arts

North West Leeds Project Supporting Musical Communities

Leroy Johson Gospel Choir Photo: The Music House

FREE choirs are enticing diverse communities to Music House, as part of a meaningful, inner North-West Leeds project Who’s In The House (WITH) which are already attracting a lot of attention as spaces are being snapped up.

WITH has a number of strands which will be shared as they evolve. Primarily aimed at positively addressing inequalities of the people living in surrounding suburbs; where community arts and creatives outlets are scarce. Thanks to funding from Arts Council England and Leeds City Council, this important project is taking shape and will see many exciting aspects come to life over in the months up to summer.

The FREE choirs underway are: a Community Gospel Choir; a Reggae Choir and a Chinese Choir. Providing cost-free musical experiences which not only support mental health, development and wellbeing but give people the choice to be involved or not. The choirs encapsulate cultural diversity, age and gender whilst fulfilling the pleas of locals. Spaces are filling fast and feedback confirms the singing opportunities are a welcome distraction.

Christella Litras, Creative Director and WITH lead said:

“I am immensely honoured to be leading ‘Who’s In The House’. It’s wonderful to see such a wide mix of people in our space. This week 50 people turned up for the Gospel choir, double the number that came last week. The feedback has been so heart-warming - one woman said it’s a lifeline to her, following a car accident and chronic pain, sining helps her greatly.

“With a cost of living crisis, free activities are even more important; as a music hub, we have a genuine passion to make a small difference.”

WITH is just one of the ambitious meaningful community projects that Music House is going to be delivering over the coming years. The music hub is committed to enriching lives through musical interaction, projects and programmes.