Many of us sing in community choirs. Or we know someone who sings in one. Community choirs are growing all over Australia. A report (Advocacy Resources Research, December 2013) suggests that most have been running for less than ten years with a gradual increase in participation with increased age, 45-54 year-olds being most likely to sing in a choir. Only 30% of choir members are males; the number of choirs where singers must be able to read music is 8%; in 57% reading is useful but not required and in 36% singers don’t need to be able to read at all. Here is the story of one such choir, typical of many and yet different.

Turn your thoughts to Sydney’s Northern Beaches and what images spring to mind? Sand and sun, surfies, lifesavers and sports clubs. But there is another side:  For over 40 years some 80 people gather every Thursday evening in a local school hall to rehearse their next concert. They are the members of the Manly Warringah Choir, passionate about classical music, devoted to the choral repertoire and keen to spread the pleasure and benefits of music within and beyond its area.

Benefits? Yes. We all know how...