Nicola Lisle previews a special charity gala by the Oxfordshire Welsh Society

Oxford Town Hall will soon be alive with the traditional sounds of Wales. On February 28 — the nearest Saturday to St David’s Day — the Oxfordshire Welsh Society presents its annual charity gala, with the proceeds this year going to the Thames Valley Air Ambulance Trust.

As in previous years, a large part of the concert will be provided by the South Wales Male Choir, which draws members in from all over the country — including the Thames Valley — and has an impressive pedigree, having performed at some of the world’s most famous music venues and in 2008 winning the inaugural Majestic Male Voice Choir competition in Torquay. They will be joined by special guests Rhys Meirion (tenor) and Llio Evans (soprano).

Rising young soprano Llio Evans has recently graduated from the Wales International Academy of Voice with an MA in Advanced Vocal Studies, in which she gained a Distinction, and has also won an impressive list of awards.

Her name may be familiar to Garsington Opera fans as she was a 2014 Alvarez Young Artist, covering the role of Mimi in Vert-Vert and singing in the Tea Time Recitals series. She will be returning this season for Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Rhys, a graduate of ENO’s Jerwood Young Singers programme, has gone on to enjoy international success as an opera singer as well as a recording and broadcasting career. Roles include Rodolfo (La Boheme), Pinkerton (Madame Butterfly), Alfredo (La Traviata), Duke (Rigoletto), Tamino (The Magic Flute) and many more, as well as numerous concert appearances.

As Ambassador for Wales Air Ambulance, the Oxford charity gala is helping a cause close to his heart.

He said: “I got involved with Wales Air Ambulance because I was organising a festival in North Wales for charity, and the Wales Air Ambulance was one of the charities they were supporting.

“Then they asked me if I would like to be Ambassador — this was about four years ago – and since then I’ve organized and done three national sponsored walks for the Wales Air Ambulance, walking from South Wales to North Wales first of all, twice, and then the third year we did from North Wales down to South Wales, 200 miles each time, and we raised over £400,000 in three years.

“It’s impossible for the land ambulances to get somebody to hospital from rural areas within that golden hour, which is so important. In Wales, the air ambulance is able to get somebody to a hospital anywhere in Wales within 20 minutes, which is fantastic.”

So what kind of things can we expect at the concert? “I’ll be doing a mixture of operatic arias, maybe some crossover solos and a couple of Welsh ones as well. I’ll also be doing a duet with Llio. We have sung together before but not for a while, so it’ll be good to do so again.

“I’ll also be singing a couple of things with the choir. I’ve sung with the South Wales Male Choir a few times before and they make a fantastic sound.”

Oxfordshire Welsh Society Charity Gala Concert
Oxford Town Hall
Saturday, February 28, 7pm
Tickets: Call 01865 305305 or visit ticketsoxford.com