On the hottest day of the year so far, I went to Valley Parade Stadium to hear the BBC Radio Leeds Bantam of the Opera choir, joined by Lesley Garrett and Chris Kamara, in their final rehearsal of Take Me Home, Midland Road before their performance on Saturday, when Bradford City took on Fleetwood in their closing game of the season.
The first thing I noticed about the stadium is that its acoustics are better than many concert halls – something Lesley Garrett tested as soon as she stepped onto the field, belting out a high note and nodding approvingly as it echoed around us. The second was the enormous bubble of excited chatter and laughter rising from the group of singers gathering in the centre of the pitch, all clad in claret and amber stripes.
The Bantam choir is a diverse group, with singers ranging from 18 to 91 years of age, and a combination of ethnic backgrounds, religions, genders and physical abilities: as Lesley says, “anybody can sing”. And here, it’s clear that this group is more than a group of singers: it’s a community.
From strangers to singing for the country
The choir members quickly took their places and launched straight into Take Me Home, Midland Road, a song inspired by Bradford City’s long-established anthem, John Denver’s Country Roads.
Heads high, backs straight, and every eye focused on their leader, they could easily be mistaken for a professional choir; there’s no sign that just three months ago they didn’t know each other. Having already performed Habanera from Bizet’s Carmen at the Broadway Shopping Centre and joined in Bradford’s Big Brass Blowout last month, this was the current stop on their whirlwind tour, and their upcoming schedule is packed.
Later this month they will be performing hits from Bob Marley to the Beatles as they busk their way down to London. In July, the Bantams will be singing with Opera North at the Howard Assembly rooms in Leeds. And, for Yorkshire Day on 1 August, the choir will live up to its gently punning name with a performance of Music of the Night, from Phantom of the Opera. All of this builds up to a grand finale at the end of the year.
Bradfordians bond through song
I managed to snag some of the singers in the few quiet moments during the rehearsal, and I asked them how they came to join the choir. Linda Norton saw Chris Kamara calling for volunteers on breakfast TV and immediately knew she wanted to be involved. Having applied, Linda kept it to herself, certain nothing would come of it, but an email a few weeks later confirmed she was one of the lucky 50, chosen from 500 applicants.
“I’m proud to be a Bradfordian. Reading that email brought a lump to my throat”, she said, “But as I was driving to my first rehearsal, I was saying to myself, ‘what the heck have you done?’” However, at 65, she’s decided she’s going to do what she wants to do and she’s going to enjoy it. And it’s been worth it; she’s made 49 fantastic friends: 50, if we include James Sills, the choral leader, whom Linda describes as “amazing and just so much fun… He always gets us laughing and he gives us confidence”.
Sills says the choir bonded very quickly, already feeling like a family, something that deepens with every performance. Last week, some of the BBC singers worked with the choir and said they were blown away by their vocal skills: commending their legato, excellent tuning and terrific rhythm, to sustain a first-class sound. High praise indeed.
Singing benefits health and the community
Garrett’s passion for the Bantam of the Opera project practically shines out of her. “I didn’t hesitate when asked,” she says, “I was thrilled to be a part of it. Music is nourishment – a vital part of life. I was just delighted when 500 people volunteered. There’s so much enthusiasm. They’re developing so much faster than expected. I’m seeing the improvements as vocalists, and they’re so happy and joyful, and such good friends!”
Like everyone else I spoke to at the rehearsal, Lesley is proud of the diversity of the choir, which truly represents the city of Bradford; an ideal way to celebrate Bradford’s year as the City of Culture. “The need for music is as strong now as it has ever been. The benefits of singing are both physical and mental. Singing takes effort and energy and can only bring health benefits. It provides joy and belonging to a community,” Lesley says, “and here, we’re raising money for the burns unit, who were magnificent and saved so many, many people who were injured in the fire.”
The Bradford City fire: one survivor’s story
I was able to sit down with Mo Ibrahim for a few moments and hear his account of the fire. It was harrowing. Made even more so by the quiet way he talked me through the events: from the four minutes it took for the fire to take hold and engulf the stand, to the hour it took to confirm that the friends he’d arrived with were safe.
He spoke of people creating stretchers out of billboards to carry the injured out of the stadium; the heat of the fire so intense they couldn’t get to within ten metres of the stands, despite knowing people were still there and calling for help. Mo’s family only knew he’d survived the fire because they saw him on TV.
Some moments were impossible not to picture. Mo described waking up in alarm later that evening, suddenly able to smell burning. His brother, a serving special constable, had been helping firefighters to carry victims out of the stadium and had returned to the house, his clothes still drenched in smoke.
Remembrance and memorials
Much later, taking his seat at the stadium after the reconstruction was complete, Mo was faced with the stark evidence of the tragedy in the empty seats around him.
Mo has a ritual before every match. He goes to the Valley Parade memorial to say prayers before taking his seat, and every year on 11 May, he attends the city’s Centenary Square memorial service and will continue to do so, as will his family, all very aware of what he survived. Mo’s family, including children and grandchildren, were there on Saturday to watch him take to the field to sing his team’s anthem in memory of both the people lost and those whose lives were forever changed by the fire.
Like Mo, Chris Kamara is another who regularly attends the memorials. Having become aware of the profound consequences of the fire while he was a manager at Bradford City, supporting this cause is especially important to him.
Kammy’s joy of singing
Chris’s experience demonstrates the benefits of singing that Lesley described. Having been diagnosed with apraxia three years ago, Chris says he’s a lot better than he was back then. He’s still not right, but he’s accepting his condition and the changes in his voice. Though Chris talks about feeling weaker than before, it doesn’t show when he takes to the microphone and belts out Take Me Home, Midland Road alongside Lesley and the Bantam choir.
I asked Chris if he’d ever imagined himself singing to this kind of crowd. He hesitated, then gently reminded me he’s released two albums already, one of which, Here’s to Christmas, went to number one! Oops. I could have redeemed myself had I shown any hint of contrition for not doing my research properly, but I was laughing too much.
Belatedly, I realised that while Chris and I had been talking, the choir members had coaxed the flugel horn (Owen Bryce) into playing for them and were now joyfully serenading us with the Match of the Day theme tune.
I’m sorry to say I missed the match itself, though I’ve seen footage of the halftime show and I’m certain that the Bantams’ uplifting rendition of Take Me Home, Midland Road played its part in seeing Bradford City through to a 1-0 win and promotion.
You can catch the show here on YouTube (with thanks to James Sills)!
