Gillian Jack (Sop.) Colin Brockie (Bar.) Ian Chesworth (Organ)
Musical Director Gordon Jack
In memory of our past conductor, James Lobban, who spent his last days in the care of Roxburghe House, Aberdeen Bach Choir organised a Come and Sing day for Voices for Hospices in The Sanctuary, Queens Cross Church, Aberdeen on Saturday 10 October 2009. Voices for Hospices is a wave of simultaneous concerts around the globe which takes place on World Hospice and Palliative Care Day every two years.
Proceeds were shared between Friends of Roxburghe House and CLAN (Cancer Link Aberdeen and North), each of which received a cheque for £600.
The programme, under the direction of our Musical Director Gordon Jack, included excerpts from Elijah and Messiah with soloists Gillian Jack (Soprano) and Colin Brockie (Baritone), and organist Ian Chesworth. The choir included singers of all abilities and experience who had chosen to participate and at the same time contribute to a very worthy cause.
A musical quiz formed part of the fund raising effort. questions and answers
Gillian Jack was born in Aberdeen and educated at Aberdeen Grammar School. She won the Mary D Adams Scholarship to the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, gaining a BA(Mus Ed) and DipRSAMD. After graduation she joined Scottish Opera Chorus where she performed and understudied many principal roles alongside her busy concert career. She has guested with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Scottish Opera Sinfonia and the Bournemouth Sinfonietta as well as choral societies across the UK.
Gillian's love of teaching and her many singing teaching posts led her to become Head of Vocal Studies for the National Youth Choir of Scotland until a contract with English National Opera took her to London. She is married to the conductor Gordon Jack with two children aged 7 and 10 and they returned to Scotland 5 years ago.
Gillian is Singing Tutor at Aberdeen University. Since her return to Scotland she is delighted to be back on the vocal staff of NYCoS. Recent engagements include adjudicating the Vocal and Choral classes in the Fife Music Festival and Voice Specialist for the Association of British Choral Directors. Future engagements include Poulenc’s Gloria with Aberdeen University Choral Society and Mozart’s Requiem with Aberdeen Choral Society and Aberdeen University Choral Society in the Music Hall next March.
Originally from Ellon, Colin first started singing and acting at Haddo House, being involved both on and off stage with the Children’s Theatre, Youth Theatre and the Choral and Operatic Society.
During his time at Gray’s School of Art, he continued his participation in many shows including Oklahoma (Jud) with Treading The Boards, HMS Pinafore (Assistant Director), The Sorcerer (Director) and Yeomen of the Guard (Sgt Meryll) with the University of Aberdeen Gilbert and Sullivan Society, Invasion of the Doric Snatchers (Production Assistant) and Date Expectations in HMT, Hot Mikado (Pooh-Bah) with AVE Productions and Oklahoma (Curly) with Meldrum Musical Society.
Colin has been a member of the National Youth Choir of Scotland (NYCoS) for nine years, touring with them to Sweden (2001), Chicago (2004) and Hungary (2007). He also sang with the choir in London’s Albert Hall as part of the Proms season as well as the Last Night Proms in the Park concerts held in Glasgow each year. In 2008, Colin had his first solo role with the choir in Vaughan Williams' Five Mystical Songs.
After gaining a BA Hons from Gray’s, Colin has continued to receive his singing lessons at the North East of Scotland Music School (NESMS), being taught by Ruth Black, Alan Watt and Raimund Herincx, as well as being one of the assistant administrators there. He is a three times winner of the Ellie Pirie Scholarship funded by Aberdeen Bach Choir.
He keeps busy with a variety of solo recitals and charity engagements, having been involved with the Aboyne Festival, Deveron Festival, Cowdray Hall Lunchtime Concerts and through NESMS was auctioned off as ‘The Wedding Singer’ at their annual Keynotes Auction Lunch, fetching £2000. He hopes to pursue a career in opera after further studies in Manchester or London.
Ian Chesworth initially trained as a physicist at the University of Durham and worked as an engineer and manager in the semiconductor industry before making music his full-time profession.
He has been conducting since University when he founded the choir 'AMDG' and performed works such as the Mozart Requiem, Pergolesi Stabat Mater and the Victoria Requiem. With a special interest in voice production he has studied conducting with Paul Spicer, Janet Lincé, Alan Hazeldine and David Lawrence. An accomplished organist, he holds the Associateship Diploma of the Royal College of Organists and has studied with David Sanger, Roger Fisher and Keith Wright. He has appeared on national TV and Radio as both an organist and conductor and also arranged and performed a selection of music from Sir Paul McCartney’s Liverpool Oratorio in the presence of the composer. Highlights of 2008 included a performance of Tippett’s A Child of Our Time, Nabucco for Opera-74 and acting as a judge for the inaugural Manchester Amateur Choral Competition. Ian conducts a number of choirs in the Manchester area, including the King Edward Music Society of Macclesfield (KEMS), Manchester Philharmonic Choir and Bolton Chamber Choir.