 Members of the public and friends of Lane End Conference Centre were invited to enjoy the soothing sounds of the Maturi Male Voice Choir on Sunday, 6 September at the residential conference centre in Lane End.
The Maturi Male Voice Choir is a Japanese choir made up of mature men, bringing with them a variety of colourful backgrounds. The choir boasts approximately 45 members of which the youngest member is in his twenties and the oldest member in his mid eighties. On this occasion 20 members had the opportunity to perform at two main concerts, the first being a joint performance with a local male voice choir from Bristol and the second an alfresco performance at Lane End Conference Centre.
The conductor and founder of the choir, Mr Kazuo Kobayashi, guided the 20 man choir seamlessly through a beautiful rendition of a variety of Japenese folk songs and popular songs as well as a variety of popular songs such as Danny Boy and the famous Scarborough Fair by Simon & Garfunkel.
The second half of the concert included a special performance by the baritone, Mr Takehiro Horiuchi, who has been studying opera and music in Milan for the past three and a half years with a Japanese Government Scholarship.
After the concert drew to a close the audience was addressed by Dr Kuwahara who thanked everyone for attending saying that they enjoyed sharing their music with the British public and they hope that this will go some way to contribute to the mutually pleasing relationship that exists between Britain and Japan. Ms Teruko Iwanaga, Director of EJEF and Lane End Conference Centre, thanked the choir for coming to Lane End and saying that she hoped this concert tour will be the first of many visits to the UK.
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