2016 Annual Concert (Press Report)

Kilmarnock Aeolian male voice choir members delivered a climax to their concert season to remember recently.The Grand Hall show provided an ambitious and varied programme of music to a large and appreciative audience.

Right from the first notes played by accompanist David Walker to introduce the first item there was a sense of anticipation.
Joseph M Martin's The Awakening is a beautiful constructed piece,starting quietly and building to a joyous outpouring of emotional praise to the power of music to be a positive force in society.
Very fitting given the scope of the rest of the evening's programme which ranged from spirituals from the deep south of the USA through popular songs made famous by Matt Monro and the Beach Boys to favourites from stage musical and opera.
As always the choir was delighted to welcome guests for the evening ,and this time it was two fine soloists from the Alexander Gibson Opera School at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.Richard Shaffery (tenor) and Joanna Norman (soprano) were accompanied on the piano by Eric Garcia.
Each of the soloists sang one item with the choir who provided choral backing for Richard 's powerful performance of Bui Doi from Miss Saigon and for Joanna's emotive singing of the seasonally appropriate Easter Hymn from Mascagni's Cavalleria
Rusticana
The overall enjoyment of the evening's entertainment owes much to the patient dedication of musical director Alex Ferguson.
Towards the end of the programme, ably compered by John Goodwin,came that trio of songs melded together in the much loved American Trilogy made famous by the late Elvis Presley,which featured a cornet solo by choir member Hugh Fraser adding to the sentiment of a song which seeks to heal the wounds in American society following their civil war.