Raising the Roof with Song at Buxton Fringe

PRESS RELEASE 10th June 2013

For immediate release

Great singers and great songs are in abundance at the Fringe this year with both local and international performers and some unique experiences on offer, from an opera cabaret to music on the Pump Room Roof!

There is a superb selection of choral music for 2013. Local stars the Tideswell Male Voice Choir are teaming up with Buxton's Harpur Hill School Choir and Brass Band and featuring pianist Chris Ellis for an unmissable evening of young and old voices. Buxton's community choir, Local Vocals, invites you to join in the singing at their Songs from the Americas workshop, while Ordsall Acappella Singers offer Acappella and Cake offers a cuppa and a cake after an afternoon of unaccompanied close harmony singing. Fringe Vocal Ensemble Award winners from 2011, Ladybrook Singers, plus talented young ensemble Flute Salad, return with A Musical Cocktail and Cantibus Choral Ensemble offers Reflection: Music for the Perfect Friday Evening so you can end your week with an evening of calming and uplifting choral music. Manchester-based chamber choir, Duodecimo, will also appear on the Fringe singing a programme of Summer Song from around the world.

If you are looking for something a little unusual, how about an Opera Cabaret with Supper at St. Mary's Church as international singers perform Viennese Delights and Opera Pops? Tickets include supper plate and a glass of fizz., If you enjoy your music al fresco, there will be Music on the Roof of the Pump Room - relax on the Slopes and listen to afternoon performances featuring Arkham Travers, Rebecca De Winter, Nine Feet North and Burbage Brass Band.

Musicians and singers come from far and wide to join in at the Fringe. Africa Entsha bring their Golden Voices of the Township, a remarkable a cappella group with fresh sounds from the beating heart of Soweto, and from Brazil, pianist Emma Souza Lima plays a selection of pieces offering a rare opportunity to hear traditional composers alongside modern music from Brazil, including Chopin, Liszt and Villa Lobos.

Complementing the rich music programme of the Buxton Festival, the Fringe offers its own talented performers with intriguing repertoires. Fly with lyric tenor Tim Kennedy and pianist John Gough on Wings of Song as they present a selection of songs from various countries, and Tim returns, this time as pianist, with soprano Sara Whichelow for a selection of Classical Music through the Ages. Bass Jonathan Hall gives a Solo Recital accompanied on piano by Piotr Wisniewski performing songs across the English repertoire on themes such as the sea, Shakespeare, drinking, love and loss, and the acclaimed Margaret Ferguson offers an Evening with Africa's Lady of Song accompanied by Jonathan Ellis. For something a bit different try Kerry Jo Hodgkin & Ladyblue Music's Kiss of the Red Menace: A Tribute to Kander & Ebb featuring the songs from Cabaret, Chicago and All That Jazz. For those not easily offended, Crimes against Taste offer an Evening of Comic Song with a feast of well-known and sometimes risqué comedy classics old and new.

Folk is also strong at the Fringe. Kerry Hunter and Sam Partridge play traditional fiddle and flute with an innovative approach to the traditional music of Britain and Ireland, Buxton harmony trio Nine Feet North takes you on the Road to CSN through Crosby Stills and Nash's seminal first album and a little beyond, and Aprille and the Shower play American Bluegrass music in the tradition of the early pioneers of the Fifties. For those wanting to hear the best of Buxton's blues, jazz, folk, pop and original compositions plus a sing-along finale in a welcoming atmosphere, Club Acoustic offers a great evening out.

Coming right up to date, in An Evening of Contemporary Original Songs nationally acclaimed singer/songwriters Reg Meuross and Henry Priestman, former writer with The Christians, will generate impromptu musical magic, and for fun and dancing you can't go wrong with Fuzzy Felt World's lashings of Beatles songs plus classic rock 'n' roll. Singer-songwriters Elrieke and Poldy from Holland provide A Touch of the Dutch with a wonderful repertoire of original songs, unusual covers and easy rapport, and in You Say You Want a Revolution, Scott Allsop reflects on his experiences of living in Egypt during the revolution and becoming a dad in its aftermath with his guitar and a collection of rock, pop and original songs. For something a little offbeat there is the delightful and kooky And Other Tales with Rebecca De Winter (songs about books, French boats, shy brides, loners at a party and more), or try Project Adorno's 15 Electro-Pop Vaudeville Greats, a retrospective featuring 15 favourite moments plucked from 15 years of live performance.

All this and there is still a festival within a festival up at St Peter's Church from 6th to 12th July, including Fairfield Brass Band, light-hearted music and song of Midsummer Madness, Affinity Show Choir, Africa Entsha, Rev Carl and Friends, local school choirs, a jazz swing band and Elvino & The Ragged Company.

The Fringe's vast Music section also features a wide range of orchestral and instrumental performances - see the website for details.

The Fringe is hugely grateful to its many supporters including its main sponsor The University of Derby Buxton as well as The Osborne Group, High Peak Borough Council, The Old Hall Hotel and The Cavendish Shopping Arcade.

For further information or interviews about the Fringe Send message to Press or tel: 07974 385767.