St John at Hackney

NEW TO ST JOHN'S - HACKNEY VOICES
Cleo and Jo teach songs from the rich and varied local traditions of Africa, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece and Spain as well as British/Celtic folk songs. They also teach their own arrangements of classic soul and pop songs.

The sessions are friendly and informal and everything is taught by ear so don’t worry if you don’t read music. They welcome everyone from ‘only in the bath’ singers to ‘would be performers’.

If you’ve every wanted to sing a-cepella,

THIS IS IT!

Cleo Bayley
Cleo Bayley is a singer song-writer once signed to Warner Chapel Publishing and having performed with various bands, she has gone on to set up a variety of community music groups in and around London since the early Noughties. Projects have included MAKE SOME NOISE music workshops for parents and toddlers in Jackson's Lane Community centre and teaching singing and song writing skills to excluded children through the Children's Fund in Wandsworth schools and play shemes.

In 2002 Cleo co-founded CREATIVE INCLUSION and has managed and taught on a variety of exciting projects with young people and adults combining the mediums of poetry, art, musicianship and voice to produce original material in and of local communities.

Cleo currently runs the Parent and child Group at St Paul’s Steiner school 3 days a week and is working with Maya Waldman........ and MUSIC FROM THE MOUTH engaging with young people and their voices in local schools and community centres. Cleo lives in Dalston with her long suffering (!) husband and 2 beautiful kids.

Joanna Foster
Joanna Foster has been leading choirs in and around London for over 10 years. She co-founded world a-capella group KITE with Helen Chadwick and Venice Manley......... and is a regular singer in the Helen Chadwick Group (recently featured on Radio 3 and regulars in The Linbury Studio at The Royal Opera House.)

In 2007 Jo formed ANIMA a four piece a-capella group to show case her remarkable performance piece VISIONS OF SEVEN a mystical blend of jazz, poetry and folk which has performed to great acclaim in art centres, festivals and charity events across the country. Jo also sings in local Eastern European Folk Band BESKYDY often found raising the roof in Islington Folk Club.

As well as singing and composing music Jo enjoys a successful acting career including work with the RSC, NATIONAL THEATRE and a variety of TV works. She lives in Clapton, Hackney with her lovely husband and son.