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| ‘It gives me freedom within’: prison choirs are transforming lives | ‘It gives me freedom within’: prison choirs are transforming lives |
| (about 8 hours later) | |
| Richie remembers the first time he sang properly: mouth wide open, lungs full of air. “It gave me freedom within,” says the 53-year-old. “I was suddenly able to see colour, life.” The sense of freedom felt novel. Not only because Richie felt trapped by the terrible crime he had committed, but also because he was incarcerated deep inside Wandsworth prison. | Richie remembers the first time he sang properly: mouth wide open, lungs full of air. “It gave me freedom within,” says the 53-year-old. “I was suddenly able to see colour, life.” The sense of freedom felt novel. Not only because Richie felt trapped by the terrible crime he had committed, but also because he was incarcerated deep inside Wandsworth prison. |
| More precisely, Richie was locked within the jail’s Trinity wing, a triple-storeyed Victorian corridor in an overcrowded prison repeatedly criticised by inspectors and where drugs and violence were rife. | More precisely, Richie was locked within the jail’s Trinity wing, a triple-storeyed Victorian corridor in an overcrowded prison repeatedly criticised by inspectors and where drugs and violence were rife. |
| When word went round in April 2014 that volunteers from a community choir were about to enter the jail, Richie was curious. Along with 20 others he went along to Trinity’s chapel and sang. It was a decision which, he says, saved his life. “I would have ended it. I had nothing to live for. All the pain that had held me back drained away as my brain ran riot with harmonies,” says Richie, grinning at the memory. | When word went round in April 2014 that volunteers from a community choir were about to enter the jail, Richie was curious. Along with 20 others he went along to Trinity’s chapel and sang. It was a decision which, he says, saved his life. “I would have ended it. I had nothing to live for. All the pain that had held me back drained away as my brain ran riot with harmonies,” says Richie, grinning at the memory. |
| Among those who attended the first visit into Wandsworth by Liberty Choir was Ross, a former senior army officer who took part in the 2003 invasion of Iraq with the King’s Regiment and who, after entering civvy street, was jailed for VAT fraud. | Among those who attended the first visit into Wandsworth by Liberty Choir was Ross, a former senior army officer who took part in the 2003 invasion of Iraq with the King’s Regiment and who, after entering civvy street, was jailed for VAT fraud. |
| Ross entered Trinity’s chapel five years ago at the “lowest point of my life”. As with Richie, the impact of what happened next was profound. | Ross entered Trinity’s chapel five years ago at the “lowest point of my life”. As with Richie, the impact of what happened next was profound. |
| “From then I knew there was a space I could be safe in,” recalls Ross. “I could be free in that room with the choir for a couple of hours a week. There was genuine freedom in that room. The love from those people that came to see us was so important,” adds the 47-year-old. | “From then I knew there was a space I could be safe in,” recalls Ross. “I could be free in that room with the choir for a couple of hours a week. There was genuine freedom in that room. The love from those people that came to see us was so important,” adds the 47-year-old. |
| One of those people was an American vocal coach MJ Paranzino who urged Richie and Ross to sing at the limit of their emotional and technical capacity. | |
| By then Paranzino had spent nearly a decade trying to persuade government officials to let her into Wandsworth prison. Her work – through MJ’s Choirs, four community choirs in London and the South East – in homes for the elderly and neurological hospital wards had convinced her that communal singing transformed the mindset of vulnerable and traumatised individuals. “These were places people didn’t normally visit, where people were forgotten.” | |
| Paranzino also had harrowing firsthand experience of how a justice system that offered no prospect of rehabilitation or hope promised only bleak outcomes. | Paranzino also had harrowing firsthand experience of how a justice system that offered no prospect of rehabilitation or hope promised only bleak outcomes. |
| George, her dear friend and relative, was a heroin user on the merry-go-round of short prison stays and rehabilitation. In February 2002 George left his latest rehabilitation session and slid back into heroin dependency. Not long afterwards he hung himself, aged 43. | George, her dear friend and relative, was a heroin user on the merry-go-round of short prison stays and rehabilitation. In February 2002 George left his latest rehabilitation session and slid back into heroin dependency. Not long afterwards he hung himself, aged 43. |
| Paranzino said: “I do this for George because he was a good guy, a hard worker who had many skills. He was loved by all who knew him but he suffered from bipolar, abuse in early life and the prison of addiction. “ | Paranzino said: “I do this for George because he was a good guy, a hard worker who had many skills. He was loved by all who knew him but he suffered from bipolar, abuse in early life and the prison of addiction. “ |
