'Healing power' in singing

The Sea of Change choir are a group of cancer survivors or people who have been affected by cancer who sing to show people there can still be life after the diagnosis. Their performance this weekend in the National Concert Hall will raise funds for a children’s cancer charity.

For Bailieborough native Anne Taylor, her journey started after she had surgery to remove a tumour on her throat. It began as a sore throat, which she put down to thyroid problems. Working in the totalhealth pharmacy in Virginia, her boss advised her to get it checked out. She went to her doctor, who sent her straight to Mullingar for a scan.

“The GP said yes, there’s a tumour there and that’s what was choking me,” she told the Celt.

The surgery to remove the tumour took half of her thyroid along with it; Anne was told there was a “strong possibility” that she wouldn’t have a voice afterwards. However a day after her surgery, her voice started to return.

“I was very very lucky, extremely extremely lucky,” she said.

“They really didn’t think that this was going to happen.”

Upon settling back into her Munterconnaught home after the procedure, the 56 year old found she “wasn’t in great form”. Listening to the radio, she heard Dee Featherstone speaking about the Strip and Dip event in aid of children’s cancer charity Aoibheann’s Pink Tie, where women strip off their clothes and any fears they have and delve into the waters along the east coast.

“Now I was a very conservative person and I was listening to this going, ‘oh God, do you know what, I need to do something!’”

Determined to get her “mojo back” Anne joined the 2,500 thousand women braving the cool waters at Magheramore Beach, an opportunity that opened her mind to new experiences and a Guinness World Record.

“Out of that Dee decided that we should start a choir,” she recalled.

“All of our names went into a pot, I didn’t think I would be called because it was women from all over Ireland but I was.”

The group have been finalists on Ireland’s Got Talent in 2019, with Denise Van Outen slamming on her golden buzzer for their version of ‘This is Me’ by Keala Settle.

“Every word that was sang in that song, we could all resonate with because all of us had been through a similar journey. We all felt a bit battered and bruised and broken but it wasn’t going to get us down. It was very poignant,” she recalled.

Just one year ago, she went into surgery not knowing if her voice would ever return.

“This is surreal,” she remembered thinking.

“I am standing on the stage of the Helix, singing.”

“I would have never done anything like this, I never thought I’d have a voice to do something like this.”

The mother of two recalled looking at her family in the audience, who were staring back at her with pride.

“It was a very, very emotional moment.”

“As women sometimes we find it hard to find our voice in a lot of ways or we hold our voice back, so that day I vowed, I am going to let my voice shine.”

“That kind of changed everything for us, it was a very very incredible journey.”

Since their appearance the group of over fifty women has gone from “strength to strength” under their Musical Director Ian Brabazon, performing in Brussels in front of world leaders, where they received a standing ovation, and in Africa for World Health Organization members. The group has also performed in the Cork Opera House, have featured on the Dublin City Ramblers’ CD and have worked with the likes of Irish singer songwriter Paddy Casey.

However, their successes haven’t been without hard times, as Anne emotionally explained.

“Unfortunately, we’ve lost four members of our choir, they passed away. Some of our girls are still going through active treatment.”

They perform with the message that “there is life after cancer”.

“We’re not making light of the situation, all of us has been through it and some of the girls are still going through all of this but, even if we just give one person hope to say ‘look there is life after cancer.’”

The Cavan singer described music as “therapy”. Music has always been a big part of her household however she said she would “never” have had the confidence to sing in front of anybody before her diagnosis.

“Not in a lifetime, I never thought about it. Never did I think I’d be on the world stage.

“It has a healing power,” she said, adding that she is “proud” to represent Cavan in the group.

“We try to promote a positive image and health as much as we can but be realistic about it as well, we don’t put on a false image that everything is going to be perfect. Life’s not like that.

“It’s not sad, I’ve got to meet the most amazing bunch of ladies.”

Anne counts her blessing everyday, having lost a lot of friends locally to cancer.

“Every time I’m up on that stage or I have a blip or if I’m a bit nervous about something, I think of all the girls that would love to be doing what I am doing, would love to be with their families or would love to be here, but cancer has stolen that from them.”I’m blessed,” she affirmed. Last year’s Sea of Change concert in the National Concert Hall sold out, with just a few tickets for this year left. All funds raised go towards Aoibheann’s Pink Tie.

“We’re practising really really hard,” she said, adding that listening back to the harmonies is “wonderful” adding that people can expect a “very upbeat show”.

“It’s going to be a celebration of life,” she predicted.

The choir will sing at the National Concert Hall this Saturday (March 22) at 8pm.

Tickets can be bought on the National Concert Hall website.