It’s the choir that doesn’t sing! But Wrexham’s Singing Hands will be making music in Eagles Meadow shopping centre on Saturday, May 7.
The lyrics are all in the hands for the nine-strong group which was formed by members of Wrexham Deaf Club.
Most of the group are profoundly deaf or hard of hearing and range in age from 22 to the Deaf Club’s chairman Malcolm Vaughan, from Plas Madoc, who is 72 and lost his hearing thanks to a bomb blast when he was a toddler in the last war.
Singing Hands, formed in June last year, is led by Claire Hawkins who interprets the songs into sign language for the members to sign and dance along to.
Claire is secretary of the Wrexham Deaf Club. “I started signing in 2007 and I am now in my second year at Level 3,” she said.
Those officially registered for the British Sign Language (BSL) courses have to study at Level 1 for one year, Level 2 for two years, three years at Level 3 and then have to take two years out to prove they are working amongst the deaf community.
They then sit exams at Level 6 (corr) and if successful they can become interpreters.
“I’ve always been interested in sign language and just fell in love with it and started attending the Deaf Club, we meet every Thursday at the Victoria Centre opposite the Little Theatre and every Friday night at the Wrexham Railway Club.
“Then the club asked me to become secretary. At the moment it’s all voluntary work and the work with the choir. I would like to get into interpreting if I can move up the courses.
“I interpret the songs and the group follow me doing the actions and the signing. Deaf people do know music. They can feel the vibrations in their body and through the floor and with sign singing there is a flow.
“Because we are signing the words they understand what is being said. It looks a bit like dancing because we are doing the movements in unison,”
she said.
Claire studied sign language at Yale College in Wrexham for levels 1 and 2, but attends a centre in Colwyn Bay for her Level 3 course.
“We do all sorts of music from latest chart songs by people like Adele to more traditional, perhaps Tom Jones, it’s quite a mixture.”
Claire and Club members also carry out school visits. “We have set up deaf awareness for children in the 8-9 year age groups and we want to make them aware of the dangers to their hearing having things like MP3 players blasting away in their ears.
“We do some sign singing for them to make it fun and some of the members go along to answer questions the children may have about deafness.
“There is ignorance about deafness and hard of hearing so perhaps if we can catch these children now there will be less ignorance in the future,”
she said.
Eagles Meadow Manager Kevin Critchley said: I’m very pleased to be hosting Singing Hands as they are a Wrexham Group. I remember the performance last year of the Chester Deaf Society which was both entertaining and moving.
“I would urge anyone from our community who would like to see a good show or who has a friend or relative with hearing problems to come and watch Singing Hands and give them the support they deserve.
“I am sure that Singing Hands will be a big hit and I hope it will help them raise awareness – and a lot of money for the choir.”
The group will be performing at Eagles Meadow on May 7, probably between 10.30am and 3pm.
