Harpenden’s Lea Singers’ Spring Harmony at High Street Methodist Church

A CELEBRATION of talented youth is at the heart of Spring Harmony, a concert by local chamber choir the Lea Singers next Saturday, March 24.

The concert at Harpenden High Street Methodist Church is the choir’s first performance with their new conductor, 21-year-old Benjamin Goodson.

James Sherlock, a 29-year-old organist with a growing international reputation, will play organ solos by Howells and Langlais.

The concert will feature a selection of choral music including festival anthems by Bairstow and Finzi and choir favourites by Bruckner, Byrd and Mendelssohn. The programme also includes the premiere of a new setting of the Magnificat by local composer John Pickard.

New conductor Benjamin grew up in Potters Bar and is currently completing his music degree at Oxford where he is a choral scholar. He took up conducting while he was still at school and is an accomplished singer and organist.

After completing his degree this summer, Benjamin plans to take up a lay clerkship as a professional adult singer at St Albans Cathedral.

The Lea Singers also has an intern scheme which helps promising school and student age singers to broaden their choral experience. Of the three current interns, two are from the St Albans district – Fergus O’Neill from St Columba’s College, St Albans, and Rob Wallis of St George’s in Harpenden.

Interns join the choir for a year and the next internships will start this September. For further information, contact Karen Cardy on 01525 405 846 or at kempcardy@btinternet.com.

Tickets for Spring Harmony are �13 with concessions �12 and under 18s �5, available by calling Fran Brown on 01582 793 845 or email francesbrown25@yahoo.com, from Valentine’s in Station Road, Harpenden or online at www.leasingers.co.uk