MARJORIE Pettit is passionate about music — an enthusiasm she has shared with three generations of Bermudians as founder of St. John’s Youth Choir.A graduate of The Royal Scottish Academy of Music & Drama, she came to Bermuda in 1966 to work as a teacher, first at Prospect Primary and later Saltus Junior School. She also served as musical director for the Bermuda Musical & Dramatic Society (BMDS), the Gilbert & Sullivan Society and the Saltus Concert Society, before opening her own private studio more than 20 years ago, teaching piano, singing and music theory.

However her greatest challenge came ten years ago. It was then Mrs. Pettit decided to establish the St. John’s Youth Choir, a community choir serving Bermuda’s youth.

“I’d always worked with adult choirs,” she said. “For a while I juggled both but it was too much. I decided to go with the children because there seemed to be fewer people doing that and I also found that there wasn’t as much class singing at schools as there used to be. I thought that was what I would really enjoy because at both Prospect and Saltus we had large choirs and I loved working with school choirs, so I thought we could start this.”

She started with 14 children, practising for what would become regular performances at St. John’s church. But while the choir was rearing to go during rehearsals, performances in front of a large audience was another story. Mrs. Pettit recalls that many of the children were so intimidated by the congregation that they could barely raise their voices loud enough to be heard at the back of the room.

“I kept saying this is not working. I can’t hear these children. I’m wasting my time. But it just sort of built up and built up and it took a couple of years to get a group together that made an impact, but since then it has really developed,” she added. “They are excellent now. This past year is the best year I’ve had and next year promises to be even better.”

In the past decade, the choir has swelled to 64 with members ranging from seven to 18. Divided into three groups according to age, it is a showcase for some of the finest voices in public and private schools across the island. Together, they perform at various concerts throughout the year and at the morning service at St. John’s, every two weeks. Regular attendance at the church is only expected of eight members who have received music scholarships in its name.

As explained by Mrs. Pettit, her main aim is to teach the art of singing — to expose the youngsters to as many musical styles as possible while exploring the vast range of classical repertoire available.

“The way the choir is set up everyone benefits. The community benefits because there is this free tuition with four professional musicians, including myself attached to the choir. And because the community is so generous, we have funds to support the scholarship scheme as much as the church, plus there is the unique experience for these children in performing with an orchestra.”

The St. John’s Choir first made headlines in 1991 when Mrs. Pettit embarked on a series of Heritage Month concerts. Now a regular feature in annual Heritage Month celebrations, the concerts have featured performances by some of Mrs. Pettit’s former pupils, including Kerri-Lynne Dietz who was “discovered” by the music teacher while attending Mount St. Agnes. A Mezzo Soprano, she recently completed her first year at the Royal Academy of Music in London, and dreams of performing at the world’s greatest opera houses.

Her work isn’t limited to directing, Mrs. Pettit is also called upon to compose.

She added: “The children don’t get to perform concertos because they need orchestral accompaniment and in the past Mandy Wong and Leidy Sinclair have performed and next year we’ll have Katherine and Christine Allison as well as Jordan Robbins and Chelsea Mayeaux.

“One of the main components of the choir performing at these concerts is that with the concertos, the composers wrote the orchestral parts, but for the pieces the children sing, there is no orchestral part written so I have to do that. It takes months. I have to score the parts for the orchestra, so everything the orchestra plays I’ve written. I have to do this all the time.”

The 64-year-old, who has never wanted to be anything but a musician throughout her life, has been surrounded by music since she was born — her father was a concert violinist and teaching is a dream come true.

“It’s a tremendous sense of satisfaction getting a group to performance level and it’s with a sense of wonderment that I see these children loving this art form, despite the onslaught of pop culture. Pop music is fine, but it doesn’t require the discipline that classical music requires.”

One thing she has noticed over the last 40 years is how well her pupils do academically because of their involvement in a music programme.

She boasts that many of her choir members not only sing, but can also play up to two instruments — and they successfully juggle their music with their school work.

“They have to be in order to learn quickly. It’s a very demanding art form. The self discipline required.... and you have to be able to organise yourself. They also need to be able to struggle with competition and learn to deal with disappointment.

“These kids have given it a chance, realised they love it and want more. And that’s what is exciting... opening up this wonderful repertoire to a new generation.”

Despite her overwhelming love for teaching, the preparations involved can be tiring, Mrs. Pettit admitted. However she appreciated that students from 40 years ago sometimes bump into her on the street and reminisce over times gone by.

“It happens all the time,” she said, adding that she has found herself teaching the children of former students and, in some cases, their grandchildren.

“I like to teach from 3.30 p.m. until 7 p.m. It’s pretty bang, bang, bang. It’s exhausting. And when I compare it to hands-on teaching at Saltus, which was between three and hour hours with breaks in-between, this is almost four hours of solid teaching.

“So yes, by the time I go up (to my house) I don’t speak to my husband because I am literally speechless,” she laughed.