Yvonne steps in to help festival (From Swindon Advertiser)

Yvonne steps in to help festival

12:10pm Wednesday 10th March 2010 in

• Skip social links
• Print
• Email
• Comments(0)

Opera singer Yvonne Patrick has come to the rescue of the 101st Swindon Music Festival.

She will replace music teacher Barbara Large, who has had to pull out through illness, on the team of adjudicators.

Yvonne has sung with the D’Oyly Carte Opera Company, Welsh National Opera and Glyndebourne Touring Opera and is a regular on BBC Radio 2’s Friday Night Is Music Night.

The Swindon Music Festival is one of the cultural highlights of the year and has grown from a one-night choir contest with only six entries to a two week festival which for its centenary year notched up a record 1,000 entrants. This year the number of entries is 700.

Sheila Marcer, vice-chairman of the festival, believes the figures are down due to the recession and because last year was a special year, when the festival notched up its 100th year.

She said: “Some festivals have even had to close because entries have dropped and they can’t get volunteers but, despite all the storms, we are still sailing.”

The festival kicks off in Christ Church, Old Town, on Wednesday March 17 and then continues at the Swindon Arts Centre on Thursday March 18 until March 27 where singers and musicians will be competing for a number of trophies including the Swindon Advertiser Cups. The winner of the supreme championship will receive The Stuart Macpherson Trophy.

Chairman Geoff Waters said: “Swindon continues to excel in many areas of the arts and we are rightfully proud of the quality of musicians in all styles of music that we are privileged to listen to each year.’’ Many musicians who have competed in the festival have gone on to make music their career including jazz superstar Jamie Cullum who entered in 1988, and film star Diana Dors who entered under her real name of Diana Fluck in 1938. The festival programme is out now detailing the various classes.

Joining Yvonne on the adjudicators’ panel are Timothy Barratt, pianist and music teacher and Eileen Bentley, singing teacher. Swindon’s own concert pianist Paul Turner and piano teacher Rosemary Lang are again the accompanists.

Tickets cost £1 for daytime sessions, £2 for evening sessions, £4 for championships and £5 for the supreme championship grand concert. Call 01793 614837 for details.