The King's Singers at Cumnock Tryst to have BSL interpretation

When six recent choral scholars from King’s College, Cambridge, came together in 1968 for a concert at London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall, they could not have known that their group would become internationally renowned, setting the gold standard in a cappella singing, singing with no instruments and dazzling audiences on the world’s greatest stages for five decades. 54 years and 28 members later, The King’s Singers, so named after their College, still maintain their original line-up made of two counter-tenors, Patrick Dunachie and Edward Button, a tenor, Julian Gregory, two baritones, Christopher Bruerton and Nick Ashby, and a bass, Jonathan Howard.

The King’s Singers’ ability to connect and engage with their audiences, their unrivalled technique, versatility and skill in performance, and their consummate musical skills have made them favourites of the international musical scene, with regular appearances at major events, festivals, and venues across the world. From Carnegie Hall to the Sydney Opera House, and from the Tokyo Opera City to the Helsinki Music Centre, they have performed on some of the most exclusive stages and collaborated with renowned orchestras and composers. Most recently they performed a specially commissioned work by Sir James MacMillan with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra at the Edinburgh International Festival.

On the Friday evening of this year’s Tryst, (30th September) The King’s Singers give a special performance at Trinity Church in Cumnock, featuring songs by many composers including Ralph Vaughn Williams, William Byrd, James MacMillan, and a celebration of 100 years of Disney!

“It is a source of great excitement and joy for me to welcome back the King’s Singers to The Cumnock Tryst. I have been very fortunate to work with them in recent years, composing a number of works specifically for these glorious young voices.” said world-leading composer and conductor Sir James MacMillan, who is also Founder and Artistic Director of the festival.

The King’s Singers’ performance is titled Legacies and will benefit from British Sign Language interpretation. The Cumnock Tryst has always been a champion of inclusivity and is glad to collaborate with Paul Whittaker OBE, deaf musician and long-time supporter of the festival, who has agreed to lend his skills and expertise to interpret The King’s Singers’ performance. Paul Whittaker has been signing concerts and theatre performances for over 30 years and is excited to be working with The King’s Singers for the first time. Among his achievements, he gave the first ever signed BBC Prom in 2010 and set up SiBSL - Songs in British Sign Language, a website dedicated to raising standards and awareness of this art form.

The concert is at Trinity Church on Friday September 30th, 7.30pm and tickets are £15 for BSL users.

Click here to visit the event page for The King’s Singers and to book tickets. Use the Text Relay Service 18002 0141 332 5057

We look forward to seeing you there.