Campbeltown Parish Church was alive with the sound of the stage and silver screen when Kintyre Chorale hosted its annual concert last Sunday evening.
The programme opened with a rousing rendition of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera, much to the audience’s delight.
There were pieces from various genres and eras, from the lively Under the Boardwalk, an old Drifters number from the motion picture Beaches, to the haunting but beautiful tones of Unchained Melody from Ghost.
The mood was quickly lightened when the choir struck up with a lively medley from Mamma Mia which almost had the audience dancing in their seats.
The varied programme included a Disney favourite from Pete’s Dragon for the youngsters in the crowd to enjoy.
Every musical era was covered, going back to war times with two lively pieces – Glenn Miller’s Chattanooga Choo Choo and Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, which was complemented by an exciting jazzy accompaniment handled with ease by the talented Megan Anderson, the choir’s resident accompanist.
The choristers challenged themselves with some more difficult arrangements including Children Will Listen from Into the Woods by Stephen Sondheim and You Will Be Found from Dear Evan Hansen both giving conductor Mhairi Renton some tricky timing issues to deal with.
There were items from Celine Dion and Whitney Houston, including music from Titanic and, of course, Greatest Love Of All.
Throughout the evening, the talented ladies performed in duets, trios and the chorale’s quintessential quartet gave a beautiful acapella version of So It Goes, written by Billy Joel.
The icing on the cake was a mesmerising solo performance of Heart of Stone from the musical Six from Iona Renton, the youngest member of the chorale. The performance proved to be very moving and has been cited as an event highlight by many.
The evening’s compère was Carole Harrow who, as always, researched the musical offerings to be able to add to the experience for the audience.
The evening culminated in a rousing medley from everyone’s favourite, The Sound of Music.
The event was a musical extravaganza, challenging for any choir but executed with excellence, following many nights of hard work.
“The chorale is very appreciative of the huge support it receives from the people of Campbeltown,” said Mrs Renton, the choir’s musical director. “All the proceeds made from the concert will go to the Campbeltown Christmas Lights and we thank the representatives from the committee who were on hand to help at the concert.”