DEAR LOCKDOWN,
We’ve known you for 19 weeks now. And to be honest, you’ve been hard to get along with a lot of the time. You’ve been tough. You’ve challenged us. You’ve forced us to make difficult choices. You’ve demanded that we take everything we know, and asked us do it differently.
But you’ve taught us to survive and we have learnt. To stay positive, and motivated and brave. We have stopped and thought, and remembered the little things in our lives that are so important. And we’ve emerged together stronger than ever before.
We are still here. And as we rise our heads cautiously and peek into the future, we know what we have to do. We have to be bold, ambitious and passionate. And more than ever we will look forward to the year ahead and be proud of everything we have achieved.
And most importantly, we will keep singing. You can’t stop us.
Lots of love, from Aloud x
HERE’S OUR LATEST NEWS
#1 NEW DATES FOR OUR ANNIVERSARY CONCERTS
It’s probably not a surprise to hear that our 10th Anniversary Concerts have been postponed. But we’re very excited to announce our new dates for 2021! Tickets are on sale now.
Sunday 7th November 2021 at 5pm – St David’s Hall, Cardiff.
Sunday 14th November 2021 at 5pm – Venue Cymru, Llandudno.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR TICKET HOLDERS:
- If you had already purchased tickets to the event in 2020, your ticket WILL be valid for the relevant event in 2021. We look forward to seeing you there.
- If you cannot attend the event and would like a refund, please contact the relevant venue box office.
- If you cannot attend the event, but would like the value of your ticket to be donated to The Aloud Charity, please claim your refund and make a donation through our website.
Although we’re disappointed that we won’t be able to go ahead with the event as planned, we’re not letting the situation dampen our spirits, and are planning to run a series of celebratory events for 12 months, starting from the time we can resume events ‘as normal’.
We are confident that postponement is the right decision, and feel it’s important that the concerts not only showcase our work to a high standard, but to give our young people the best experience possible. This includes the opportunity to rehearse properly, and the ability to socialise and relax together.
#2 LOCKDOWN ACTIVITY
We have been working hard to ensure that we maintain contact with our hundreds of participants across Wales, and have been delivering virtual rehearsals since the start of April, which has had a really positive response. We have over 150 boys joining in with their rehearsal groups from across Wales each week, led by their regular Choir Leaders and supported by Aloud staff and our volunteer Community Leaders.
You can read about everything we’ve been up to on Our COVID-19 Response page.
If you missed it (or perhaps you just love it as much as we do), you can watch our OBA Calon Lân video again here.
#3 OBA ACADEMI 2020
Our wonderful ‘OBA Academi’ was due to take place in July. We were originally hoping to postpone the residential week until later this year, but unfortunately postponing the residential left us with more questions than it answered – when, where, what if….?
More importantly, we want our Academi members to be safe as they participate in our events and we certainly didn’t want to compromise the Academi experience, which is just as much about singing as it is playing frisbee in the park – and a ‘socially distant’ version would simply not be the same.
So we have postponed Academi until 2021 and we’re making special exceptions for eligibility next year so that nobody misses out.
Last weekend would have been our first Academi performance for 2020, and so to distract us from feeling too bereft, the Academi Boys have recorded themselves at home singing ‘The Prayer’. As far as we know, this is the first version ever sung in English and Welsh, and was arranged by our very own Craig Yates.
To our delight, ‘The Prayer’ has provided people across the world with inspiration and joy. Here are just a few of the wonderful comments we’ve received:
These young men give me hope for the future. How moving. Thanks guys for an outstanding performance.
Good to know Only Boys Aloud is still alive and kicking.
We need more of this in the world today. Young Men and boys singing good inspirational music brings a spirit of kindness and love to us all. Thank you boys.
#4 CRAIG TAKES ON A NEW POSITION AT ALOUD
Our wonderful Craig Yates has been involved with The Aloud Charity since its conception in 2010, and is also a proud member of Only Men Aloud. We’re absolutely delighted that he’s taken on the role of Acting Music Director – we can’t think of anyone better to lead our artistic vision through this unpredictable time.
Craig has been working hard creating all the digital content and videos you’ve been watching on our Facebook and Youtube pages. Anyone who’s dabbled in video-creation knows this isn’t an easy job, so let’s give Craig a huge round of applause!
“I’m delighted to have taken on the role of Acting Music Director for Aloud and lead the teaching, learning and performing for the Charity.
It’s been a very strange time to take the reins, but it’s been brilliant to see the engagement and quality of the virtual rehearsals and recordings over this time.
I can’t wait to get us all back in a ‘real’ rehearsal room as soon as it is safe to do so, and get cracking with the celebrations for our tenth, or probably eleventh, year.”
#5 THE BEATING HEART OF ALOUD
We are so grateful to our friends, funders and supporters from around the world who have helped us through this difficult time.
If you’d like to become a regular supporter of The Aloud Charity, please consider becoming a Calon Member. Significant and regular donations mean we can plan for the future with more confidence. Knowing you are by our side gives us the determination to come out of this pandemic with more passion and ambition than ever before.
HOW YOU CAN HELP.
Charities across the world have faced devastating impact from the Coronavirus pandemic. The Aloud Charity is working hard to stay connected, creative and resilient during these challenging times, but we need your support more than ever.
Here are three ways you may be able to help:
- Make a donation today, enabling us to continue working with young people across Wales.
- Share our stories and videos.
- Get in touch and say hello.
We need music, singing and the Arts now more than ever.
Copyright © 2020 The Aloud Charity, All rights reserved.
Registered Charity Number 1147922
