MIRIAM
Choir member: Soprano
Miriam has a full time career in local government and lives in Matlock. In her leisure time, music is her passion, be it choir, orcherstra or pop music. She also enjoys swimming and hiking around the beautiful countryside of Derbyshire.
“Hello, I’m Miriam and I joined the Fishpond Choir quite recently, in 2025. I previously sung in a choir for 7 years and missed making music with like-minded people. After snooping online for choirs around Matlock and the local area, I decided to try out the Fishpond Choir as I liked the choir’s estetic, of looking relaxed, but also professional.
I remember my first session, where I just turned up at rehearsal time and pretended that I wasn’t terrified of being surrounded by complete strangers, all in their element!
I realise now how silly it was of me to feel that way, as joining was a great decision. Everyone was really welcoming, warm and friendly. I got in with the choir really well, especially as the soprano section voice rep, Mary-Anne, made me feel like I am exactly where I should be!
There wasn’t even any consideration for me as to whether to join or not, it just felt right from the start.
The first song I heard the choir rehearsing was an African number which I sang with my previous choir. This made me feel nostalgic, but also happy to be doing music again, and I found that I enjoyed the other songs even more!
Thanks to my previous experience, I was able to pick up most of the music quite easily, but I was also helped by other more experienced people, and so was happy to sing in a concert with the choir three months later. The rest is history!
Although the rehearsals can be difficult after a long day at work, it is always nice to come, because you can be sure that there is always someone who will make your day brighter.
I was scared of making mistakes, but I found that nobody judges you or makes you feel bad for not singing the right note! Especially the musical director Claire, who is super helpful as she often shares/makes individual voice part recordings, which makes learning much easier!
I didn’t even realise that I’m the youngest member of the choir by quite a bit until a few weeks in, but that is because I never felt out of place.
As the choir is quite big, there are so many lovely people who share your love for music, but also passions and interests outside of choir, so you will always find someone who you click with.
Being part of the Fishpond Choir makes me happy as I feel like I am an important member of the choir community and I love the friendships it has helped me to make.
The biggest obstacle was my nerves before my first rehearsal, but now I wouldn’t trade it for anything!”
