A BROMSGROVE couple who married after meeting at a Birmingham choir have been singing its praises in preparation for its 20th anniversary celebration concert.
Jon and Rachel Hawkesworth met at rehearsals in the early years of Notorious Choir and later moved to Bromsgrove in 2010.
Along with three other couples, they will help celebrate two decades by forming the largest choir-to-date for its biggest concert at Birmingham Town Hall on November 25.
Notorious, which is usually 35-strong, is welcoming back members past and present to form a 75-strong choir for the concert, performing Fauré’s Requiem and Rutter’s Magnificat, with orchestral accompaniment.
The Hawkesworths, who married in 2007 and have two children, are two of only five founder choir members who still sing with Notorious today.
Rachel said: “Not only is it 20 years since we met at choir, it is also ten years since our wedding.
“Having our friends from Notorious perform specially chosen pieces at our wedding meant such a lot to us and we are thrilled to be celebrating such a significant anniversary with this special concert at the Town Hall.”
Jon added: “What we really enjoy about notorious is the wide range of repertoire that we cover, and we wanted to reflect this in the music we chose for our wedding.
“From Hey Trolly Lolly Lo, an early music piece, right through to a special arrangement of Human League’s Together in Electric Dreams, it was certainly memorable.”
Other Notorious lovebirds joining in with the celebrations include Katherine and Stuart Nokes, the first couple to wed in 2002, Ian and Liz Sutton, who were the second, and Mike Tickle and Rich Joinson.
Musical Director Clare Edwards, who formed notorious back in 1997, said: “For us, the social side of the choir is just as important as the singing, so those post-rehearsal trips to the bar have become a mainstay throughout our 20-year history, getting people mixing and talking.
“It’s been fantastic seeing love blossom across the rehearsal room.
“I’ve been proud to lead the choir in a range of music at the four Notorious weddings-to-date, and it’s fantastic to have them all back for our special anniversary concert at Town Hall.”
