The singers, who have been in lockdown across the British Isles, have come together virtually to release Stars, a medley from Les Misérables, to recognise the charity which has supported them during the coronavirus crisis.
‘We lost all our work from now until next year. We’ve lost 20 contracts and would have been in Japan, Australia, America and Europe – we’ve lost so much,’ said Miss Mottram, who hosted the 2019 JEP Pride of Jersey Awards.
‘But at the start, the charity gave these one-off grants to go towards rent which was an incredible thing before the government announced that they were going to help self-employed people.
‘It was really nice to know that we had a bit of backing. They helped us and this is just something that we can give back to them, however small it is.’
The charity supports musicians throughout their careers, both in times of hardship and when other opportunities arise.
Recording their parts separately – one of the girls is in Scotland and the other two in London – the quartet has taken the opportunity to produce a single of one of its most popular numbers, as fans who attended the last Jersey concert at the Opera House in December will remember.
‘We do it all the time, so we know it inside out and we’re very strict on timing live, so when we were recording it, it was quite easy for everyone to keep it in strict time,’ Miss Mottram said.
For the finished video, which is released online to coincide with the download, the Ida Girls have interspersed through the performance photographs of much-loved theatre venues where musicians would normally be performing throughout the year. The images were provided by the Theatres Trust, a national charity that campaigns to protect theatre buildings for current and future generations.
However, one venue that does not appear in the Trust’s portfolio is Buckingham Palace, where Ida Girls were due to appear last month in a private concert in the presence of Princess Alexandra. Fortunately, it is likely that the event will be rescheduled in the future, though the quartet already has something of a track record in such circles.
‘We’ve done Windsor Castle for Prince Edward, so we have already made our Royal debut and I’ve sung for Prince Michael for an event in London, so we’ve done a couple of “Royal singings” – it’s not too much of a disappointment,’ Miss Mottram said.
As the music industry awaits the gradual restoration of concert opportunities, performers have had to use their talents in other ways. Miss Mottram has been teaching students in London remotely, but she is also now accepting Jersey students for online lessons.
The video for Stars was premiered on Official London Theatre’s YouTube channel before going live on Ida Girls’ channel. The medley is available to download as a single from iTunes in support of Help Musicians.
