/Choral Celebration

To Choir Conductors

Choral Celebration Wednesday 13th March 2013

A development out of the original Choral Recital Class, the Choral Celebration Evening perfectly epitomises Mary Wakefield’s original intentions in bringing choirs together to enjoy each other’s performances and inspire each other.

Choirs are invited to take part with a programme lasting not more than 20 minutes of items of their own choosing. For 2013 it is hoped that choirs will help continue the theme of the centenary of the birth of Benjamin Britten by choosing to include a piece by Britten in their programme.

The 2011 Choral Celebration Evening
Covering a wide geographical area from Staveley down to Arnside, and from Ulverston to Kirkby Lonsdale, eight choirs took part in 2011, each contributing a short programme of their own choice. The adjudicator Marilynne Davies started things off with a rousing warm-up, and the closing rendition of the Festival Chorale made sure that the evening ended on a high. Here is a review of the event:

"Three hundred and fifty singers, eight choirs, thirty five or so pieces of music covering everything from folk song to gospel, medieval to modern, African, Byrd and Brahms to Vivaldi and Vaughan Williams and everything in between, this was an extraordinary demonstration of the love of singing, particularly strong in this area, as adjudicator Marilynne Davies noted in her closing remarks. Mary Wakefield herself would have been very proud of all these singers of all age groups. In terms of numbers taking part, this is the biggest event of Festival week; it says a lot about the enthusiasm and commitment of choir members considering that many were also taking part in the Mozart Requiem and the Easter Oratorio."