On Saturday 19th September the choir gave a concert for Marie Curie Care and support through terminal illness. They were joined by the gentlemen of St Stythians Male Voice Choir, conductor Ken Downing, accompanist Kathryn Downing and the tenor soloist Andy Christophers, who also acted as compère. The surroundings, ambience and acoustic of All Saints church Falmouth were ideal for the event and the ladies surprised the audience somewhat when they started their opening number from the Lady Chapel. The three introductory choruses from The Sound of Music created an atmospheric start to an excellent concert which was well received by an enthusiastic audience. The ladies also overcame what could have been a huge obstacle – the fact that there were only 19 of them out of a choir of over 30! They sang their hearts out, displaying the grit, determination and generosity of spirit which is a defining characteristic of this remarkable group of ladies.

A raffle was held and extra donations received and I will post the final amount raised soon as it is known. Thank you to Ken and Kathryn Downing, the gentlemen of the choir, Andy Christophers and All Saints Church, Falmouth for their support towards this wonderful cause.

The music making was joyous but tinged with sadness as it was the final concert for the choir’s accompanist, Nigel Guzek. Nigel has been an invaluable part of the choir for the last 18 months since he landed magically on our doorstep at the time of the tragic death of George Smith, our previous longstanding accompanist. Through his sensitive playing and gentle humour he has endeared himself the the choir and the community of Stithians and we will really miss him when he departs for pastures new.

Peggy Evely, the choir Chairman and Babs Von Stein, the President, presented Nigel with a beautiful framed photograph of St Stythians church in the snow, a reminder of his time spent with the vibrant and caring community which makes up the village of Stithians.

We now tackle the difficult job of finding another accompanist and if anyone reading this knows of any suitable person who may fit the bill then please contact any choir member or leave a message through these pages or through Facebook

Bea Geddes. MD

Photos by Peter Asplet

~~~