By Lorraine Craig It was a very early start for ‘Sing Live North East’ as we set off to London for our big concert.  | | Royal Albert Hall |
We have practiced for the last three months and were excited about the prospect of singing in the Royal Albert Hall, plus the anticipation of meeting up with the rest of the 1000 voices chorus from other Sing Live choirs. I felt extremely nervous and excited about the whole thing, it seemed to be such a large event and I was dumbstruck that I was actually part of it. It was surprising that no one sang as we travelled to London, but I think many people were saving their voices for the day. After the long bus journey we arrived at the rehearsal venue and as we were late had to slot into our seats as the rest of the chorus around us rehearsed. This is my only experience of actually hearing the choir, rather than being right in the middle of it, it was amazing – a wall of sound hit me as I made my way to my seat. During the rehearsal we were introduced to the soloists and the musical directors, there was so much to learn I began to think it was never going to happen as they envisioned. Fast stand – medium sit – quiet here, really loud now – ‘oh no will I be able to do this?’ After a while I relaxed into it and managed to go with the flow. David Firman the musical director helped to put me at ease and I soon began to realise it was going to be all right on the night (to coin a phrase).  | | The North East Sing Live group backstage at the Royal Albert Hall |
The morning of the concert; no time for nerves as we boarded the bus to the Royal Albert Hall – there were far too many other things going through my mind – words of songs, choreography instructions, did I have all my performance gear and just as importantly have I got enough sandwiches. As I alighted at the Royal Albert Hall the enormity of what I was about to do struck me. During the seating rehearsal I began to feel giddy, not only with excitement, but with the fact that I was so high up in the choir stands. Then to make it worse I got moved to the highest row in the choir, it took me a few attempts to brave the fast stand of ‘Oh! I can’t sit down’ with confidence. Soon I forgot my vertigo and took in the surroundings and the preparations going on in front of me. We rehearsed right up to the last minute and then it was a quick dash to get ready to be on stage for real.  | | Roger Moore was one of the presenters |
Roger Moore and Glenn Close hosted the event and the songs they introduced rolled together to make an exciting performance. The choir were superb and the sound was amazing, with the applause of the audience everyone was bursting with pride. With a matinee performance now under our belts, we were really hyped for the evening performance. There had been no time for breaks or meals, but that didn’t matter, we were running on adrenalin. The show was exhausting and exhilarating, and the audience gave great applause. The soloists made us green with envy with their seemingly effortless voices, some looked taken aback by the sound of the choir – Tommy Koberg was amazed and proud as we sang ‘Anthem’ from ‘Chess’ with him. The sound of the 70-foot church organ could not drown out the sound of our voices. Glenn Close gave a dramatic solo performance and really brought the house down. There was so much happening on the stage that I had to concentrate to remember all my words and queues; fireworks, streamers, dancers, emotionally charged solo performances were all part of the distraction and I watched in awe.  | | Lorraine is looking forward to performing in America |
Afterwards everyone agreed it was a marvellous experience, and a unique opportunity to sing in the mass chorus along with celebrity soloists. For many of us it has brought new confidence and an enhanced love of music. Personally I am still in shock by it all; perhaps I’ll come down to earth soon – hopefully in time for the same concert next year. Being part of ‘Sing Live’ has given me a wonderful experience that I will remember forever. The next extraordinary place we are going to perform in is the Epcot Centre in Florida and now I just can’t wait! | 
