35 and sounding great

BY ALBERT KRAMBERGER

editor@transcontinental.ca

A number of West Islanders will add their voices to help the St. Lawrence Choir celebrate its 35th-anniversary concert this Saturday.

Beaconsfield¹s Anne Forrest is one of several West Islanders who are part of the 85-strong St. Lawrence Choir, one of Canada¹s finest amateur choral ensembles – one that has often performed with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra over the past two decades.

"In the choir we often sing in German, Russian, English, French and in Chinese for this (anniversary) concert, but it'll be done phonetically.

"It¹s going to be fantastic," she added. "It'll be an entertaining, jazzy type of concert. Forrest is celebrating a milestone of her own. It's her 25th year with the choir. Forrest, who has performed at Carnegie Hall and the Lincoln Center in New York City, said she feels fortunate to be part of the St. Lawrence Choir. "I've made good friends and have had a lot of fun."

The St. Lawrence Choir is conducted by Lachine/Dorval Island resident Iwan Edwards who founded the ensemble with a heavy West Island flavour in 1972.

Joining the choir for Saturday¹s show is percussion quartet Repercussion, which recently released a CD, titled 'New Kong.'

"It will be a different show from what we usually present," Edwards said.

"We'll be playing with percussion players who are well known internationally.

"We'll be presenting a wide variety of music, from short pieces created in Africa . . . to a tango," he added. "It¹s a light program, we¹ll end it with an audience-participation number."

Meanwhile, Edwards, made a member of the Order of Canada for his achievements in arts in 1995, will lead the St. Lawrence Choir in one more concert after Saturday¹s show before retiring in order to spend more time with his family.

The St. Lawrence Choir¹s 35th-anniversary concert starts at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at the Oscar Peterson Concert Hall, located on Concordia University¹s Loyola campus, 7141 Sherbrooke St. West., Montreal. Tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for seniors and $10 for students/children.

For more information, check www.slchoir.qc.ca or call 514-790-1245.