FOLLOWING on from the success of its concert featuring Britain's Got Talent star Beau Dermott, the City Of Chester Male Voice Choir is to play host to a choir from Down Under.

They will join forces with The Flint Male Voice Choir for a concert at Chester Town Hall.

Billed as The World In Union, the concert on Sunday, September 30 at 7pm will feature the combined talents of the Chester and Flint choirs and their special guests, The Australian Welsh Choir, who are visiting Chester as part of their UK tour, which sees them also taking part in the Festival of Welsh Male Voice Choirs at The Royal Albert Hall, London.

The Australian choir, based in Melbourne, was formed in 1974 and undertook its first concert tour of the UK some 10 years later, becoming the first choir from outside Wales to sing at the 1000 Voice Festival of Male Choirs at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

During the tour, members of the Association of Welsh Male Choirs were so impressed by the choir's singing of traditional songs in the Welsh language, the choir was invited to become a member of the association.

In doing so, it became the first choir from outside Wales to be offered such an honour. They will be joined on the tour by musical director Tom Buchanan and principal accompanist Michelle Nguyen.

Joining The Australian Welsh Male Voice Choir on stage will be Turkish-Australian soprano Ayse Goknur Shanal from Brisbane who, as a soloist, has performed with symphony orchestras in Sydney, West Australia, Melbourne, Adelaide and with Willoughby Symphony and Sydney Sinfonia.

She has also performed with Opera Australia's touring company, OzOpera, singing the role of Mimì in La Bohème.

Completing the line up for this special concert are The Flint Male Voice Choir under the musical direction of Kevin Whitley and accompanist Christopher Enston. The choir has made numerous appearances at the Royal Albert Hall and the Llangollen International Eistedfodd as well as several TV appearances on S4C.

The concert, which came about thanks to the close friendships of the City of Chester choir's musical director Rodney T Jones with his counterparts in Flint and Melbourne, will see all three choirs join forces for a very special finale which organisers are promising is something not to be missed.

Speaking about the concert, Ron Webster, chairman of the City of Chester Male Voice Choir, said: "This concert follows on from and builds on the success of our spring concert at Storyhouse with two other top Chester mixed choirs – Chester Bach Singers and Chester Music Society Choir and also our recent concert with Beau Dermott.

"This all-male choir concert will be a first in the City for some very long time and will be most memorable on a number of counts, not least the opportunity to hear the touring Australian Welsh Male Choir."

  • Full details of The Word in Union concert can be found at www.chestermalevoice.com where tickets can be booked online. Tickets are also available from the Tourist Information Centre at the Town Hall in Chester. Alternatively, contact 07894 509529 or 01745 563166.