Out of this world concert raises £500 for Velindre Hospital.
Monmouth Concert Orchestra’s Christmas concert raised £500 for Velindre Hospital.
The orchestra invited the capacity audience in Trellech Church to travel around the globe and out of this world into space through music.
The orchestra took the audience to Wales with Gwyl Nadog by local composer and orchestra member, Ken Hunt, South America with Fiesta Argentina and Tico Tico and to outer space with the theme to Star Trek.
There was plenty of Christmas music too with Leroy Anderson’s Christmas Festival and Vaughan Williams’ Christmas. And a second member of the orchestra, bassoonist Jane Pelham composed a new piece Angel Mobile which had its world premiere at the concert.
Sharon Phillips, the chair of Monmouth Concert Orchestra said: “Our Christmas concert this year was a tremendous success and we were delighted to be able to support Velindre Hospital. Many of our members have experienced cancer themselves or have had family or close friends who have. “
The orchestra always picks a local charity to raise funds for at its concert. Over the last few years it has supported Blood Bikes Wales, Brecon Mountain Rescue, the Ted Senior Foundation and Monmouthshire Christmas Wishes.
Monmouth Concert Orchestra consists of amateur musicians from Ross on Wye, Chepstow, Abergavenny, Raglan, the Forest of Dean and Monmouth. It meets once a fortnight during term times and is always keen to hear from potential new players. Its members range from 18 – 80 and there are no auditions although players are usually Grade V standard or above. Find out more about the orchestra at www.monmouthorchestra.co.uk
NEWS RELEASE
Mountain Rescue receives £500 from the orchestra
Bannau Brycheiniog Mountain Rescue team has received a cheque for £500 from Monmouth Concert Orchestra.
The money was raised at the orchestra’s summer concert in Llangynidr New Village Hall.
Accepting the cheque Kev Harding, the Bannau Brycheiniog Mountain Rescue team’s fundraising coordinator said: “I would like to thank the orchestra for this generous donation. We rely on donations like this as it costs £67,000 per year to run the service and we receive no public funding. Our members are all volunteers and unpaid. We are funded entirely by public donations such as this.”
The photograph shows Kev Harding and Wendy Walton from Bannau Brycheiniog Mountain Rescue team with members of Monmouth Concert Orchestra.
Bannau Brycheiniog Mountain Rescue Team is based in the Brecon Beacons National Park and operates throughout mid Wales. It works closely with the Police, Fire Service and the Ambulance service to deploy its specialist search, rescue and medical capabilities to assist those on the mountains, or in the communities it serves, who need help. Find out more at https://www.breconmrt.co.uk/
Music for Lovers Concert raises £500 for mountain rescue.
Monmouth Concert Orchestra raised £500 for Bannau Brycheiniog Mountain Rescue at its summer concert on May 19th.
A capacity audience at Llangynidr Village Hall were treated to some of the world’s most romantic music. There were two renditions of Romeo and Juliet – one by Tchaikovsky and one by Prokofiev. Plus the modern version of the Romeo and Juliet tale, Bernstein’s West Side Story. Other works included The King and I, the Sound of Music, Porgy and Bess, Oliver and Humperdink’s Evening Prayer. For an encore the orchestra performed a version of John Miles’ Music was my first love, which has been arranged by the MCO’s violin and viola player, Ken Hunt. They were rewarded with a standing ovation.
Christmas Concert raises £400 for Blood Bikes Wales
Monmouth Concert Orchestra’s Christmas Concert on December 3rd raised £400 for Blood Bikes Wales. A packed audience enjoyed an afternoon of festive music at St Mary’s Priory Church in Monmouth and relished the chance to join in with singing some of the Christmas numbers.
On the programme were Leroy Anderson’s A Christmas Festival, Saint Saens Samson and Delilah Bacchanale and Wreath of Holly, a composition by the orchestra’s own bassoon player, Jane Pelham. The audience also enjoyed James Bond themes, music from the Harry Potter and Titanic films and a Salute to the Big Bands by Calvin Custer.
At the end of the concert Stuart Kramer from Blood Bikes Wales talked about the work of the volunteers who provide a vital service to the NHS. It provides a completely free courier service to the NHS, delivering blood samples, plasma, donated human milk, documents and other items all over Wales. The service is free of charge and operates on weekdays for some health board areas and across Wales from 7pm on Friday evening until midnight on Monday morning including bank holidays & even Christmas day.
Nature, Lakes and Gardens Summer Concert – Saturday, May 13th
Monmouth Concert Orchestra raised over £180 for the Severn Area Rescue Association (SARA) at its concert in Usk on Saturday, May 13th.
A packed audience heard well-known tunes all on a theme of nature, lakes and gardens.
On the programme were Rossini’s Thieving Magpie overture, Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, Grainger’s Country Garden and South Pacific by Richard Rodgers. Plus works by Borodin, Khachaturian and Ketelby.
Teenage soloist, Milly Bowers, brought the house down with her wonderful performance of Paul Reede’s Victorian Kitchen Garden Suite for solo clarinet and orchestra.
The Severn Area Rescue Association (SARA) is one of the volunteer search and rescue teams which covers the Monmouth area. They have 7 rescue stations, including Newport, Beachley, Sharpness and Tewkesbury. SARA is best known as the lifeboat organisation which covers the tidal rivers Severn and Wye, all the way up from the M4 Bridge, and for providing flood rescue – with the largest number of flood teams on the national register of any organisation. They typically attend well over 100 callouts a year across their area, including many searches for missing people on land and in the water. Their land team is part of the Mountain Rescue family and over the years has carried out many cliff rescues in the Wye Valley. SARA is 50 years old this year, has no paid staff and as a charity is entirely dependent on its own fundraising and the generous donations of local people and organisations.
Christmas Concert – Sunday, December 4th 2022
Monmouth Concert Orchestra presented its Christmas concert in St Mary’s Priory Church in Monmouth on Sunday, December 4th.
Platinum Jubilee Concert – Sunday, May 15th 2022
It was wonderful to be back playing for a live audience after more than two years due to covid. St Mary’s Priory Church in Monmouth was packed and the audience throughly enjoyed the programme of patriotic music from all four corners of the British Isles. The programme included Purcell’s English Suite, Vaughan Williams’ English Folk Song Suite, Mathias Serenade for Small Orchestra and Henry Wood’s Fantasia on British Sea Songs. In the Fantasia the orchestra’s pianist was transformed into Britannia and gave a rousing rendition of Rule Britannia complete with helmet and shield.
Another highlight of the concert was the world premiere of MCO viola player and celebrated local musician Ken Hunt’s Welsh Folk Songs Suite.
A retiring collection raised £400 which will be given to the Ukranian support group in Monmouth to help buy essentials for refugees who have settled locally to escape the war in Ukraine.
2019 Christmas Concert
Monmouth Concert Orchestra’s Christmas concert raised more than £500 for local charities including the Ted Senior Foundation.
Held at the Church of St Nicholas in Trellech, the orchestra wowed the packed church with a wide programme of music including Elgar’s Nimrod and Imperial March, the Pastorale from Corelli’s Christmas Concerto and Vaughan Williams Christmas Music.
The 150-strong audience was encouraged to join in with carols and Christmas favourites including White Christmas, Sleigh Ride and the Christmas Song.
Money raised from the concert will be split between the Ted Senior Foundation and church funds.
May 18th 2019 – Music from the movies (Drill Hall, Chepstow)
November 25th 2018 – Winter concert (Millennium Hall, Llandogo)
May 20th 2018 – Summer concert (Memorial Hall, Usk)