Buskerteers Choir celebrate raising £100,000 for charity

The Buskerteers Choir was formed in January 2020 as its founder set off on a mission to raise £1million by busking and performing.

Now, three years on, the group is celebrating raising more than £100,000 for good causes.

“At the beginning it felt a bit far-fetched, and I thought it might take me 100 years,” said founder Andrew Small.

Boss - Andrew Small (Image: Buskerteers Choir)

The 35-year-old, who has lived in Colchester for the last decade, added: “Having reached ten per cent of our target in three years means it feels like much more of a reality now.”

More than 1,000 people have joined Andrew on his mission, with the organisation now running 16 choirs across the east of England.

The musician, who previously toured the UK as a freelancer, continued: “It blows my mind that a normal bloke like me could create something which has done so much good.

“This is a combination of all the things I wanted to do with my life.”

Musicians - members of the Buskerteers Choir (Image: Buskerteers Choir)

The choir got off to a flying start but its progress was halted within a few months as the country entered its first Covid lockdown, but the kind-hearted musicians were undeterred and pioneered a virtual choir.

Self-recorded videos of choir members singing Ben E. King’s Stand By Me were stitched together to make a heart-warming montage which went viral on social media and raised £30,000 for NHS Charities Together.

The group has since raised thousands of pounds for other great causes including the Royal British Legion, and Comic Relief, and the fundraisers were even nominated for a Pride of Britain Award.

Members decide together which charities they would like to fundraise for.

“We recently raised £10,000 for The Brain Tumour Charity as I was involved in raising money for a young girl with a brain tumour previously and one of my members had also been impacted by a brain tumour,” explained Andrew.

There’s lots to look forward to for the talented ensemble – with theatre shows and festivals in the diary, and Andy’s team is gearing up to launch new choirs in Bishops Stortford and Dunmow.