brother Tracey, formed a stage class which sang operetta and I particularly recall two productions; The Raja of Rajanpur and The Magic Ruby. As a boys’ only school, naturally, all the parts were played by boys.

[perfectpullquote align=”left” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]You cannot beat the sheer pleasure of sharing music with others[/perfectpullquote]

In 1961 I joined the RAF and relocated to England and having subsequently married and brought up two children, it was whilst living in Basingstoke that a policeman talked me into joining Basingstoke Male Voice Choir. I remember how good it was to be part of a singing family again, rekindling the pride I felt as a child when singing with my dad and family.

You cannot beat the sheer pleasure of sharing music with others. Families contain a great variety of skills and expertise, especially when making music and yet despite the range of abilities the sound of a united family in song is precious and to be celebrated. So, finding the same feeling of family in Basingstoke filled a void in my life.

During my twenty years plus membership of BMVC I had the privilege of serving 7 years as Choir Treasurer and 3 as Choir Chairman. We toured America three times and it was especially during these tours that our choir family really blossomed as we supported each other and pulled each other along.

I am certain that it is the range of abilities and expertise that makes choir singing so rich and enjoyable, not only for the singers but also for their audiences. I am a great believer that a choir consisting of choristers with a wide variety backgrounds, experience and accents is what lifts good choirs above the achievements of professional singers.

Mansfield and District Male Voice Choir was my home choir for 10 years and are noted for their encouragement and embodiment of an authentic ‘feel of being in a family’ which is significantly enhanced by their very dedicated ‘Supporters’ Group’. I pray that the M&DMVC family thrives and prospers for many, many years to come.