It was a Monday evening and an eighties hit reverberated around the gothic chambers of The McManus in Dundee.
The tables and chairs of the museum’s café had been stowed away to make room for the 60-odd women gathered in communion singing Labi Siffre’s (Something Inside) So Strong.
No musical instruments backed them up as dozens of their harmonious voices echoed from hallway to staircase and from painting to statue.
Twisting and weaving from woman to woman within this circle of singers, her hands slicing the air, was the choir’s musical director Alice Marra.
This evening was the last of Loadsaweeminsinging’s latest session, and comes after the coronavirus pandemic put an end to their weekly meetings for the best part of two years.
It was a poignant return for the McManus’s choir-in-residence.
“We really, really missed choir,” says Alice. “The women missed it. I missed them dreadfully.
“We didn’t do any online stuff over Covid so we did just wait until we were able to get back in person, and it was a big reunion for us. It’s wonderful to back.”
Starting life at the Dundee Rep about 30 years ago, Loadsaweeminsinging is made up of women of all ages and from all walks of life.
And their repertoire isn’t limited to eighties pop songs. The choir sings Dundonian tunes, modern pop music, folk, jazz and Christmas carols.
“The choir just got bigger and bigger and bigger and – in my opinion – they have just gotten better and better over the years,” Alice added.
“There are loads of reasons why people come to groups like this. Obviously one of them is people who like singing – but it’s not just that.
“Singing is really, really good for your mental health, for your well-being. It releases endorphins, it makes you feel good, and it’s just great to be a part of a big girl-gang like this.”
She said: “It’s just so powerful isn’t it? When you get a huge group of people together singing like that? It’s just such a powerful feeling, such a powerful sound.”
‘We can express ourselves without judgement’
This feeling is shared with choir member Dr Rebecca Wade. The Abertay University lecturer first started singing with the weemin in 1998 before moving to the US for work.
After moving back to Dundee, she returned to the group after a gap of 15 years.
“I found the choir again,” she said.
“It was a real homecoming. It was still some of the same faces and still the same feeling of just amazing welcome and joy to be a part of it.”
Rebecca, of Broughty Ferry, added: “I think it’s just amazing to be a part of a group of wonderful women, because this really is a group of wonderful women.
“The individuals all come from different backgrounds. They have had different jobs. Some of them are retired. Some of them are still working. Some of them might still be studying.
“And yet we are all in the same place doing the same thing at the same time, even though that might be the only thing we have in common.
“And singing is so great for your health. You get that social connection.
“We missed it so much during Covid. You get that chance to express yourself, to sing at the top of your lungs really without judgement.”
Molly Malone, also of Broughty Ferry, began attending Loadsaweeminsinging on the advice of a friend about 20 years ago.
“I came along, and I’ve just never stopped coming,” she said.
“I think (it’s) the camaraderie among the women, the banter. Singing – it really, really brings out the best in you.
“A lot of the women have got a lot of stories to tell so we support one-another quite a lot and it’s just really, really enjoyable.”
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