Westmorland Youth Orchestra Concert, Kendal Parish Church

MY FIRST Westmorland Youth Orchestra concert was both a revelation and a

pleasure.

There was much to enjoy. Three soloists confidently tackled demanding concertos: Abby Counsell's violin sung out sweetly, Oliver Heath gave an assured performance on the trumpet and Frances Lovell on the oboe nicely captured the pastoral mood of Vaughan Williams. The orchestra supported ably throughout and on the whole achieved a good balance with the soloists.

The start of the Trumpet Concerto was particularly memorable. Grieg's Peer Gynt Suite and Rossini's Thieving Magpie Overture really tested the orchestra but they rose to the challenge well. There was some excellent playing, particularly in the Greig: delightful woodwind solos; lovely muted strings in the Death of Ase and a splendidly noisy Hall of the Mountain King.

This concert was the swansong of David Boxford, retiring after more than 20 years in charge of the WYO, and the performance was a fitting tribute to the hours of work he has put in. He was presented with an engraved decanter to mark the occasion. The annual Probus award for an outstanding contribution to WYO went to the talented Keir McGregor, leader of the cello section and one of eight senior players leaving the orchestra.

JOHN HILEY