Concert on the Hill proves massive hit....again - Pictures

Jul 6 2009 By David Lockwood

The choir has swept everything before them, both at home and on the national stage.

Fittingly on the USA’s Day of Independence, the band opened with Sousa’s rousing Stars and Stripes after the Male Voice Choir’s ‘national anthem’ Cwm Rhonda, while Honley continued the American theme with a Cole Porter Medley and Miss Garbutt gave an excellent selection from Bernstein’s iconic West Side Story.

The second half got away to a bright start with Neil Jowett’s band opening up with another Sousa favourite, Blaze Away.

That was followed by the stirring Battle Hymn Of The Republic in which both choirs joined the band.

Colne Valley’s musical director Thom Meredith then displayed what a fine all-round talent he is, singing You Raise Me Up (made famous by Westlife) backed by his own choir and then dueting wonderfully with Miss Garbutt in Andrew Lloyd-Webber’s haunting beautiful All I Ask Of You from Phantom Of The Opera. This brought the house down, as did the combined talents of all the performers, again led by Julia in Holy City.

Another very popular inclusion was the singalong Abba selection, which was almost withdrawn because of time restraints until the enthusiastic crowd swayed opinion in their favour.

The evening was again rounded off by the ‘proms-style ritual’ of Rule Britannia and Land Of Hope And Glory with a fine firework finale to once again send the ‘Hillers’ home happy for another year.