Rudsambee was created and built up by Sheena Phillips, an inspirational leader, dynamic organiser and true friend. In January 2000 she moved to the USA, where she has developed a busy and successful career as composer, music publisher, choir director and singer. After that we enjoyed seven successful and adventurous years under the direction of Frances Cockburn, until she moved on to create a brilliant new group, the Wild Myrtles, and later the trio Simmerdim. We then asked Ollie Singleton — at the time a music student in the University of Edinburgh, and our youngest member — to lead us, which he did with success and distinction until mid-2012. Fortune smiled on us once again when we persuaded Ciara Coleman to take over, bringing us new music, new skills, and a great deal of fun. She moved back to Ireland in Autumn 2016 to pursue her career. We were lucky once again in finding Derrick Morgan to take the reins until he left to take up the position of Assistant Conductor of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra in September 2023. We are now enjoying singing under our new director Ian Munro, and Rudsambee continues from strength to strength.
We have enjoyed visits to/from
- The choir À travers chants from Cormatin in Burgundy (2018).
- The Hepton Singers from Hebden Bridge in Yorkshire (2016 and 2017)
- London-based Voxcetera (2014 and 2016)
- Soon Amore from York (2004)
- Svatobor Choir from Sušice in the Czech Republic (2007 and 2008)
- from Norway
- Grendakor from Nordås (Bergen) (2007)
- the Liga av Sang og Munterhed
- Kammerkoret Cantemus (2004)
- Tjølling Sangforening (2003)
- Straumsnes Songlag and Abildsø Bygdekor (1998)
- Københavns Folkekor from Denmark (1999)
Our own travels have taken us to
- Cormatin in Burgundy, to visit the choir À travers chants (2017).
- Sušice (2008) in the Czech Republic
- Westport (2014) and Sligo (2003) in Ireland
- Coleraine (2002) in Northern Ireland
- Stavanger and Arendal (2002) in Norway
- and Arran (2005)
as well as two tours of venues in the North-West of Scotland (1999 and 2006), with support from Awards for All and Highlands and Islands Arts.
We made seven CDs in the days when that technology was popular.
Here is a more detailed account of what we can remember of our early history. If you have anything to augment it, please e-mail us.
Here are listings, year by year, of our past performances.
We are preparing a album of photos old and new which you will be able to access here in due course.
