The Conversation

The joy of coming together through song - Kim Chakanetsa talks to two women who have created choirs that go beyond simply making music. Mika Danny started the Rana Choir in 2008, with a clear mission to unite Arab and Jewish women in song. Mika lives in Jaffa in Israel and says that while women from Christian, Jewish and Muslim communities find it almost impossible to discuss what they call 'the situation' there, they have been able to come together 'as a family' through singing a repertoire that reflects all their different cultural backgrounds. Esmeralda Conde Ruiz says her life is "Music, music all day long". Originally from Spain via Germany, she now leads many different amateur and professional choirs in London, and says she always wants to push people to do things they didn't know they were capable of - whether they are a small community choir from Borough Market or a 500-strong amateur group of singers performing at the Tate Modern art gallery. Photo: (L) Mika Danny (credit: Noa Ben Shalom) and (R) Esmeralda Conde Ruiz (credit: MIO)