Oswestry music festival raising the roof

The Oswestry Youth Music Festival opened today with everything from opera to pop on the programme.

Over the last 40 years the festival has grown from a two to a five day competitive event attracting schools and individuals from across Shropshire and beyond.

It will culminate on Sunday with a winners of winners competition and concert at Holy Trinity Church.

The church is also hosting the individual classes along with Christ Church, the Methodist Church and the Herman Chapel.

One of the festival organisers, Sue Turner, said: "The first day of this year’s Festival brings us plenty of singing - lots of different genres including folk, opera, pop, Musical Theatre, oratorio and duets.

Good luck to everyone taking part. Our adjudicators, John Powell and Nadia Hinson, are established visitors to this Festival and we welcome their excellent adjudicating skills once again."

The event is held in conjunction with Oswestry Town Council.

Councillor Mike Coppock said the public were welcome to go along and provide an audience for the competitors.

"Go along and hear them perform and hear the enormous amount of young talent that we have taking place," he said.

Sue Turner said new syllabus for 2019 was bigger than ever, due to ever increasing numbers of performers taking part.

“The two exhibition classes from last year are now embedded into the programme, organ solo and baroque piano solo, and there are three new exhibition classes, French chanson, counter tenor and folk artist. If these classes prove to be popular, then they will be fully incorporated into the syllabus in 2020.”

Sunday's winners' concert has competitions for young performer of the year, the junior cup and the senior cup as well as an award for the performer who most sums up the spirit of the festival.