The Concert for Derek was a wonderful evening enjoyed by a capacity audience at St Mary’s Church, Rhuddlan.
Concert for Derek Celebration
Derek Jones
May 20th 2016 was a special night to remember Derek Jones. Derek loved music and was a member of Denbigh and District Male Voice Choir. The concert proved to be a joyful celebration of his life.
It was Derek’s wife Val who had the idea to stage an evening of musical contrasts. In addition to the Denbigh and District Male Voice Choir she also invited the C Bugs (Colwyn Bay Ukelele Group).
Her brother, folk singer Alun Rhys Jones, was told to attend and perform!
Choir at St Mary’s Rhuddlan
The choir’s first items were received with prolonged applause. The rousing ‘Y Ddau Wladgarwr’ contrasting with the Maori lullaby ‘Hine E Hine.’ This was one of Derek’s favourites.
Alun Rhys Jones imposed his engaging personality by inviting the audience to join him in ‘Calon Lan.’ John Denver’s ‘Perhaps Love’ was also a poignant moment in the concert for Derek.
Alun Rhys Jones
Switching guitar for accordion Alun once again had full audience participation with his version of ‘Ar Lan y Mor.’
C Bugs, formed five years ago, soon had the audience clapping and singing along with ‘When You’re Smiling.’ The Amy Winehouse song ‘Valerie’ guaranteed to get Val up on her feet.
Concert for Derek Fund Raising
The concert for Derek also enabled Val to raise funds for Dementia Research. She thanked everyone at the interval and introduced Bev Perkins, Advocacy Manager for North Wales.
Bev described the on-going research in order to reduce the impact of dementia on family life. Every penny will help fund this important research.
The concert for Derek continued with the choir singing ‘The Rose’, another of Derek’s favourite songs.
Concert for Derek Raises Roof
John Hand, leader of C Bugs, encouraged the audience to ‘raise the roof’ with their version of ‘Is this the way to Amarillo’. They did not let him down. Their popular spot ended with ‘Hi Ho Silver Lining’.
Alun Rhys Jones sang contemporary songs on guitar and ended with ‘Will Ye go Ladd(ss)ie Go’ to his accordion accompaniment. The audience were with him all the way.
Arwyn, Nia, John Hand, Val, Allan and Alun Rhys
The choir then returned for the finale with ‘Amen’, ‘Take Me Home’ and ‘Yn y Man’. It was, in fact, the choir’s first ever appearance in Rhuddlan. We hope to make a return visit.
Finally, thanks to St Mary’s Church for the welcome and hospitality. Thanks to Val for her fund raising and for putting together a fitting ‘concert for Derek’.
P.S. The ‘Concert for Derek’ raised the impressive total of £1075 for Dementia Research. Furthermore, Val is delighted with the response and thanks everyone for their generous support.
Fantastic Richard. I only hope that everyone present enjoyed the evening as much as me. The mix of music was great & appeared to be thoroughly enjoyed by everyone. Yes, it was a great night & I will inform you of total funds raised for Dementia Research. Thank you all so much from the bottom of my heart & may God bless you all.
Kind regards Val x☺
Thank you Val for your kind comments. You created a wonderful balance of musical contrasts which was thoroughly enjoyed. Let’s hope you get a good result for Dementia Research. Best regards, Richard x
Diolch yn fawr iawn i bawb, am noson o ddagrau a hwyl. Dwi’n hollol siŵr oedd Derek ym mhresennol efo ni drwy’r cyngerdd anhygoel. Diolch o’r galon I Val wrth gwrs am drefnu popeth x
Diolch yn fawr Alun am dy gyfraniad sylweddol i lwyddiant y noson arbennig.
Thank you so much to everyone who generously gave their time in being part of this event. The sense of community and shared purpose was touching, and the musical talent was fantastic. Even my 13 year old enjoyed himself – that really is saying something !
Thank you Bev for your kind words of appreciation. It was a wonderful example of a community pulling together to support a very worthy cause.