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About Us

The VisEnsemble Choir was formed in September 2015, when two delightful gentlemen from the vision impaired community attended a conference in London, on the lives of visually impaired musicians. They were inspired by one of the presentations at the conference and with some help from a local organisation, they established The VisEnsemble. ... Under the direction of Mr. John Smith, The VisEnsemble Choir made its debut at the Fighting Blindness Retina Conference in November 2015. We have since built on that success with summer concerts, carolling and yearly appearances at the Dublin International Choral Festival. Currently the choir is made up of four parts; Sopranos, Altos, Tenors and Bass. We have a vast repertoire of songs, from classical to jazz to more popular songs. There is something for everyone!!

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Our Conductor

John Smith

Studied at Trinity College Dublin graduating with an Honours Degree in Music and a Higher Diploma in Education.

Taught music at second level for thirty years.

As a Conductor, John has long experience particulary in Choral Music. He has always been an enthusiastic advocate of Community Music and his whole career has been dedicated to bringing good music into the lives of others.

Being visually impaired himself, John has adopted ways to teaching and directing which caters for all degrees of vision loss.

Sample our song repertoire

The following audio files are a small representation of the arrangments we use.

Califorina Dreamin'

California Dreamin by The Mamas and Papas is an all time favourite Summer Concert song for The Visensamble Choir. In 2015, John adapted it for a small choir in SAB and added the Tenors later on when the choir had enough numbers.

Skyfall

During the pandemic, when our rehearsals had to go online, John started us on Skyfall by the British singer-songrwriter Adele. This four-part arrangement gave us hope and strength to carry on despite of all.

Feeling Good

The latest addition to our repertoire is the Nina Simone version of Feelin Good. With this, we started experimenting with different alto and Soprano harmonies and it feels so good!!

Sanctus

Sanctus by Sally K. Albrecht is a more recent addition to our song repertoire. It is a three-part melody with imitative textures and independent vocal parts. The emphasis of pure vowels and legato phrasing highlights the beauty of this stunning setting.

Words from some of our choir members

Elaine B. Smiling woman in her mid twenties with short wavy black hair.

"There's no judgement or expectations in the choir, you don't have to be a great singer or know how to read music. We learn everything by ear!"
Elaine B.

Jeremy D. Bearded man in his sixties wearing glasses and a black hat.

"John gives us audible directions and records downloadable audio learning files of all the songs so we can practice at home."
Jeremy D.

Mary K. Smiling lady in her early fifties wearing glasses.

"Our rehearsals always include a time for a cuppa and some homemade buns. I look really forward to catch up with my fellow choir members during this time."
Mary K.

Claire R. Blonde girl in her early twenties.

"Roger from Dublin bus used to accompany Mary and myself to Ely Place every Saturday morning until we felt confident enough to make the journey all on our own."
Claire R.

Kevin F. Man in his thirties wearing glasses and a goatie.

"Now, I spend some weekends in Mayo with my family. The choir has facilitated me to keep attending the Saturday rehearsals by logging onto Jamulus or Zoom."
Kevin F.

Barry D. Man in his thirties wearing dark glasses a cap and playing the harmonica.

"Getting out of the house and singing with the choir makes me feel good. They encourage me to focus on what I can achieve and not what I can't!"
Barry D.

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