麻豆约拍

Roderick Williams explores whether Britain has lost its singing culture and, if so, how it can be recovered.

Have we lost our memories for the words and tunes that enabled us to sing together? Roderick Williams is worried that the future of Britain's great choral tradition might be under threat. Father Kevin Scully and his organist Dr Christopher Maxim mourn the loss of full-throated congregational hymn. Roderick hears from Marek Korczynski how the rich singing culture of Britain was silenced by the clamour of industrialisation and how hundreds of thousands of people believe they cannot sing. He meets Frankie Armstrong, a singing pioneer who has made it her life's work to reunite the British people with their voices; the artistic director of BVG the Indian choir of England with a love of harmony and the English choral sound and rehearses with the London Bulgarian Choir. He meets singers from the Stroke Odysseys project and hears from Stephen Clift on why singing might promote good health. He consults the composer, William Byrd's "reasons to sing" set out in the preface to the first English songbook, published in 1588 and finds resonances with the singing for health movement today.

Since singing is so good a thing
I wish all men would learn to sing

Produced by Natalie Steed for 麻豆约拍 Wales.