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Reading Phoenix Choir founder Norman Morris
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‘Norman Morris was an inspiration’

By Chine Mbubaegbu
April 16, 2009

The founder and director of Reading Phoenix Choir has died just weeks before the group’s 40th anniversary concert.

Norman Morris, who was also due to celebrate his 82nd birthday next Friday, founded the now 50-strong choir in 1969.

Mr Morris, from Winnersh, was at the time a director of the Bachelor of Education degree course at Bulmershe College.

The keen pianist started the choir to provide an opportunity for trainee teachers who enjoyed singing to be part of a choral group and many of them wanted to continue singing after graduating.

Speaking in the Evening Post 24Seven entertainments guide last month, Mr Morris said: “The students who sung for me at Bulmershe wanted to go on singing when they left.

“This is why we called the new choir the Phoenix Choir – because we rose from the ashes.”

A number of events celebrating 40 years of the choir – which has performed around the world – were due to take place throughout the year.

The group organised a concert at The Hexagon on January 24, as well as Reading Festival of Choirs at Reading Concert Hall on March 28.

But Mr Morris had been suffering from a long period of illness and it was his last wish to make sure the choir’s celebration concert went ahead at the Concert Hall on May 2.

A statement on the choir’s website said: “As musical director he continued to inspire the choir and achieve success in national and international competitions for 40 years.

“He believed that commitment, hard work and the sheer joy of singing are the hallmarks of success. His enthusiasm was contagious and his humour kept the choir entertained.”

Choir chairman Gill Leischman said Mr Morris’s death would leave a “big hole” in the choir.

She said: “He has been ill for some time and we were hoping he was going to get through this year.

“We have done a lot of celebrating so far this year and we will continue to celebrate because that’s what he wanted.

“We’re very much a family at the choir and he was an inspiration to all of us. He gave us masses of experiences that we would never have had. His death has left a big hole.”

Mr Morris leaves behind a wife Rosemary and five children – two teenage daughters with Rosemary and three sons from a previous marriage.

Mrs Morris, who he had been married to for 23 years, said: “I have had such wonderful tributes from everybody saying how he changed so many lives with his music, but to me he was just a wonderful loving husband and a wonderful father. He will be very much missed.”

The choir had been due to have a thanksgiving service at Reading Minster on Sunday, May 3, but this will now be a memorial service for Mr Morris and will be held at midday at All Saints Church in Norreys Avenue, Wokingham.

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I read with interest your obituary of Norman Morris. Mr Morris was also a master of English in his teaching career and would have given low marks for Chine Mbubaegbu, who wrote the article, for poor research and poor English. There is no mention of Mr Morris' Teaching, Singing from Scratch or work with Alzheimer's sufferers. The choir (of which he had two over the years) was only one string to the Morris bow. Mbubaegbu - Go and write it again!