Meet our team

Rachel started singing in the local church choir at the age of 8 and went on to study cello, piano and organ. She grew up playing in Bolton Youth Orchestra and was a founder member of Bolton Youth Choir, before being awarded a choral scholarship by Keble College, Oxford. She now sings with (and chairs) Sherborne Chamber Choir, an auditioned choir of 45 members. She is very much involved in local music making: she has been secretary of Sherborne Festival Chorus since its formation and is also Concerts Administrator for Sherborne Abbey. Rachel continues to play the organ regularly as Organist at St John the Evangelist, Milborne Port, where she also directs the choir.

As well as her role as Training Manager at abcd, Elisabeth is a member of the Opera North Education team, leading on the musicianship curriculum and delivery for EYFS and Key Stage One pupils. She also chairs the North Lincolnshire Singing Strategy Steering Group and sits on the Board of the North Lincolnshire Music Hub. She continues to develop her professional practice and over the last year, she has achieved the British Kodály Academy’s “Certificate of Professional Practice in the Kodály Concept of Music Education: Primary Level 1 – 3” and this methodology informs all of Elisabeth’s teaching and choral work. Elisabeth is the co-founder and conductor of an upper voice community choir, Saints’ Singers. In her spare time, she enjoys singing with The Lyndhurst Singers and Lydian Chamber Choir.

Carol was born on the Isle of Wight where, when only 14, she was allowed to sing with her mother in a local adult education choir. She spent a gap-year as au-pair for the family of the principal cellist of the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra who helped her join a choir to sing JS Bach’s Weinachts Oratorium. She studied music and German at the University of Sheffield.

Carol remained an active choir member and occasional soloist as family life became her main focus. Being invited to lead an informal group of singers who met in each other’s homes developed her interest in choral directing from a singer’s perspective. She joined abcd and participated in the Intermediate Course which supported her viewpoint. The informal group became Tideswell Singers and the choir’s development has been a major focus for over 30 years. She was the first singing teacher at a local comprehensive school and formed a youth choir there; she also led several workshops as part of Sing Up. This work was supported by training from the British Kodály Academy and led to Early Years coffee morning sessions, so for a while Carol was encouraging singers from 9 months to 90!

Other opportunities include leading passenger choirs on cruises and currently directing Kaleidoscope Choir, which is part of Buxton Opera House and Buxton International Festival’s Learning and Engagement programme.

Tricia was born and brought up in Yorkshire where she studied piano and viola before being appointed a Choral Scholar at Royal Holloway College, London which fuelled her passion for choral singing. She sang with a number of London-based chamber choirs including the Joyful Company of Singers with whom she enjoyed performing throughout Europe and on a number of commercial recordings.

Her conducting career began when she was persuaded to take on the role of Director of Music for the Langcliffe Singers in Yorkshire and through this became an active member of abcd, studying conducting under their Director of Training, Amy Bebbington.

Now based in Somerset, she directs the Swan Singers, is Director of Music for the Harptree parish churches, and continues her singing with Vox Coelestis chamber choir under Nigel Short, Cappella Nova chamber choir of Bath and appears regularly with the Sherborne Chamber Choir.