Spinnaker Chorus Lead wins Young Barbershopper of the Year Award!
This is Ellie.
Ellie is a great lead in Spinnaker and a great bass in the LABBS Youth Chorus.
Ellie is also the winner of The Katy Phillips Young Barbershopper of the Year award (ooooh)
Congratulations Ellie
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About Ellie:
In just two years our Ellie has embraced barbershop with real enthusiasm. She joined the Lead section of Spinnaker Chorus, passed her auditions in record time-submitting recordings of more than twenty songs within months and, earned her spot on the front row. With excellent attendance and a warm welcome for new members, she helps make Spinnaker be supportive and inclusive.
Ellie also sings with the LABBS Youth Chorus, attending rehearsals whenever she can. When the Youth Chorus needed basses, she switched from Lead to Bass, sometimes singing as the only bass at rehearsal. As a dual club member, she has also successfully passed the challenge of learning the same song in two different parts for the same convention!
She brings plenty of fun to the groups she sings with —from dressing up as an inflatable shark at her first convention in Bournemouth to becoming a hairy bearded ukulele man at retreat. Enough said!
Her dedication to learning and joy in singing promise a bright future in barbershop.
Congratulations Ellie Spinnaker are so proud to have you sing with us.
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About the award:
Katy Phillips was a young woman with a real love of barbershop, who contributed so much to our hobby and to those around her before she passed away in April 2015, aged just 28. Katy was passionate about youth development, and about making sure that young singers had every opportunity to learn, grow and thrive in barbershop.
To honour her memory and recognise her contribution, the Katy Phillips Young Barbershopper of the Year Award was established.
At the request of the Phillips family, donations made in Katy’s memory fund both the award and an annual bursary, which supports the recipient’s ongoing barbershop education each year – a fitting legacy for someone who cared so deeply about the next generation of singers.
Nominations are received each year and are assessed by a panel of Board members and members of Katy’s family.
The award was presented to Ellie by Katy’s mum, Teresa.