Mountbatten Community Choir has released a song to mark 1 year since the UK went into lockdown on 23rd March 2020 at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
‘One Day Soon’ is a song of hope that expresses the isolation experienced during the pandemic and the growing optimism of return to normal life.
The song has been written by members of a group of young adults with life-limiting conditions who gathered weekly at Mountbatten Isle of Wight before lockdown and, like many of Mountbatten’s services, have continued to meet online with the hospice’s music therapist Fraser Simpson who works at Mountbatten through a partnership with national music therapy charity Nordoff Robbins
The Mountbatten Isle of Wight choir, also run by Fraser, has continued to meet weekly online through the pandemic as well, and has been joined by members of the choir at Mountbatten Hampshire as an unexpected benefit of the pandemic.
Fraser said:
“There are challenges to music-making online, but group song-writing is something that can work well, with everyone contributing ideas. And channelling personal feelings into something creative is a great thing to do when things are tough, giving a sense of something good coming out of it all.”
Kate Newitt is a member of the young adults’ group who worked together on One day soon, and she can be seen in the opening sequence of the song. Kate said:
“For anyone living with a disease or disability, coronavirus has been another hurdle in life to conquer, but this time we were all in it together. We started many new indoor projects during lockdown but what I looked forward to so much was the Wednesday groups on Zoom. It was lovely to have the human interaction and meant we felt less isolated and still like a team. When hearing that restrictions would start to be eased, we all thought it would be a perfect time to write a song, representing hope. It was great teamwork as we could all connect together and understand each other’s feelings. We hope you all enjoy the catchy lyrics as much as we did creating them!”
Article continues below this advertisement
Fraser continued:
“The online choir has been a great way to enable our members to stay connected over the past year. We had a cracking time recording the song, I think it brought quite a few of us out of our comfort zones and got us learning some new skills with technology, and everyone thoroughly enjoyed it. Creating a ‘product’ to share with others is very satisfying and exciting. I’m very grateful to film maker Chris Waitt who generously offered his time and professional expertise to help us bring the video and the song together.”
Nigel Hartley, CEO of Mountbatten, said:
“With the gradual easing of lockdown we have all got hope in our hearts. The pandemic has been tough for everyone, especially for those who live with an illness.
“Reflecting on the last year as we mark the anniversary of the first lockdown is important and we should all take a moment to remember those who have lost their lives to COVID and other illnesses as a result of the pandemic. The song ‘One Day Soon’ is like a beacon of light at the end of a dark tunnel and gives me a sense of better days to come. It’s a fantastic effort by the choir members hailing from both sides of the Solent and it makes me ‘proud to be Mountbatten’”.
very nice. Thank you 🙂