CHILDREN and young people supporting other children and young people.

That’s the idea behind a concert next Friday which will pack Huddersfield Town Hall with music and voices.

Soroptimist International of Huddersfield is hosting the concert on March 16 which will raise funds for the Mayor’s Charity which this year is the Forget Me Not Children’s Hospice.

And what a line up of young musicians is in store to deliver a programme they have called, Music For Stage And Screen.

Kirklees Youth Symphony Orchestra, the Lindley Choir, Kirklees Schools’ String Orchestra, Dewsbury/Mirfield Music Centre Swing Band and Huddersfield singing group ReJoySing! will all be sharing their musical skills.

Special guests, singing a selection from the musical theatre show, Les Miserables, are Thom Meredith, taking time out from conducting duties, his son Harry Meredith and Harry’s girlfriend, Ellie Pike, both students at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester.

These three proved such a hit when they sang at a previous Town Hall concert that they just had to be asked back.

The concert will be packed with some of the most memorable themes and songs from West End musicals and from the big screen.

Kirklees Youth Symphony Orchestra is conducted by Thom Meredith, principal of Kirklees Music School and its leader is Abigail Askew.

It will play themes from the Bond films, music from Bizet’s Carmen, plus highlights from Stephen Schwartz’s musical, Wicked and a tribute to John Williams which will include familiar tunes from Star Wars, Superman, Harry Potter, Indiana Jones and ET.

The orchestra is coached by members of Kirklees Music School staff and the string section is a successful orchestra in its own right.

The Kirklees Schools String Orchestra is directed by Ralph Barker, who is the KMS lead teacher for strings, assisted by Will Mace.

It has been successful in many festivals and regularly wins the right to perform in London and Birmingham with the National Festival of Music for Youth.

The Strings Orchestra will play the theme from Schindler’s List

The award-winning Lindley Choir will be conducted by Emma Binns and accompanied by Alison North.

The choir had a very successful time at this year’s Mrs Sunderland Music Festival winning both of the Year 6 and under classes and the trophy for the most outstanding performance of the day. It will be travelling to the International Eisteddfod at LLangollen for the second year running.

They have chosen music by Andrew Lloyd-Webber, Leonard Bernstein, as well as songs from the shows, Snoopy The Musical and The Lion King.

Dewsbury/Mirfield Music Centre Swing Band is part of Kirklees Music School and is directed by Nick Dolling.

The swing band performs at a wide variety of events and venues ranging from school concerts, music festivals, weddings, dinner dances, parties and beer festivals.

This summer, the band will visit Cologne, Germany on its third European tour in seven years.

It plays everything from the songs of Lerner and Loewe and Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley to swing music, rat pack numbers and soul, gospel, funk, pop and a whole lot more.

The other group on the programme is the community singing group, ReJoySing! which was formed more than three years ago to help local charity Caritas Šwith its fund-raising.

The group of children and young people sings at residential homes and at concerts to raise money for charity.

Earlier this year, the group recorded I Will Be There, a song written for them by its musical director, Gordon Balmforth.

ReJoySing! will sing it at the concert next week.Tickets from the Kirklees box office on 01484 223200. The concert starts at 7.30pm and the Soroptimists will run a raffle on the night to raise funds for Kirklees Music School.