Last updated at 14:44, Tuesday, 26 March 2013

A POPULAR seven-day music festival gets under way tomorrow night.

KEITH BUTCHER

South Cumbria Musical Festival takes place at the Coronation Hall, Ulverston, starting with brass classes and following on with speech, piano, woodwind, strings, vocals and choirs.

It culminates in a gala evening on March 23.

This year entries have been received from 21 different schools.

Keith Butcher, honorary chairman of the festival, said: “With this year’s festival promising to be the usual feast of good music and speech, come along to the Coronation Hall and be entertained by talented local performers. You won’t be disappointed.”

South Cumbria Musical Festival was formed in 1976 and has developed over the years to become one of the most respected competitive events in the area.

Many bursaries are awarded to encourage performers and to help advance their chosen discipline. Trophies and shields, to be held for a year, are presented in most classes, along with certificates for first, second and third places.

One of the key competitions at this year’s event will see a rivalry played out between two Millom choirs.

The reigning South Cumbria Musical Festival champions, Millom Partnership of Schools Choir, will do battle for their crown against a Millom School Choir, among others.

Music teacher Ruth Cullen said plans for this year’s event were going well.

She said: “We’ve chosen Gary Barlow’s Diamond Jubilee song Sing and another surprise song.’’

The choir, made up of more than 30 youngsters from the six partnership schools, from Year 1 to Year 11, last year recorded a song about Millom at The Bay radio studios in Lancaster, to raise money for youth projects in the town.

Programmes for the festival are available from Ulverston Library and The Full Octave, Tudor Square, Dalton.

Tickets for the gala evening can be obtained by calling 01229 584653, from the Coronation Hall, or by phoning 077734 03686 during festival week.

First published at 10:07, Monday, 18 March 2013
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk