North Brisbane students join Anzac Day choir in France

Three north Brisbane students will perform with a youth choir in France on Anzac Day.

Emily Moore, a Year 9 student at St John Fisher College, will perform with the Voices of Birralee Anzac Commemorative Youth Choir in France on Anzac Day.

THREE north Brisbane students have been selected to perform with the Voices of Birralee Anzac Commemorative Youth Choir in France on Anzac Day.

They are St John Fisher College Year 9 student Emily Moore and St Paul’s School Year 12 students Joshua Phillips and Madeline Harper.

They will join other youth choristers who start their European tour next week, with a finale at the Anzac Day Dawn Service and Commemoration of the Battle of Villers-Bretonneux at the Australian National Memorial.

St Paul’s School Year 12 students Joshua Phillips and Madeline Harper will join the Voices of Birralee choir in France on Anzac Day. The tour means they miss their high school formal, so will wear their tie and tiara on the flight overseas.

Emily, 15, said she felt very proud and privileged to be chosen to lay a Remembrance Poppy on the grave at the memorial.

“I am so excited for the tour and I feel truly blessed and honoured to have been selected to represent both my college and my country,” she said.

Emily began singing with Voices of Birralee one year ago and is one of a select few 15-16-year olds who have been chosen for the Choir and international tour.

Joshua said the opportunity to sing at the dawn service in France “will be an experience I know I will never forget”.

“One of my hobbies is working on my family tree on Ancestry.com,” he said.

“I have found out that three of my great-great-great uncles (all brothers) were in WWI. Only two brothers came home.

“Edward John Taylor died just after his 21st birthday on the battlefield. I found a letter his mother wrote begging to find out about his last few days before he passed.

“Unfortunately going on this amazing tour does mean I’ll miss the St Paul’s School formal but this is a trip of a lifetime.

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“My good friend Maddie who is also in year 12 at St Paul’s and belongs to Voices of Birralee will also miss the formal.

“My mum and dad want a picture of us eating dinner on the plane as the school formal photo.”

Madeline said the tour was “such a fantastic opportunity to learn and grow with other choristers my age”.

“While preparing for the dawn service, we will be combining with a Croatian choir to perform at a festival, including performances in Italian and Austrian villages.

“The rehearsals have been pretty intense, with focus weekends included.

“During the dawn service, my mum has allowed me to wear my Grandad’s service medal, from the time he served in the army.

“I love him very much, and while he was not a soldier in the first world war, his service still holds a significance in my eyes.

“It means a lot to sing at Anzac Day, as I have learnt that I have had a past family member who was killed on the battlefield at 18.

“It was such a young age for a soldier and knowing that has brought an even bigger notion of significance to my Anzac Day experience.

“I am sure that the experience in Europe will teach me so much, not just about Anzac Day, but about the people and cultures that are so vastly different from our own.”