 On Saturday 6th September St Luke's Church, Grayshott, hosted a fund-raising event in aid of another St Luke's Church – the one in Grimethorpe, Yorkshire.
This Yorkshire village suffered very badly with the closure of the local mines and is trying hard to re-invigorate itself. The Diocese has set itself a daunting task of dividing their very large building into a church at the east end, the nave being converted into a much needed Village Hall with small offices above, and a mining museum.
The unusual event at Grayshott's St Luke was made more unusual by the fact that the choir doing the singing is from Matlock in Derbyshire –The Fishpond Choir.
This combination of Grayshott, Grimethorpe and Matlock, was brought together by Angela and Michael Blagden of Churt who know people living in all three locations. Strange combination it may be, but a wonderful evening was enjoyed by a packed church. The event has meant that a cheque for about £1,000 is on its way to the Yorkshire St Luke's. It was not only the common name of St Luke that brought this grouping together but the love of fine rhythmic music expertly rendered was yet another common bond.
The Fishpond Choir is under the expert guidance of Dana de Waal, who also has an exquisite baritone voice, and is accompanied on the piano by his wife Anne de Waal, also a talented composer. It was a joy to listen to the programme complete with African drums, giving a repertoire ranging from African traditional tribal music to Afro-American spirituals and Christian religious songs. A unique rendering of Ave Maria was sung by Dana, which showed off the unique qualities of his rich voice and agility of his vocal range beautifully.
Dana was a professional singer and musician in South Africa, before coming to the UK and this has clearly influenced much of the choir's work. The choir, all volunteers living in and around Matlock, was delighted to show off its talents to Grayshott's St Luke congregation and guests and it was a great success.
Many members of the choir stayed over-night in Grayshott, hosted by members of the church.
This may have been the first of the Fishpond Choir's recitals in Grayshott but it surely will not be the last – keep looking at the Grayshott pages (www.grayshott.com) so you can book your tickets early – the next visit is sure to be a full house!!
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