Choir’s jubilee concert for Africa charity

THE Aliquando Chamber Choir will be celebrating the Queen’s platinum jubilee with music from around the Commonwealth as well as Britain at their concert, This Sceptred Isle, later this month.

The choir will be joined by Zimbabwean singer-songwriter Tsungai Tsikirai, who has been based in Britain since 2002.

Anne Evans, the choir’s musical director, says: “Because it’s the Queen’s jubilee, we wanted to pick works we love from the vast treasure trove of our nation’s music and to incorporate some from other countries that make up the Commonwealth.”

The concert is in aid of the Jacaranda Trust, which supports Zimbabwean charities working with and for the poor and underprivileged.

Anne says: “The trust was formed by a few interested parties from Zimbabwe who live in the Henley area. They want to support some of the charities that do such fantastic work.”

In 2014, an Aliquando concert raised enough money to set up the Jaipur Limb Project, which is changing people’s lives in Zimbabwe. This year, the choir is supporting RESCU/Jaipur Limb in giving replacement prosthetic limbs to two young girls in Harare, which is an ongoing commitment as they will need new limbs as they continue to grow.

Anne says: “Of course it won’t be any surprise that Africa is going to feature quite strongly in the second half of the programme. It’s partially a serious concert and partially a light-hearted one because we’ve got a junior choir coming to sing.

“Crosfields Junior School Choir are adding their voices and they did an African piece of music for the Woodley Festival of Music and Arts recently, where they won first prize.

“There is something for everyone to enjoy and we look forward to seeing a lot of our friends and supporters again after such a long break.”

• This Sceptred Isle is at Christ Church, Henley, on Saturday, May 14 at 7pm (doors open at 6pm). Tickets cost £18, under-16s £5. For tickets, call (01491) 578238 or visit www.aliquando.co.uk