Pendyrus Male Choir headline big charity concert in Llanelli
Review: Pendyrus Male Choir, Lleisiau’r Cwm, Samuel Morris, Andrew Pike and other soloists at Loud Applause charity concert staged at Greenfield Chapel, Llanelli, to raise funds for a new ultrasound scanning machine to diagnose prostate cancer at Prince Philip Hospital.
They came, they saw, they sung and they conquered.
It takes a brave group of choristers to venture into the choral heartland of Llanelli, home to so many top class choirs.
But the men of Pendyrus Male Choir have never shown faint heart.
More the 70-strong and with a solid contingent of younger choristers (the envy of other male voice choirs), they were paying only their second visit to Llanelli.
Celebrating 90 years of singing in the Rhondda, they have a new lease of life under talented musical director Stewart Roberts.
From the opening bars of Llanfair, they set their stall out for a packed house at Greenfield Chapel.
It was male voice singing at its very best, with a repertoire which displayed the choir’s strength across the range – from the sweet and subtle to the ‘roof-raising’.
Cennin Aur, Rachie, Cantique de Jean Racine, Anfonaf Angel, Divine Brahma . . . there were plenty of set-pieces to stir the soul.
Added into the mix was the entertaining You Make Me Feel So Young, Bui-Doi from Miss Saigon and a highly amusing Chitty Chitty Bang Bang medley.
The evening wasn’t a ‘male only’ show, however, as Lleisiau’r Cwm did their level best to upstage the ‘boys’.
Under the direction of Catrin Hughes, they served up Gwenllian, Deuwch I’r Dyfroedd (Wade in the Water), Kayama (by Karl Jenkins), Nwy yn y Nen, Pont Dros y Dyfroedd Tywyll (Bidge over Troubled Water) and Bydd yn Un (World in Union).
It was moving stuff - quite literally at times as the ladies added in some interesting bits of choreography to match their dazzling singing.
Soloists for Lleisiau’r Cwm included Mared Owen, Rhian Wyn Thomas and Nia Rees.
Other soloists during the course of the evening included current pupils and former pupils of Treorchy Comprehensive School.
The school is obviously producing a rich seam of choral talent and the youngsters joined both choirs on stage for a finale which included excerpts from the hit musical Les Miserables.
Llanelli tenor Samuel Morris (a member of the Loud Applause Rising Stars stable) delighted the ‘home crowd’ with a solo performance of Stars.
But this was a night when everyone on stage was a star. The climax featuring choirs and soloists for One Day More was a treat which will live long in the memory and deserved two standing ovations.
Llanelli organist Andrew Pike also deserves special mention for accompanying and for giving a mini-recital with his performance of Nigel Ogden’s England’s Glory.
The compere for the evening was the Rev David Jones, Minister of Greenfield Chapel.
The evening saw a cheque presentation to the Llanelli Hospital League of Friends - £2000 from Llanelli Rotary Club to the appeal for the prostate cancer scanner. The money was handed over by Llanelli Rotary past president Alan Owen to Jennifer Hughes, chairman of the League of Friends.
They came, they saw, they sung and they conquered.
It takes a brave group of choristers to venture into the choral heartland of Llanelli, home to so many top class choirs.
But the men of Pendyrus Male Choir have never shown faint heart.
More the 70-strong and with a solid contingent of younger choristers (the envy of other male voice choirs), they were paying only their second visit to Llanelli.
Celebrating 90 years of singing in the Rhondda, they have a new lease of life under talented musical director Stewart Roberts.
From the opening bars of Llanfair, they set their stall out for a packed house at Greenfield Chapel.
It was male voice singing at its very best, with a repertoire which displayed the choir’s strength across the range – from the sweet and subtle to the ‘roof-raising’.
Cennin Aur, Rachie, Cantique de Jean Racine, Anfonaf Angel, Divine Brahma . . . there were plenty of set-pieces to stir the soul.
Added into the mix was the entertaining You Make Me Feel So Young, Bui-Doi from Miss Saigon and a highly amusing Chitty Chitty Bang Bang medley.
The evening wasn’t a ‘male only’ show, however, as Lleisiau’r Cwm did their level best to upstage the ‘boys’.
Under the direction of Catrin Hughes, they served up Gwenllian, Deuwch I’r Dyfroedd (Wade in the Water), Kayama (by Karl Jenkins), Nwy yn y Nen, Pont Dros y Dyfroedd Tywyll (Bidge over Troubled Water) and Bydd yn Un (World in Union).
It was moving stuff - quite literally at times as the ladies added in some interesting bits of choreography to match their dazzling singing.
Soloists for Lleisiau’r Cwm included Mared Owen, Rhian Wyn Thomas and Nia Rees.
Other soloists during the course of the evening included current pupils and former pupils of Treorchy Comprehensive School.
The school is obviously producing a rich seam of choral talent and the youngsters joined both choirs on stage for a finale which included excerpts from the hit musical Les Miserables.
Llanelli tenor Samuel Morris (a member of the Loud Applause Rising Stars stable) delighted the ‘home crowd’ with a solo performance of Stars.
But this was a night when everyone on stage was a star. The climax featuring choirs and soloists for One Day More was a treat which will live long in the memory and deserved two standing ovations.
Llanelli organist Andrew Pike also deserves special mention for accompanying and for giving a mini-recital with his performance of Nigel Ogden’s England’s Glory.
The compere for the evening was the Rev David Jones, Minister of Greenfield Chapel.
The evening saw a cheque presentation to the Llanelli Hospital League of Friends - £2000 from Llanelli Rotary Club to the appeal for the prostate cancer scanner. The money was handed over by Llanelli Rotary past president Alan Owen to Jennifer Hughes, chairman of the League of Friends.
Photos available on the following link
https://plus.google.com/photos/114054103325052180233/albums/6009311926015209441
Slideshow of photos -
https://plus.google.com/photos/114054103325052180233/albums/6009311926015209441
Slideshow of photos -
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