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Choir
The hugely popular Gareth Malone recounts the heart-warming stories and transformations behind the award-winning BBC2 series The Choir, including the new series Sing While You Work.
For the first time, Gareth reveals everything he has learned from working with so many groups of memorable people, including the record-breaking Military Wives and latest series of The Choir being shown this Autumn.
Gareth was an unknown Choirmaster when he arrived on British TV screens five years ago. Boyish, irrepressible and determined, Gareth took on a collection of kids from the most unlikely comprehensive and turned them into a talented performing choir.
This was the beginning of a national love affair with a bow-tied and undeniably charming young man, and it was also the start of a national rediscovery of the joy to be found in choirs.
Since then, each series of The Choir has gone on to even more demanding challenges, taking young offenders to Glyndebourne, regenerating disparate and far from affluent communities, and finally in an extraordinarily emotional journey, Gareth took a group of women whose partners were serving in Afghanistan to a Christmas Number One. This Autumn, in a new four-part series, Gareth will be challenging four new Choirs to compete against each other.
This is his memoir of a period in which he transformed the lives of thousands but also gained a lifetime’s worth of experience in human frailty and strength. Written with real joy, emotion and amusement, the twenty chapters each deal with an individual moment – both break-throughs and disasters – or an individual character that has contributed to this extraordinary adventure.
Whether he is explaining the importance of biscuits or the role of the elderly in a community undertaking, remembering the scrappy kid who never quite delivered or the mother who had most to prove this is an incredibly moving journey. It is his adventure… and ours.
For the first time, Gareth reveals everything he has learned from working with so many groups of memorable people, including the record-breaking Military Wives and latest series of The Choir being shown this Autumn.
Gareth was an unknown Choirmaster when he arrived on British TV screens five years ago. Boyish, irrepressible and determined, Gareth took on a collection of kids from the most unlikely comprehensive and turned them into a talented performing choir.
This was the beginning of a national love affair with a bow-tied and undeniably charming young man, and it was also the start of a national rediscovery of the joy to be found in choirs.
Since then, each series of The Choir has gone on to even more demanding challenges, taking young offenders to Glyndebourne, regenerating disparate and far from affluent communities, and finally in an extraordinarily emotional journey, Gareth took a group of women whose partners were serving in Afghanistan to a Christmas Number One. This Autumn, in a new four-part series, Gareth will be challenging four new Choirs to compete against each other.
This is his memoir of a period in which he transformed the lives of thousands but also gained a lifetime’s worth of experience in human frailty and strength. Written with real joy, emotion and amusement, the twenty chapters each deal with an individual moment – both break-throughs and disasters – or an individual character that has contributed to this extraordinary adventure.
Whether he is explaining the importance of biscuits or the role of the elderly in a community undertaking, remembering the scrappy kid who never quite delivered or the mother who had most to prove this is an incredibly moving journey. It is his adventure… and ours.
308 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2012
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26 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
December 5, 2019
Five stars mostly for the tremendous enthusiasm that pours off these pages. By now, in the UK at least, Gareth Malone is almost a household name. Invited to front a TV program on making a choir out of nothing, as it were, he went on to be the powerhouse behind several seasons of the show, in each series taking on a bigger challenge than the previous time.
I've only ever seen part of one episode of one of the series, and that only by chance. I don't know that any of the series have been shown here in New Zealand. This is a pity because Malone has a rare gift, and for it to have been filmed at work over several years is a great thing.
I've only ever seen part of one episode of one of the series, and that only by chance. I don't know that any of the series have been shown here in New Zealand. This is a pity because Malone has a rare gift, and for it to have been filmed at work over several years is a great thing.
