A Kingston based choir group will unite with a Canadian choral society to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the end of the Great War.
The concert will take place on Saturday, July 7 at All Saints Church in Kingston. It forms part of the World War 1 centenary commemoration programme led by London’s Imperial War Museum.
The event is part of a 16-day European tour by North Lakeshore Chorus (NLSC), which comprises of 50 singers in North Canada including Kingston. The collaboration with the UK's Kingston Choral Society (KCS) follows a successful joint concert at All Saints Church in 2015.
Kingston has strong connection with Canadian WW1 troops, who were station in Bushy Park, where Upper Lodge served as the King’s Canadian Hospital between 1915-19. The connection is represented by the Canadian Glade and totem pole in the park’s Waterhouse Woodland Gardens.
The show is titled Peace at Last – The Boys Come Home and will be a musical tribute to the Canadian soldiers who served during the war. The programme will include popular war-time songs and classic.
Gerry Dawson, chair of Kingston Choral Society (UK), said: “We’re delighted to be partnering with our Canadian visitors. As well as our annual programme of four concerts, our singers regularly take part in community events – notably annual carol singing hosted the Bentall Centre in aid of Shooting Star Chase Children’s Hospice.”
KCS was founded in 1949 and is a mixed voice choir with around 140 members. They rehearse at Hollyfield School in Surbiton.
Michael Korn, producer and founding member of North Lakeshore Chorus, commented: “The choir is looking forward to singing in Europe again and visiting so many places of significance to soldiers. Collaborating with our friends at KCS will certainly prove to be one of the highlights.”
Tickets start from £13 for adults and £5 for under 18s. They can be purchased at https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/date/477712 or from the box office: 020 8398 6728.
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