There were 4 new members of the Baritone section at the rehearsal on Monday 5th, and I met with them to learn a little more about them. Bill (left) lives in Rode and is a retired teacher. He is membership secretary of a local car club, and owns a gorgeous green Marlin Hunter. Phil and his wife Ros are part of the leadership team at Rode Chapel. David (second left) lives in Peasedown St John. He spent 32 years in the Royal Navy, then 10 years doing IT support for the MOD. He i

We are delighted to have so many new singers join us for the Christmas term in response to the 20 Mendip Men campaign in support of Prostate Cancer research. 7 of them sat with the Top Tenors on September 28th, and I caught up with them afterwards to ask them a little bit about themselves. Roman (far left) lives at Radford Mill farm, and is an organic vegetable grower. He started as a seasonal worker in April, and will be there until at least September 2027. He is a colleagu

The story behind one of our new songs for the 2026 Christmas season. Leon Schlienger was sick of war. Born in Alsace, France, he had been trained in classical music in Paris and Strasbourg, but after the invasion of France he ended up being drafted into the German Army . His loyalty to France meant that he worked as a double agent, constantly in danger and fear of discovery, and he was eventually wounded in action. When the war was over he emigrated to the USA, changed his na

How long have you been in the choir Richard? I don’t remember exactly, but it must be getting on for 20 years. This is my fifth year as choir Chairman. I was lead for the second tenors for a long time, and then when the previous chairman retired I found myself in the wrong place at the wrong time and got elected! What led you to join the choir in the first place? I was always involved in the Amateur Dramatic group in the village I live in, which at the time was quite active,

Our summer tour of 2026 was the first airing of our new summer uniform of red shirt, no tie, and black below the waist. You can see the result in the photo above. Speaking personally, both John Barnard and I really liked the new shirts. They are cooler in hot conditions, and the lack of a tie makes singing more comfortable. They look smart, and provided we only open one button, it's easier to look more uniform. We received several positive comments on the tour. The only prob

Seal Lullaby is fast becoming a choir favourite, with it’s tender words, haunting melody, and that final quarter when Dominic plays notes like little sprays of sea foam as the choir voices the billows of the slow swinging sea. And of course unlike any other song in the repertoire, it allows us to sing the word “flipperling.” A rare joy. But what’s the background to the song, and why was it written? The words to the song come from Kipling’s “Jungle Book”, published in 1894, a

We are sure you have all been enjoying the summer, catching your breath during a short pause in the singing calendar, and enjoying a cool pina colada by the pool. It was a wonderful spring and summer season with the choir, enjoying venues such as the Bath Bandstand, the joyful Joint Concert in Andover, and of course our annual summer concert. Thoughts are now turning towards the autumn repertoire, and the run-up to our annual concert in December. However before Christmas Rehe

We’ve Launched the '20 Men Needed' Challenge for Prostate Cancer UK! We are thrilled to launch our brand-new fundraising campaign, with which we are challenging 20 local men to take a deep breath and sing with us at our 2026 Christmas Concert, and raise vital funds for Prostate Cancer UK. Starting September 21st, you’ll join us for our autumn/winter weekly rehearsal season. All we ask is that each participant aims to raise at least £50 in sponsorship for taking on the challen

It’s been a while since our last news update—time flies when you’re having fun (and learning a dozen or so new harmonies)! We may have been quiet on the website, but we’ve been incredibly busy out in the community over the last few months. This is a quick catch up and a sneak peek at what’s coming next. Highlights From Our Recent Concerts During our initial outing in March, we performed four pieces at the Mid-Somerset Festival choirs competition in Bath. Although we can't cla

A year-end message and a Thank You from our Chairman Richard Luscombe. What a wonderful ...

If you're someone who prefers not to think about Christmas until December is well underway, you might not be thrilled to know that we've already begun our preparations! As we moved into the autumn season, we started rehearsing for our upcoming Autumn and Christmas performances, and admittedly, it does feel odd singing carols in September! This season, we are pleased to say that we have extra help as several new members have joined the choir. It's great to see the family growi

After a few weeks summer break, we kicked off the month by teaming up with the West Wiltshire Young Singers for a fundraiser concert in Bradford-on-Avon, organised by the Bradford-on-Avon Lions Club. The Mendip Men and the Young Singers joined forces for a concert called “Some Enchanted Evening” at the stunning Holy Trinity Church in Bradford-on-Avon. The West Wiltshire Young Singers, led by our own Musical Director, Kate Courage, wowed a full house with their fantastic perfo

… and we hope you are enjoying the summer as well! After a bustling spring and summer filled with numerous performances in various locations alongside wonderful people, we are catching our breath in preparation for the autumn season (yes, I know it’s a bit early to mention autumn). Our final performance before the summer break was our annual summer concert, which was a tremendous success. All ready for our summer concert We delivered a sold-out performance featuring many song

Raising the roof with Cowbridge MVC! In the past few weeks, we've enjoyed two incredible concerts—one in Weston-Super-Mare and the other nearby in Paulton. These gigs, though distinctly different, were both resounding successes with good audiences at both! We had the honour of sharing the stage at the magnificent Corpus Christi Church in Weston with the Cowbridge Male Voice Choir from South Wales. The finale was a stunning rendition of 'Rhythm of Life,' featuring both choirs.

We kicked off this year's concert series, 'Songs from Stage and Screen,' with a performance at Downside School.

At our first public outing of 2025 we came away with a cup! A couple of weeks ago, we had a fantastic time engaging with and competing with other choirs at the Mid-Somerset Festival. We performed two song sets, one in the morning and another in the afternoon, alongside the other choirs. The event took place at St. Swithin's Church in Bath, an excellent venue with incredible acoustics. After every session, one of the adjudicators delivered a detailed appraisal of each choir's

The end of winter is in sight and we can see early signs of spring! For the choir also excitement is in the air. We've been rehearsing hard since the start of the year getting ready for this season's programme, Songs from Stage and Screen. Each performance will feature a diverse selection of songs, drawing from both popular musicals and memorable movies. Between now and September we have planned six concerts singing alongside other amazing choirs and of course our own annual

We enjoyed a wonderful autumn season in 2024, and we're grateful to everyone who supported us. We hope you found as much joy in listening as we did in performing for you! Starting the second week of January, we'll begin preparing an exciting new concert program for later in the year. Keep an eye on this site for updates, or sign up for our regular Newsletter. Happy New Year!

It's been quite a season for the choir, we've had an amazing time and now it's Christmas! In full flow at the Christmas Concert! As we're now into the festive season, it’s an excellent time to reflect on a busy yet exciting autumn for our choir. From our first notes sung in Bath to the joyful Christmas carols in Midsomer Norton, we've had an amazing time! Our autumn kicked off in September with an exhilarating performance alongside the renowned Mousehole Male Voice Choir in B

MMVC Chair Richard Luscombe (left) presents Phillip Evry with a photograph of the choir performing at a recent concert After almost 10 years, Mendip Male Voice Choir's highly respected and much-admired accompanist Phillip Evry has decided to retire. Phillip joined the choir in January 2015 and quickly struck up a strong rapport with all sections. His mastery of the piano, sympathetic playing in rehearsal and performance made him a greatly valued member of the choir's musica