A VERITABLE feast of symphonic stanzas is on the menu when Old Parish & St Paul’s Church in Galashiels throws open its doors to choirs from near and far next month.
Old Parish Choirs features Finnish choir Tuuslaulajat, Langlee Community Choir and Gala Water String Quartet.
Featuring a premier performance of South to Scotland, a new work inspired by the town of Galashiels by local composer Eric Falconer, the Old Parish Choirs event takes place on Saturday, September 2 - and entry is free.
Langlee Community Choir will perform songs from their current repertoire conducted by their director Chris Achenbach while the Tuuslaulajat choir will perform parts of their celebration repertoire for the centenary of the Finnish independence.
Throughout the evening the two choral groups will join for mass choir performances.
South to Scotland, an arrangement of four fiddle tunes, will be performed by The Gala Water String Quartet who have come together especially for this performance.
Composer Falconer told us: “The tunes in South to Scotland reflect in different ways significant parts of my own life here growing up and living in the Borders.
“The title is a reminder to those for whom our country starts in Edinburgh or Glasgow, that, if you travel south towards the border, you are in Scotland too and the piece is written with local themes and Scottish idioms.
“They follow a conventional Scottish progression from air to strathspey to reel. In this case, there are two strathspeys, the first more melodic and gentle, the second driving and rhythmic, leading into the final reel, The Border Line.”
The Galashiels venue is one of 25 historic sites across the region taking part in Lighting the Borders, a Year of History, Heritage & Archaeology signature event.
And Old Parish Choirs will be one of 11 performances that reflect the historic and cultural diversity of the Scottish Borders.
The South to Scotland performance is being funded by Creative Scotland while the Finnish Choir appearance and the lighting of the church are all being funded by Event Scotland through Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology funding
For more information on this event go to www.oldparishandstpauls.org.uk or email sessionclerk@oldparishandstpauls.org.uk
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