Bridge Of Hope

“One of Great Britain’s oldest choirs flies to Belfast on Wednesday (26 March) at the start of a five-day concert tour to the island of Ireland, in partnership with the Irish Peace Institute, to mark the tenth anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement and the fifteenth anniversary of the Warrington Bombings.

“Following the Warrington bombings of 1993, Warrington Male Voice Choir has been at the forefront of local initiatives aimed at building links between the people of Warrington and those on the island of Ireland. Using the gift of music, the Choir has endeavoured to build a fresh spirit of harmony and reconciliation. The five-day ‘Across the Bridge of Hope’ tour continues the choir’s programme of visits to Ireland over the past fourteen years.

“The ‘Across the Bridge of Hope’ tour will see Warrington Male Voice Choir perform two major evening concerts ‘for peace at home and around the world’, along with a special lunchtime performance. The Choir’s Patron, Terry Waite CBE, will be joining them for the tour and speaking during each concert.

“On Thursday (27 March) they will sing at St Anne’s Cathedral, Belfast where they will be joined by Northern Ireland's premiere brass band Strabane Brass and Limerick born mezzo-soprano Shirley Keane. Entrance to the concert, which starts at 8pm, will be free with donations on leaving to benefit local charities.

Saturday, 29 March, will see them joined by the Garda Band (Baanna Ceoill An Garda Siochana), and again by Shirley Keane, for a concert at St. Mary’s Pro-Cathedral, Dublin. Entrance to this concert, which starts at 8pm, will again be free with donations on leaving to benefit projects coordinated by The Irish Peace Institute.

On Friday 28 March as they travel south to Dublin they will stage a special lunchtime concert at the Markethill First Presbyterian Church; starting at 12.15 and aimed at raising much needed funds for SAVER/NAVER.

Choir Chairman, Barrie Johnson commented:

“We are delighted to be going back to the island of Ireland at such a significant time. During our visits over the last fourteen years we’ve seen an amazing improvement in the situation. We’ve also made some great friends over the years and we look forward to meeting many of them again. I’m also confident that once our music again starts to drift through the air and people spot our distinctive blue blazers we will make many new friends.

“We are particularly pleased that Terry Waite has taken time out of his very hectic schedule to join us for the tour. He has been our Patron for some twelve years and has played an active part in our efforts to promote peace and reconciliation on the island of Ireland.

“We are looking forward to a very enjoyable tour and using music to promote peace at home and around the world.”

Across The Bridge Of Hope ....

Warrington Male Voice Choir takes its peace message to Belfast and Dublin.

Messages of support have been received from Her Majesty The Queen, President Mary McAleese, and former US President Bill Clinton. These are included on the Concert Programmes - please click to read.

The following is a copy of a press release issued by Bob Williams, WMVC Community Relations and Publicity Manager, on 24th March 2008

Read about the tour opposite.