Name:
Jim Godwin
Job:
Retired [previously Patent Attorney]
Hometown:
Originally Hereford; for the past half-century Godalming, Surrey
What made you want to sing in The Bach Choir?
I had sung under David Willcocks, as a member of Cambridge University Musical Society, so it was a natural progression.
What’s your favourite thing about singing in The Bach Choir?
Singing great works in great venues, making friends, and of course chatting in the pub before returning home.
What were your childhood experiences of singing?
I remember that we used to sing folk songs in primary school, and I would join in the hymns in our local church. I was very lucky to become a chorister in Hereford Cathedral; from then on, singing became an essential part of my life.
What’s your favourite piece of choral or classical music?
My favourite piece to perform chorally has to be J S Bach’s B Minor Mass, closely followed by Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius. As to what might be my favourite piece to listen to, it is quite impossible to say, but it just occurs to me that Finzi’s Dies Natalis is hard to beat.
What advice would you give to potential new members of The Bach Choir?
Go for it! You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. If you don’t feel ready, do what I did when I started singing as a bass: take every opportunity to sing with others; you will soon find that you can’t live without it.