Tim Webster Cheshire, England Writes music for youth choirs
On "Magic of Muziki", Tim's book of songs for youth choirs: "Having lived for five years in Kenya as a child, I grew up with a little knowledge of Swahili, no TV and plenty of opportunities to be creative! As I began teaching Music back in England, I discovered a passion for writing songs for my junior and senior choirs in my secondary schools and I also wrote for primary school choirs. For the past thirty years, I have had the privilege of teaching and hearing these songs performed in a variety of school and community venues.
The ‘Magic of Muziki’ (Swahili for ‘Music’) brings together the songs that I have found have engaged and inspired my students and I hope they will do the same for anyone who either teaches or sings them in the future. I am very aware that every vocal group is different and I have deliberately written harmonies that add colour and warmth, whilst composing melodies that stand alone should you wish to sing them in unison. I have also produced slower tempo versions of the backing tracks, as I use a lot of words in my songs(!) and some singers may require more processing time to be able to relax and sing them at a pace that suits them.
The twenty songs cover a range of topics and musical styles. ‘Sounds of Africa’ includes some Swahili phrases that I picked up as a child, where motifs are layered and there is an opportunity for body percussion. When in Kenya, my grandfather helped with Swahili-English translation and it is such a wonderful language to sing! ‘Halloweeny Moon’ potentially introduces a few new words to the English dictionary (can you spot them all?) and is a tongue-twister challenge! ‘Man on The Train’ keeps the surprise of who has stolen the man’s heart until the end of the song. ‘Recalculate’ was inspired by long car journeys where my Sat Nav told me to ‘recalculate’ a few times too many and I promised my children that one day I would write a song about it! So, songs like these bring energy and fun to both performers and their audiences. They also lend themselves really well to actions!
I do see song-writing as an opportunity to tackle some of the serious issues that face our young people. ‘I Say’ and ‘Nothing Wrong with Me’ both tackle bullying and low self-esteem where the words seek to lift those who have been affected and show them that people around them do care and can help. ‘Standing in The Rain’ and ‘Calling SOS’ focus on how, as responsible citizens, we can help those facing difficult circumstances by showing compassion and taking action. ‘Together for A Day’ tells the story of the friendship that was shown on Christmas Day during the cease-fire truces on the battlefields during World War 1. ‘Butterfly Land On Me’ is a metaphor for friendship and also touches on the wonderful relationship between humanity and nature. ‘Ten Smiles a Day’ was written to reflect the incredible support young and adult carers give to those with dementia and my students had planned to take the songs into care homes to sing with the residents and staff - hopefully this can happen one day soon; or perhaps it is something you could do! Finally, there are a number of songs which tell the Christmas Story including, the upbeat ‘Bethlehem’ and ‘Christmas Star’ and the slower, thought-provoking, ‘Silent Night’ and ‘Star in The East.’ These have proved very popular in Christmas Concerts and School and Church Carol services.
I have always been inspired by the phrase “Music is heard with the ears but understood with the heart”, and what has inspired me to keep composing is the way that the young people have sung these songs from their hearts, with passion and conviction. Moving solos and uplifting chorus performances have, on magical occasions, allowed audiences (in the words of ‘Star in The East’) to really have “teardrops in their eyes.” Where Music touches our lives and moves us to reflect, change or act for good, there-in lies its magic - the ‘Magic of Muziki’. In the words of the title song: “Magical Musical, Marvellous Musical, I’ve got the Magic of Muziki setting me free!”
Magic of Muziki - Piano and Vocal Scores - For Youth Choirs - Sheet Music (Physical Copy) - By Tim Webster
£34.99
Magic of Muziki - Piano and Vocal Scores with CD Set - For Youth Choirs - Sheet Music (Physical Copy) with Audio CDs - By Tim Webster
£37.99
Magic of Muziki - Piano and Vocal Scores with Audio File Set - For Youth Choirs - Sheet Music (PDF Download) with Audio Files - By Tim Webster
£32.99
Magic of Muziki - Vocal Scores - For Youth Choirs - Sheet Music (Physical Copy) - By Tim Webster
£24.99
Magic of Muziki - Vocal Scores with CD Set - For Youth Choirs - Sheet Music (Physical Copy) with Audio CDs - By Tim Webster
£34.99
Magic of Muziki - Vocal Scores with Audio File Set - For Youth Choirs - Sheet Music (PDF Download) with Audio Files - By Tim Webster
£29.99
Calling SOS for Youth Choir, with Piano Accompaniment - Sheet Music (PDF Download) with Backing Tracks - Includes Piano/Vocal Score, Vocal Score (with guitar chords), Lyrics Sheet, Backing Track and Slow Backing Track - By Tim Webster
£10.99
Christmas Star for Youth Choir, with Piano Accompaniment - Sheet Music (PDF Download) with Backing Tracks - Includes Piano/Vocal Score, Vocal Score (with guitar chords), Lyrics Sheet, Backing Track, and Slow Backing Track - By Tim Webster
£10.99
Gloria for Youth Choir, with Piano Accompaniment - Sheet Music (PDF Download) - Includes Piano/Vocal Score (with brass quartet and drum kit parts), Vocal Score (with guitar chords), Lyrics Sheet, Backing Track, and Slow Backing Track - By Tim Webster
£11.99
Halloweeny Moon for Youth Choir, with Piano Accompaniment - Sheet Music (PDF Download) with Backing Tracks - Includes Piano/Vocal Score, Vocal Score (with guitar chords), Lyrics Sheet, Backing Track, and Slow Backing Track - By Tim Webster
£10.99
I Say for Youth Choir, with Piano Accompaniment - Sheet Music (PDF Download) with Backing Track - Includes Piano/Vocal Score, Vocal Score (with guitar chords), Lyrics Sheet, and Backing Track - By Tim Webster
£9.99
Macbeth for Youth Choir, with Piano Accompaniment - Sheet Music (PDF Download) with Backing Tracks - Includes Piano/Vocal Score, Vocal Score (with guitar chords), Lyrics Sheet, Backing Track, and Slow Backing Track - By Tim Webster
