LUUMS Symphonic Choir is a non-auditioned ensemble for undergrads, postgrads and members of the community from Leeds University, and beyond!

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Our aim is to bring together people of all musical abilities and backgrounds with a passion for singing. We have our friendly and relaxed rehearsals every Thursday in term time (5:00-7:00pm) in the School of Music, followed by a trip out to grab some food and to get to know the group.

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We cover sacred and secular music from across the classical canon, culminating in 3-4 performances per year. Recently, we have performed music by Gibbons, Purcell, Rutter and Haydn. In the second semester we perform a larger scale work for augmented forces, most recently Bach's Magnificat and Vivaldi's Gloria.

This coming year the choir is planning performances of pieces by Whitacre, Britten, Faure and Gjeilo alongside some exciting newly commissioned works written for the choir.

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If you would like more information please follow us on instagram @luumssymphchoir, or contact our manager Espe:

luums.symphonicchoir@gmail.com

Join our Facebook group here!

Or just drop into a rehearsal!

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Thursdays, 5-7pm

Rehearsal Hall, School of Music

luums.symphonicchoir@gmail.com

To find out when our next concert is, click here:

Esparanza Hickling

Manager

Espe Hickling is a second year BA Music student from London. She first took an interest in music when her mother tried to teach her guitar around age 6. After struggling with guitar, and wanting to be a part of her musical household, she tried violin at age 7 and later started teaching herself guitar (again) and bass. She started to volunteer at church, singing as a part of the youth worship team and later joining the youth and adult teams. As a part of the church orchestra, she performed at numerous events such as the annual carols service in the SSE Arena and conference at the O2 Arena. Alongside music, Espe also enjoys crocheting, cooking, and volunteering at her local charity shop. Espe is super excited to be the manager of Symphonic Choir this year and hopes to see lots of people of all musical levels take part in Symphonic Choir and other LUUMS ensembles. 

Abi Turner

Conductor

Abi Turner is a second year BA Music student from Manchester. She began playing the flute at the age of 9 after being brought up in a musical household and then went on to learn the piano at the age of 11. After being a member of several choirs throughout her life, it was only in college that she started to sing properly and gained a passion for choral music. Alongside being a member of numerous ensembles in college, including the concert choir, chamber choir and orchestra, she was also a member of the Halle Youth Choir. Abi took a break from ensembles this year but cannot wait to be back in full force. As well as musical activities, she enjoys cooking, eating, and drinking with her friends. Abi is so excited to be the conductor of Symphonic Choir this year and is ready to welcome singers of all abilities to join.  

Annis Archer

Manager

Annis Archer is a second year BA/MA Music and Music Psychology student from Edinburgh. She started playing both the piano and cello around the age of 7 and continued her musical studies at The City of Edinburgh Music School for 6 years. Throughout school, she had the opportunity to play and sing as part of several ensembles. Outside of school, Annis was involved in The Edinburgh Youth Orchestra for 2 years, which toured throughout Scotland. At the same time of starting both her instruments, she also joined the National Youth Choir of Scotland. She sang with this choir for 10 years and was lucky enough to perform for the BBC on both television and radio. During her last years of school, Annis taught children music at Edinburgh Young Musicians and began to teach private piano lessons as well. She continued teaching on her gap year in South Africa. Outside of music, Annis also enjoys volunteering, travelling, and cooking. She is super excited to be the manager for Symphonic Choir this year and is looking forward to meeting lots of new people of all musical abilities.