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About us

The choir

TAPESTRY is an exciting Cotswolds based chamber choir with a repertoire that spans centuries and styles. Although we’ve only been singing together for a short time (we started in March 2019), we’re gaining a reputation in Gloucestershire and Worcestershire. Here’s a list of some of our activities:


  • Eckington Flower Festival
  • Starlight Hike for Sue Ryder, Leckhampton
  • Carolling outside the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham, for the panto
  • Eckington Church Advent and Christmas services
  • Two choir tours: to The Netherlands and Germany


Our fast-paced rehearsals will keep you on your toes. Membership is either by invitation or non-scary audition.


We look forward to welcoming you.

Who sings with us?

We're very lucky to have lovely amateur, semi-professional, and professional musicians who sing with us.  Amongst our regular singers, we have:

  • Stray Threads - soprano and harp duo of Ali Clifton Barnard who runs her Village Voices upper voice choir in Lower Slaughter and Mark Harmer who amongst things, accompanies the Curious Choir's Monday afternoon rehearsals
  • Loose Ends - soprano, alto and piano ensemble of Ruth Kessell, Catherine Lack and
  • Tony Mealings who is Musical Director at St Mary the Virgin, Elmley Castle

Sandra Burne

Musical Director

SANDRA BURNE graduated from Christ Church College, Canterbury, in 1987 with a BA in Music and Maths. She played flute (1st study) with piano and guitar as additional studies, focussing on choral and instrumental arrangement. Her other qualifications include: MA Ed (Applied Linguistics), DipABRSM (flute teaching), PTLLS, CELTA, and Level 2 Rowing Coach.


Sandra has an eclectic background, initially working in IT management for Capita and the Civil Aviation Authority and later mainly as a tutor of woodwind (flute, sax and recorder), Maths, and English for Academic Purposes. At various times she has performed in amateur and professional choirs, vocal groups, orchestras, bands and ensembles, in a variety of styles from classical to jazz, from church music to klezmer, and from folk to show tunes. During the 1990s she toured with a gospel band around the United States, Western Europe and Russia. After the tour, she got married and moved to The Netherlands to be with her husband where they raised their two children. The family relocated to the UK in 2008 for medical reasons within the family and settled in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. Sandra recently resigned as Captain of Gloucester Rowing Club after two years of service.


Throughout her life, Sandra has maintained her love of choral singing by being part of various choirs and ensembles. She started conducting choirs relatively recently and realised that, of all the performances she has done, it is conducting that gives her the most musical satisfaction. Besides conducting Tapestry Chamber Choir, Sandra leads a Cheltenham based The Curious Choir, a new Cheltenham based community choir.  She is currently or has recently conducted Pershore Abbey choir, Word of Mouth, Eckington Church massed choir, Elmley Castle massed choir, Montpellier Brass Ensemble and an upper voice choir near Bishops Cleeve.


 

Keith Mead

Accompanist

After a full career in technology and mathematics, Keith decided to adopt music as his main retirement activity. He teaches piano to pupils of all ages, and enjoys accompanying choirs and individual musicians. His repertoire ranges from early music to jazz, and from art songs to folk songs and pop music.