A charity concert will be performed by the Chester Philharmonic Orchestra at Chester Cathedral soon to raise funds for Ukraine.
The upcoming concert will showcase a carefully curated selection of musical arrangements, including The Chorale, Beethoven’s 9th Symphony.
The local orchestra will also be accompanied by gifted singers from a range of different choirs, including the Chester Music Society Choir, Stockport’s St George’s Singers and the Manchester Chamber Choir. Soloists will include Martin Smauktelis, Nancy Holt, James Atkinson and Caroline Taylor, who have all performed professionally recently at Glyndebourne.
A spokesperson for The Chester Philharmonic Orchestra commented that it is also delighted that the “Svitoch” Ukrainian Acapella Choir, will be accompanying the orchestra for the evening performance.
The fundraising concert at Chester Cathedral will be held to support the DEC Ukraine Humanitarian Relief Fund, and was the idea of viola player and doctor James Warwick, who commented that:
“The Russian invasion of Ukraine has put millions of children and families in immediate danger, as homes, schools, water supplies, and hospitals have been damaged or destroyed.”
Warwick added that in the light of such devastation, he thought that there might be something that they could do, and united, the orchestra approached Chester cathedral with the concept of a charity concert.
The Lake District Summer Music Festival’s Artistic Director, Stephen Threlfall – who is one of the local orchestra’s frequent conductors – is set to conduct the upcoming concert, and it will take place on Saturday October 1.