January 5, 2020
A running recap of all his tv choir projects up to the time of writing. It feels a bit rushed, because he's writing about every TV series and there's not enough space to write about them all and the people involved in great detail. So it ends up being a bit of a summary with retrospective comments and clarifications. Bless him, he must worry an awful lot about conversations he's just had because I felt like a large portion of his retelling was "I think it came across this way on screen, but what I meant was this." "She thought I meant this but I only said that because this." He spends a lot of time trying to explain himself and set the record straight in print. It seems to me to be a reflection of all the worry he must carry around with him about being misunderstood. Strange, I would have thought he'd be a bit more self assured as he clearly understands what he does, loves what he does, and he does it really well. I mean, the Queen thinks so, as does his growing string of Choir TV series.
I hope he continues.
I hope he continues.
February 7, 2023
While reading this book, I went on YouTube to listen to the music and searched the Internet to see if I could watch the television series. He made them sound so good.
I felt the writing was a little clunky. He moved about in time within the stories. He put a lot of names of choir members in the book, which was nice of him but I thought it interfered with the flow of the writing.
I read the book in order to review it for the Big Eurovision Read. Gave it high marks as it so exemplified inclusivity and the unifying power of music.
I felt the writing was a little clunky. He moved about in time within the stories. He put a lot of names of choir members in the book, which was nice of him but I thought it interfered with the flow of the writing.
I read the book in order to review it for the Big Eurovision Read. Gave it high marks as it so exemplified inclusivity and the unifying power of music.
January 17, 2024
This was an interesting book detailing the early part of Gareth Malone's TV career. It has anecdotes in it and a tiny bit about his personal life. Starting with the first TV series about getting a school choir established and competing in the Choir competition in China and finishing with the MWC at the Jubilee it's quite full and, unusually for a celebrity memoir not full of 'here's another famous person I've met and now we're best friends' . He still seems to be rather ordinary and down to earth.
December 4, 2020
An interesting read about Gareth's Choir documentaries.
January 15, 2021
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February 9, 2013
Gareth reveals a compelling story. He describes himself as an animateur. As a teacher of entrepreneurship and innovation I view him as a serial entrepreneur. Not an entrepreneur that creates financial wealth, but an entrepreneur who creates social and cultural capital. His story reveals a classical example of an entrepreneur motivated to make a difference, through music education. He uses creativity and persistence to overcome an abundance of unanticipated obstacles. I am inspired by his story as I have been challenged by one of my students to set up a music performance group at my learning institution. I have been a chorister since I was seven years old, and have continued to sing in amateur choirs and productions. But I have never been the music director of a choir. So this book is greatly informing me, and inspiring me to take on the challenge.... Move over Simon Cowell and Andrew Lloyd Webber.... Here I come!
January 13, 2013
Having watched all of Gareth Malone's Choir series it has been really nice to hear him talk about how the series began and all the behind the scenes trials and tribulations. The style of writing is not brilliant but you can hear Gareth's voice talking. It could also have done with some better proof reading. A good read and I would certainly recommend it .
May 25, 2013
I enjoyed the book, and as a singer myself I could relate to the trials and tribulations. I didn't watch all of the series but what I did see impressed me. The book was easy to read but the jumping around in time annoyed me and some stories never really got finished.
November 13, 2012
I have only seen his last 2 TV series but thoroughly enjoyed them - Gareth seems like such an inspirational chap - an intersting insight into his owrld of music.
March 3, 2013
A nice easy read detailing the ins and outs of the successful Choir series and many excellent Gareth monologues.
May 29, 2014
A very interesting book. I did not watch the tv programmes thinking it wasn't really 'my thing' after reading the book I wished I had!!
June 13, 2013
What made this book more interesting for me was the thoughts of Gareth Malone about the people that he met along the way as well as how he got involved in each project and how it developed.
February 8, 2023
Really enjoyed this. Inspiring, warm, interesting and an easy read. Lovely that someone can be so passionate about music without being elitist.
February 16, 2014
great easy read, summation of all Dr Malone's oups Gareth's work till yhe last series. brought back fond memories of the series to date.
January 4, 2015
I loved this book so much.
January 17, 2015
4 stars for the subject matter and enthusiasm. Not a literary masterpiece but loved this book.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews