Voices of Wales unite to help Kenya

Great voices of Wales will unite in June to help homeless children in Kenya at an exciting event at The Brangwyn Hall, Swansea. 

The ‘Brangwyn Hall Gala Concert’ will bring together powerhouses of Welsh song, the Llanelli Choral Society, Morriston RFC Male Voice Choir (pictured above) , acclaimed soprano Adele O’Neill and organist Huw Tregelles Williams for a magical musical journey in aid of an exciting Welsh Kenyan children’s charity, the Kenya Children of Hope.
The Kenya Children of Hope is a wonderful story of how a Welsh-Kenyan couple have made an incredible difference to the lives of hundreds of homeless and family-less children on the streets of Nairobi.
Clydach-based Heddwyn Williams met his Kenyan wife Lydiah 25 years ago and spent a number of years in Kenya where he saw at first hand the desperate need of homeless children on the streets of Nairobi, Kenya.
“Seeing young children living and sleeping in rubbish and rotting fruit and vegetables made us see that something had to be done”, explains Heddwyn Williams.
Heddwyn and Lydiah then had the vision that they could make a difference and set up the charity Kenya Children of Hope. Over the years, they have re-homed an incredible 400 children from the streets of Nairobi, set up a half-way home to help support children and their families and developed a team of 8 to help support the charity in Nairobi. However, there are many more children to help, both in Kenya and beyond and so the need for fundraising is continuous.
The birth of The Brangwyn Gala Concert came about when Heddwyn met Cerith Owens, Director of Welsh Concert Agency, Loud Applause Productions, at an event at Parklands Church, Sketty.
As Cerith Owens explained, “When I learned of the wonderful work this Welsh-Kenyan charity was doing for children in the slums of Nairobi, I thought of my three boys and how lucky they were to have a roof over their heads with food to eat. I just wanted to help in some way. The answer was obvious! A concert to raise much needed awareness and funds for the charity.”

The Brangwyn Hall Gala Concert will star the Llanelli Choral Society (above), Morriston RFC Male Voice Choir and soprano Adele O’Neill and feature highlights of world choruses from opera and oratorios, great Welsh Male Voice Classics and beautiful arias. Key highlights from the massed voices will include Aida’s Grand March, Easter Hymn, Zadok the Priest, Les Miserables, Hallelujiah Chorus and great Welsh roof raisers such as Calon Lan and Tydi a Rhoddaist... to name but a few.
The charity concert, produced by Loud Applause Productions, will take place at 7.00pm on Saturday 30th June at The Brangwyn Hall, Swansea. Tickets £9, £11, £13 (£2 concessions) and available from Swansea Grand Theatre Box Office 01792 475715 or from 01792 60020 – all in aid of the Kenyan Children of Hope.