| Since that first meeting with Richie and Ross, Paranzino’s Liberty Choir has inspired hundreds of Wandsworth prisoners through 250 weekly sessions where volunteers and prisoners sing alongside one another. Many of those have since escaped the cycle of crime and punishment. | |
| Ross was stunned at how abruptly the posturing and rivalries of prison life were swept away when the choir began singing tracks such as Jessie J’s Price Tag or ran through classic show tunes. | |
| Opening your lungs and singing at top notch makes you vulnerable - but what a feeling | Opening your lungs and singing at top notch makes you vulnerable - but what a feeling |
| “No matter how tough their background, they were all emotionally vulnerable. Opening your lungs and singing at top notch makes you vulnerable – but when you get it right, what a feeling,” he said. | “No matter how tough their background, they were all emotionally vulnerable. Opening your lungs and singing at top notch makes you vulnerable – but when you get it right, what a feeling,” he said. |
| There was also a sense of reclaiming something that had been taken away. “You feel society has rejected you. It has committed an act of calculated violence against you by removing your liberty,” added Ross. | There was also a sense of reclaiming something that had been taken away. “You feel society has rejected you. It has committed an act of calculated violence against you by removing your liberty,” added Ross. |
| At its most minimal the Liberty Choir, according to former inmates, loosens the pressure cooker tension of prison. Former crack cocaine addict John, another ex-Wandsworth inmate who credits the choir with altering his destiny, said: “There’s a lot of anger inside prison, a repressed bitterness that needs to be released. There was one guy who was so uptight that if you said: ‘Boo!’ to him he’d kick off. After he started going to Liberty that energy was channelled. He became more open and could talk about his feelings. After a visit from the choir you would see people actually grow.” | At its most minimal the Liberty Choir, according to former inmates, loosens the pressure cooker tension of prison. Former crack cocaine addict John, another ex-Wandsworth inmate who credits the choir with altering his destiny, said: “There’s a lot of anger inside prison, a repressed bitterness that needs to be released. There was one guy who was so uptight that if you said: ‘Boo!’ to him he’d kick off. After he started going to Liberty that energy was channelled. He became more open and could talk about his feelings. After a visit from the choir you would see people actually grow.” |
| Accompanying Paranzino from the choir’s conception has been co-founder, journalist and writer Ginny Dougary, who said it had become evident how huge the impact of collective singing had been on previously isolated individuals during sessions in MJ’s Choirs in the community. “I could see their body language change. | Accompanying Paranzino from the choir’s conception has been co-founder, journalist and writer Ginny Dougary, who said it had become evident how huge the impact of collective singing had been on previously isolated individuals during sessions in MJ’s Choirs in the community. “I could see their body language change. |
| “Closed faces become open, people started smiling, their shoulders relaxed and they started to make new friends in the choir. | “Closed faces become open, people started smiling, their shoulders relaxed and they started to make new friends in the choir. |
| “If it worked for people in the community, how powerful could it be for people who are forgotten and languishing in prison cells, sometimes for 23 hours in a day?” | “If it worked for people in the community, how powerful could it be for people who are forgotten and languishing in prison cells, sometimes for 23 hours in a day?” |
| For many the transformative effect has been permanent. Richie had never spent two consecutive Christmases outside prison before he met the choir. Now it is five and counting. | For many the transformative effect has been permanent. Richie had never spent two consecutive Christmases outside prison before he met the choir. Now it is five and counting. |
| Central to that success has, he said, been a group of volunteers from MJ’s Choirs he calls Team Richie. They helped him integrate into society, secure a home, find a job as a fabricated metal worker, even ensuring he had a suit for the funeral of his grandmother, Lucille. | Central to that success has, he said, been a group of volunteers from MJ’s Choirs he calls Team Richie. They helped him integrate into society, secure a home, find a job as a fabricated metal worker, even ensuring he had a suit for the funeral of his grandmother, Lucille. |
