Birmingham’s BSL Community Chorus project, ‘Your Love Lifts Me Up’, will be presented as part of the Birmingham 2022 Festival, a six-month celebration of creativity which surrounds the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. The BSL Community Chorus is a Creative City project generously funded by Birmingham City Council. (BSL = British Sign Language).
There are over 5,000 Deaf children in the West Midlands and 32 million worldwide. For the Birmingham 2022 Festival, local artist collective Friends Of Cedar Church have ambitiously orchestrated and provided an uplifting community song to celebrate British Sign Language (BSL) as a major language in Birmingham, a City of Languages, and across the world. The aim is to empower Deaf children by teaching signing through singing across whole communities.
Over 150 different performers and personnel from different countries have been involved in this truly major creative collaborative effort, including a brand new verse written and signed originally in BSL. This is then interpreted into English subtitles and freely expressed vocally over the combination of a classically orchestral soundscape and percussive ethnic rhythms to musically reflect the range of traditions and vibrant flavours of this richly diverse region.
Along with three versions of the finished recording, there is a joyous official song video featuring all of the artists and groups involved in the project to accompany the audio release. This will coincide with the start of the Cultural Festival in the lead up to the games and beyond with some live performances of “Your Love Lifts Me Up” in various locations around the city.
This website goes live and the Your Love Lifts Me Up BSL Instagram account is launched.
The Official YouTube Video for Your Love Lifts Me Up – A BSL Community Chorus With A Purpose For Birmingham 2022 is launched.
Finale video for Citywide Neighbourhood Networking Scheme Annual Meeting at Aston Villa Football Ground (with Neil De Costa)
The Official YouTube Video was remastered for Social Media.
The Royal Birmingham Conservatoire who joined with many other community partners, publish an article on the project.
Birmingham Living Magazine features the project in their May 2022 edition, check it out on page 56.
Edgbaston High School for Girls features an article about the violin soloist for the project.
The project gets recongition on BBC Radio WM during The Daz Hale Show.
Representatives of the Chorus celebrated the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee with a Tribute and a visit to the Palace Party.
The BSL Community Chorus took over Grand Central Station in Birmingham with a BSL Chorus Flashmob.
Cedar Church celebrated with their event ‘Singstanding‘, a play on words of where they are located in Kingstanding. The event brought together the local community in celebration of the Birmingham 2022 Cultural Festival. Together with the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire and many BSL interpreters, Your Love Lifts Me Up was performed as the finale to the event.
Your Love Lifts Me Up – Voice of our City performance with Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, SoundLab, CORE US and Shireland Collegiate Academy joining the BSL (British Sign Language) Community Chorus collaboration with Cedar Church showcased to a sold out Bradshaw Hall full of proud parents and families on Wednesday 29 June 2022.
Featuring Violin Introduction written and arranged by Caitlin & Eryna (aged 18 & 20) and soloist Tochi (aged 14).
At the Unicef Rights Respecting Celebrations Longwill School presented BSL Chorus Your Love Lifts Me Up to big cheers from the audience and lots of kids singing and signing along from the audience.
A new Launch Version of the song was released which includes an introduction from composer of the song, Andrew Kisumba and features deaf artist, Rebecca A. Withey, who wrote a brand new verse in BSL which has then been translated into English.
Your Love Lifts Me Up – BSL Community Chorus for Birmingham 2022 Cultural Festival was featured by Pam Rhodes (from BBC’s Songs of Praise) on Sunday Night Live.
Andrew Kisumba was interviewed on BBC Radio WM show – We Are West Midlands about the chorus and how it is spreading the word about the importance of BSL.
Cedar Church have been busy with representatives taking part in the Queen’s Baton Relay for Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. They were among the invited who attended the Dress Rehearsal for the Opening Ceremony.
Headteacher for Edgbaston High School for Girls publishes an article on HMC.org about the ‘Games for Everyone‘.
Your Love Lifts Me Up was shown at Edgbaston Village Commonwealth Games Special Artisan Market.
Cedar Church publish a Commonwealth Games Family Special video, which summarises many of the events the BSL Community Chorus have been involved in.
In support of the BSL Community Chorus, Cedar Church, Birmingham are providing free access to the official content on the Community Page of their free app. Download and enjoy a touch of BSL in the palm of your hand!
