Ayr Choral Union - Handel's Messiah | Destination South Ayrshire

Ayr Choral Union – Handel’s Messiah

Promotional poster for Handel's Messiah. Large blue text reading “HANDEL MESSIAH” appears across the lower half of the image. A decorative metal church cross with ornate circular details is positioned prominently in the centre-right against a pale, textured wall. In the top left corner, smaller text reads “Celebrating 150 Years of Great Singing.” The image uses cool blue and purple tones, creating a dramatic and reverent atmosphere.

Welcome to our 150th Anniversary Season!

We are excited to be starting off our special year with a performance of Handel’s well known and much-loved Messiah.

This is the piece Ayr Choral Union performed at its first major concert in 1878 and which it has gone on to perform a further 35 times! It featured heavily on the choir’s programmes in the early 1930s; between 1963 and 1973 there were nine Messiah concerts and in January 2005, it was the work chosen for a Come & Sing to raise funds for those affected by the Boxing Day Tsunami of 2004.

In 2020 we were rehearsing Messiah for our March concert when the covid pandemic forced us to cancel. Later, as restrictions began to ease, our orchestra, soloists and Andy were able to gather together – with distancing and screens – to perform the work, with the choir joining in at home via Zoom (it being a long time before choirs were allowed to meet in person). It’s therefore entirely fitting that this should be the piece to launch our 150th Season.

We are truly delighted that our ‘Lockdown Soloists’, Catriona Hewitson, Penelope Cousland, Ted Black and Colin Murray are joining us ‘in real life’ for this performance in celebration of an historic milestone in Ayr Choral Union’s history.

We’re anticipating high demand for tickets so don’t forget to book yours before it’s too late!