| Richie, convicted in 1989 of murder after a fight culminated in tragedy, believes he has turned the corner. He says the choir lit a creative flame that sees him currently doing volunteer work at a Kent theatre while other opportunities include singing at the Victoria and Albert museum in London. | Richie, convicted in 1989 of murder after a fight culminated in tragedy, believes he has turned the corner. He says the choir lit a creative flame that sees him currently doing volunteer work at a Kent theatre while other opportunities include singing at the Victoria and Albert museum in London. |
| By his own admission Richie cannot stop singing, not only to brighten his mood but to try and spread joy. Even on commuter journeys he frequently breaks into song. “The train could be packed, but 99% of the time the carriage joins in.” | By his own admission Richie cannot stop singing, not only to brighten his mood but to try and spread joy. Even on commuter journeys he frequently breaks into song. “The train could be packed, but 99% of the time the carriage joins in.” |
| Ross also credits Liberty Choir with opening up a hitherto hidden creativity. He has started composing his own songs and so far has written more than 60 tracks and joined a local choir. | Ross also credits Liberty Choir with opening up a hitherto hidden creativity. He has started composing his own songs and so far has written more than 60 tracks and joined a local choir. |
| Outside the prison walls, MJ’s Choirs run weekly in the community (South London Choir, West London Choir, Brighton City Singers and Hastings Town Singers; all choirs who have volunteers who go into prisons to form Liberty Choir). | Outside the prison walls, MJ’s Choirs run weekly in the community (South London Choir, West London Choir, Brighton City Singers and Hastings Town Singers; all choirs who have volunteers who go into prisons to form Liberty Choir). |
| Dougary says they are crucial to helping former inmates attempting to integrate into society, a safe space where they can meet volunteers from all walks of life and feel part of something. | Dougary says they are crucial to helping former inmates attempting to integrate into society, a safe space where they can meet volunteers from all walks of life and feel part of something. |
| During one recent session at a primary school in Balham, south London, former inmates could be seen belting out Broadway favourites among a crowd of more than 75 singers. | During one recent session at a primary school in Balham, south London, former inmates could be seen belting out Broadway favourites among a crowd of more than 75 singers. |
| One was Justin, released from Wandsworth 18 days earlier after four years. Like many before him, the 27-year-old was bewildered by the shock of being hurled back into society with nowhere to live and no job. “I came here because I was looking for support, something. Singing took my mind off things inside. It’s great to be here.” | One was Justin, released from Wandsworth 18 days earlier after four years. Like many before him, the 27-year-old was bewildered by the shock of being hurled back into society with nowhere to live and no job. “I came here because I was looking for support, something. Singing took my mind off things inside. It’s great to be here.” |
| Such testimony from former offenders has allowed the charity to expand into another two prisons, High Down and Downview, both in Surrey – the latter a women’s jail. Rehabilitation proponents such as the former secretary of state for justice Michael Gove are among those championing the scheme’s expansion. | Such testimony from former offenders has allowed the charity to expand into another two prisons, High Down and Downview, both in Surrey – the latter a women’s jail. Rehabilitation proponents such as the former secretary of state for justice Michael Gove are among those championing the scheme’s expansion. |
| Ultimately, Paranzino and Dougary hope every UK prison will have a Liberty Choir along with a network of local community choirs that Liberty prison graduates can join. | Ultimately, Paranzino and Dougary hope every UK prison will have a Liberty Choir along with a network of local community choirs that Liberty prison graduates can join. |
| “That is the dream,” said Dougary. “We know the model works and we are very grateful for having had the privilege to make a positive impact on a lot of people’s lives, including our own.” | “That is the dream,” said Dougary. “We know the model works and we are very grateful for having had the privilege to make a positive impact on a lot of people’s lives, including our own.” |
| Paranzino believes that something more profound would take place if similar choir initiatives were rolled out nationwide. | Paranzino believes that something more profound would take place if similar choir initiatives were rolled out nationwide. |
| “The more people that I can get in to see the good, bad and ugly of the prison system, the more likely we can change it.” | |
| To get tickets to the Liberty Choir fundraiser at Kings Place, London, on 23 June, featuring the choir and Stephen Fry, visit kingsplace.co.uk. You can donate to liberty choir at libertychoir.org. | |
| To get tickets to the Liberty Choir fundraiser at Kings Place, London, on 23 June, featuring the choir and Stephen Fry, visit kingsplace.co.uk. You can donate to liberty choir at libertychoir.org. | |
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