AFTER more than 47 years as a member of the Lea Singers, the longest-serving member of the group has decide to call it a day. Now aged 84, Peter Lemar joined the Harpenden-based choir in 1961and has taken part in 3,325 concerts. Mr Lemar, of West Way, Har

AFTER more than 47 years as a member of the Lea Singers, the longest-serving member of the group has decide to call it a day.

Now aged 84, Peter Lemar joined the Harpenden-based choir in 1961and has taken part in 3,325 concerts.

Mr Lemar, of West Way, Harpenden, retired after the choir's annual Christmas concert at Harpenden Public Halls but he is not giving up singing completely for he is continuing as a member of the town's St Nicholas Church Choir.

After a presentation to him in front of a packed audience at the December 20 concert, he said: "It has been a great pleasure to be a member of the Lea Singers. Singing is wonderful and singing with a good chamber choir is the best of all."

The concert, under conductor Madeleine Lovell, was a delightful mixture of old and new Christmas music ranging from Peter Warlock's fine and beautiful Bethlehem Down to an extremely funny Twelve Days After Christmas arranged by Geoff Davidson, a former conductor of the choir.

As has become expected, the overall quality of the Lea Singers performance was extremely high.

It showed off its skills well in such tricky pieces as the Warlock work and Herbert Howells' superb A Spotless Rose in which they were joined by tenor soloist Nicky Spence.

The Scottish tenor also thrilled the audience with several solos including My Love Is Like a Red, Red Rose and the very amusing Scottish song The De'ils Awa.

Also performing with the choir was the recently-formed String Quartet of students from Durham University, The Swan and Three.

As well as accompanying some of the works, they also gave impressive performances of the last movement of Corelli's Christmas Concerto and a movement from Dvorak's American Quartet.

For the evening the choir was also joined by pianist Kevin Vockerodt.

The concert once more showed the versatility and range of the choir and its fine qualities of ensemble performance.

JOHN?MANNING