Meet musical extraordinaire Stephanie Pirrie

She might not want to teach the world to sing but Stephanie Pirrie definitely has her sights set on getting Oxford in tune.

A lifelong music lover, she’s has formed choirs, teaches singing, organises events and performs everything from smooth jazz to a blend of funk disco and folk.

Her latest project is Singing Saturdays, a monthly series of workshop-type sessions to be held in different historic venues across the city, for people who want to belt out some songs but don’t have time to join a choir.

Oh, and she’s working on an album to be released next year.

“I feel lucky to have all this music in my life,” says mum-of-three Stephanie, who teaches singing from her studio in Jericho.

And it’s a love which she wants to share.

“I am passionate about people from all walks of life coming together despite their wealth, religion, background or musical preference and believe that this is the cornerstone of living in a harmonious community which in turn brings health, happiness and resilience,” says Stephanie, 45.

“Healthy, inclusive communities are the future and music and the arts have a huge role to play in all of that.”

Her belief led her to set up the Jericho Singers in 2011 – “partly to bring the community together and partly to fulfil a lifelong ambition”.

Stephanie’s musical ambitions began at an early age.

“I taught myself to read music and to play the recorder when I was five and had a fantastic time producing the music for the plays at my local primary school,” she says. “My teacher used to leave it to me to train the other kids which I used to love.”

She went on to study trumpet at Cooper School in Bicester and was then a music scholar at Bloxham School.

“Although I was a good trumpet player and singer, the music teaching I received at school in those days felt very restrictive and focused mainly on classical music and I always really wanted to play other instruments like the fiddle, the drums, and the piano,” recalls Stephanie, mum to Maddie, 14, Joe, nine and Beth, six, and married to fellow musician and technical software developer/inventor Alastair.

“This was not something my teachers encouraged as they felt focus was important.”

Her father was a folk music fan; her mother loved jazz and Stephanie yearned for a broader music education.

“Being a bit disillusioned with the thought of music as a serious career I went to college and played for college orchestras and shows and on return to Oxford performed in various bands singing folk music and soul music and playing the trumpet,” she says.

“Around about the time I got married and had kids I decided that I could be in charge of my own musical education and sought musical friends, mentors and opportunities for developing my skills while being a mum and holding down various other part-time jobs.”

She also got involved in the Jericho Boatyard and Wharf project (jerichowharf.com) a campaign to acquire and develop the Castlemill Boatyard site on behalf of the community.

“It felt like Jericho was in danger of being gentrified and turned into a luxury housing development. The community here is passionately creative and full of good humour but was quite segregated into different groups which seemed to echo my experiences of music making,” she says.

So she set up the Jericho Singers to bring people together and raise money for the project.

Stephanie Pirrie with her Singing Saturdays partner Phillip Read pictured in front of Oxford's Holywell Music Rooms

“We perform canal folk music as well as taking a journey through all different styles of music including rock, jazz, musical theatre, gospel and African,” says Stephanie, who has trained as a choral director with the Association of British Choral Directors.

“While becoming more involved with the community project I also began a journey into jazz singing that has become an ongoing passion and something I really enjoy performing.”

Her current show includes classic pop tunes with jazz/funk influence, including the songs of Stevie Wonder and Randy Crawford.

“I love beautiful melodies mixed in with intense jazzy harmonies. It’s great to perform these songs in an intimate venue with a trio or quartet, raw, live and un-produced,” she says.

And, that’s not the end to Stephanie’s musical ventures.

“My most recent project Saedly Dorus and the Hoolie Band is one of my most fun and exciting musical ventures,” says Stephanie, who named the group after a childhood imaginary friend.

“Our hoolie nights are dance nights that bring everyone together. We play an infectious blend of funk disco and folk tunes with plenty of improvisation. Dancing is solo, couples or in groups, no experience required, we teach everything. I sing, play whistle and teach the dances.

“The band are fantastic musicians and improvisers and every night is a unique occasion.”

And next up is the Singing Saturdays project which she is setting up up along with Philip Read, who runs Manchoir, Oxford’s men’s community choir, and sings in the Spooky Men’s Chorale.

“We were both very keen to provide something for people who just can’t commit to a weekly choir, as the benefits of singing are so great. Jericho Singers rehearse in the amazing St Barnabas Church and we wanted to explore other amazing spaces that the city has to offer and help others to do so,” says Stephanie.

“We chose the Holywell Music Rooms as our first venue as it has wonderful acoustics and it is the oldest performing concert hall in Europe.

“Handel and Haydn are among the musicians who have performed there.”

The sessions are open to all – no training or previous musical experience is required as everything is taught by ear.

Two or three songs will be learned each self-contained session, with a short performance at the end of the day.

And if you think it’s too late to progress from singing in the shower to performing at a venerable music venue, think again.

“I’ve managed to learn the fiddle, piano and I’m now working on some percussion skills! It’s never to late to learn,” says Stephanie.