Local musician Abby Smith, best known as one half of the duo Smith and Jones, has worked with Vivability for much of this year to assist clients in forming a choir.

Ms Smith said the disability support service approached her to run the choir, knowing that music could provide a long list of benefits.

“The benefits for them are the same for everyone who participates in any kind of music, particularly singing,” she said. “It brings joy to people, it brings confidence.”

The choir, Vivability Voices, has about 15 regular participants, but this fluctuates from week to week depending on who wants to join the singing sessions.

Originally, Ms Smith planned on conducting the choir for fun, but the participants decided they wanted to work hard so they could perform at the Bathurst Eisteddfod.

It was a goal she was more than happy to accommodate. 

“It didn’t even cross my mind to enter, but the very first day we started Vivability Voices they were like “we want to do the eisteddfod” – it was their idea,” Ms Smith said.

Vivability Voices rehearses once a week, covering all kinds of songs by artists such as The Eagles, Katy Perry and even Led Zeppelin.

“We’ve got about 15 songs that we do every week, but if there is a song they want to do, I try to play it and they sing,” Ms Smith said. 

For the Eisteddfod, the choir will be singing Roar by Katy Perry. 

The performance is scheduled for 6.30pm on Saturday, September 10, and the members of Vivability Voices hope the community will come to the eisteddfod to support them.

“It is a really positive thing for me, just as it is for them,” Ms Smith said. “They are super excited; I am, too.” 

Ms Smith said when she was approached to run the choir her initial thought was that teaching people with disabilities would be different to what she was used to.

However, it didn’t take long for her to realise that her thoughts were far from the reality.

“Their disabilities don’t affect their desire to sing or their desire to communicate or to socialise either,” she said.