About Bath Queer Choir

Rehearsal venue and access info

We rehearse at St Mark’s School, Bay Tree Road, Bath BA1 6ND. There’s a bus stop right outside the school. There’s free parking at the main entrance, including accessible parking spaces at the front by reception. Parking is also free on the surrounding roads.

Our rehearsal room is the main hall of the school. To get there, you can go up the ramp or up the steps to reception, and straight ahead through three sets of doors to the main hall. When you arrive you can go straight into the main hall - don’t worry if no one is at reception.

Opposite the main hall is a gender neutral accessible toilet. For any other access info please get in touch.

When do we rehearse?

We rehearse on Tuesday evenings 7-9 PM. The rehearsals are split into 3 terms a year, with each term having 12 rehearsals. You can find our rehearsal dates here.

On the weeks that we don’t have rehearsals, we often do a relaxed social event such as going to the park or to the pub, for those that want to, but there’s no pressure to come to these if that’s not your thing.

Who is Bath Queer Choir for?

Everyone 18+ is welcome at Bath Queer Choir! There are no auditions. You don’t need to be a confident singer. This choir is a non-judgemental space, and the focus is on enjoyment rather than being note-perfect. You also don’t need to be able to read music, as everything is taught by ear, but we do use the sheet music to follow along with the lyrics. If you enjoy singing, then this choir is for you.

The choir is aimed at adults over the age of 18, but under 18's are welcome with a responsible adult.

Whilst this choir is primarily aimed at queer people, friends and allies are always very welcome, so please do feel free to bring people along with you!

Bath Queer Choir is actively trans-inclusive

Bath Queer Choir is trans-led.

Unlike a lot of choirs, we DON’T use the traditional SATB voice parts structure at Bath Queer Choir. We mostly sing in two parts at the moment - we have “Part 1” who mostly sing the melody and a bit of harmony, and “Part 2” who mostly sing harmony and a bit of the melody. You can choose which part you would like to sing - everyone is free to sing either part, regardless of vocal range. The parts are never split up according to gender or vocal range. We also make sure to avoid singing songs with gendered language.

What does a typical rehearsal look like?

You are welcome to arrive any time from 6:45 PM, and we aim to start singing at 7 ish, but if you can’t get here until later it’s not a problem - still feel free to join us. We begin with some vocal warm-ups, and then get started learning some songs. Around the half way point we have a break for about 20 minutes, during which you are welcome to stay in the hall and chat, go outside, have some time to yourself, go to the toilet etc. Whilst this is the only scheduled break, you are welcome to step out and take a break at any point during the rehearsal. Then we sing again until 9 PM when the rehearsal is over. If you need to leave early for any reason then please do.

Do I need to bring anything with me?

You don't need to bring anything in particular! Maybe a bottle of water as that's always useful when singing.

What types of music do you sing?

We aim to sing a range of music genres including pop, musical theatre, classical and jazz, so we hope that there’s something for everyone. We make sure to avoid singing songs with gendered language.

What does it cost?

We have a pay-what-you-can system at choir, with a suggested price of £45 per half term, but you can enter any amount. If you need to pay less than this then please do. If you have the means to and would like to pay more then please do. The money goes towards covering the costs of running the choir.

If the Musical Director is unwell and unable to attend a rehearsal in person, one of four things will be the case: the rehearsal will go ahead online if the Musical Director is well enough, someone else will lead the rehearsal, an extra rehearsal will be scheduled to make up for it, or you will be offered a refund of the relevant proportion of your payment. This is the only scenario where payments will be refunded.

Sheet music will be available to use in the rehearsal. If you would like to take the sheet music home with you to look at between rehearsals, there is a £30 sheet music deposit which will enable you to sign out copies of the music in the rehearsal, and then you can take the music home with you, and bring it to each rehearsal.  If all the music is returned in good condition at the end of each term, you can carry your deposit over to the next term’s music. If the sheet music isn't returned (or isn't in good condition) then your deposit will need to be kept to cover the cost of replacing the music. If and when you leave the choir, you can return your music in good condition in exchange for your deposit back minus a few pounds to cover transaction fees. This system is entirely optional, and you are welcome to turn up and use the sheet music that I'll bring on the day and not take it home and therefore not pay the deposit.

When can I join?

You are welcome to join Bath Queer Choir any time, but you might find it easier to join at the first few rehearsals of a term. During each term we work on the same selection of songs and build on previous weeks of learning, so if you join near the start of a term then you will be in the same boat as everyone else. The term dates can be found here. However, you are welcome to join whenever you’d like. Feel free to come to your first rehearsal for free to see if you like it.

How do I join?

Either send us a message here or message us on Instagram @bathqueerchoir to let us know you’d like to join. If you send us a message on here and don’t hear back from us within a few days, please check your spam folder as some of our emails have been going straight to spam.

You can pay for the half term and optional sheet music here.

Why are there no photos of the choir online?

We’ve made the decision to not take photos of our choir members, so that if you are not out or have other photo-related concerns then we hope that you still feel able to join us and fully participate. We have a strictly no photos or videos policy at all of our rehearsals and events.

What if I have COVID symptoms?

If you have COVID symptoms or symptoms of other infectious respiratory illnesses, then we ask that you please do not attend that week, in order to keep everyone safe. Some people are at a greater risk than others, and we want the choir to be as inclusive as possible. Singing is more aerosol generating than talking or breathing and therefore we need to take extra care. It’s also not good for your vocal chords to sing with a respiratory infection, so it’s better for everyone if you rest.