Last week the village played host to the Alderley Edge Centenary Festival which proved to be an outstanding success with over 2000 children performing in nine venues across the village.
This event was a milestone in the history of not only the Festival, but of the village as a whole and it was a testament to the committee of 24 volunteers and numerous stewarding volunteers who organised and ran the event with 'military precision' - as stated by the Director of Music at the Alderley Edge School for Girls.
Some of the outstanding performances of this year's festival included the prestigious Junior Singer of the Year which had to be split into two due to its popularity. The winners were Lydia Tunstall from Macclesfield and Ciara Sheehan from Bramhall. The best song for each of the classes was won by Thomas Medley, who scored a massive 91 for his Vocal Solo Years 7,8,9, and Madelaine Williams who are both from Wilmslow.
Anise Carswell of Holmes Chapel won Alderley Singer of the Year and best song went to Erin Alexander of Sandymoor. The Year 10 and under Piano Recital was awarded to a very talented young lady, Alicia Sou from Whitefield who achieved an excellent score of 90. Also achieving high scores of 90 were Beata Smith from Manchester, who played a very complicated recital in the Woodwind Recital Open Class, and Rowdah Charbak from Alderley Edge School for Girls who won the Henry Johnstone Cup with her vocal solo.
The four day celebration culminated in a splendid Festival Finale, during which, one of the festival's top adjudicators, Marilyn Davies addressed the audience saying "I have come away with so many happy memories of a joyous Festival - AEF - Awesome, Excellent and Friendly."
The Finale commenced with a piece of fanfare music which was especially commissioned for the night, written by Ben Clarke and performed by his 10 piece brass orchestra. This year's prestigious Sara Roache Memorial Trophy was presented at the Finale by the Lord Lieutenant of Cheshire, David Briggs MBE to Genevieve Jeffcoate of Alderley Edge for her all round performances in Speech and Drama.
The Lord Lieutenant said "The Alderley Edge Festival was one of those few events which totally surpassed my expectations. I am in awe and admiration of all the young people who performed on Saturday. The standard was truly outstanding and it is just great to know that there is so much talent in the younger generation.
"I was also delighted on behalf of HM The Queen to congratulate the Festival on its Centenary and to thank the many volunteeres who make this event the huge success which it is."
Chairman of the Festival, Keith Lowe said "David Briggs talked about encouraging nominations for honour, specifically for The Queen's Award for Voluntary Service, which would be the pinnacle for The Alderley Edge Festival if we were to be nominated - which a number of Finale attendees said they would do so. He also said he would be proud to present us this award at next year's Festival if we did achieve this honour.
"We were also honoured by the presence of The Mayor and Lady Mayoress of Cheshire East - Gordon Baxendale and his wife; the Chairman of The British and International Federation of Festivals, Margaret Venables and her husband; and the Deputy Chairman of the Board of the Halle Orchestra Martin McMillan and his wife. We also had in attendance a number of our major sponsors – Carole Nash, Peter and Audrey Jones, Mark and Debby Jones, Paul and Katherine Tomlinson.
"What epitomizes the Alderley Edge Festival is that we go out of our way to be the friendliest Festival of its kind, and it is always pleasant to be recognised for it, as quoted in an email by one of the parents:
"We would like to express our sincere thanks to you for inviting our daughter to sing last night at the Gala. It was a truly wonderful night for us all. She said that singing on that stage in front of all those people was the 'highlight of her life' and that it was the most enjoyable and proudest experience she had ever had. All the people at the Gala were so friendly and kind and there was such a happy and proud atmosphere for the whole evening. We would like to take this opportunity to thank you all at the Festival for your kindness and for making us feel so welcome."
Keith Lowe added "I would like to say a big thank you to all the committee for the wonderful organisation, thoughtfulness, loving care, dedication and commitment they have all shown over the past four days – it has been unbelievable – and all the plaudits given by our guests are fully justified - as a team we are surely 'the greatest' - it is a pleasure and honour to be part of such an organisation.
"To all the performers and their teachers, I thank them for the dedication that they show in achieving such high standards, and to all the other volunteers - we couldn't do it without you and are eternally grateful for your continuing support – bring on the next 100 years – but not for a couple of weeks at least!"
In conjunction with the Halle Orchestra, the Alderley Edge Festival will be holding a Masterclass where two of the orchestra's top musicians will be teaching selected wind performers, who, in the adjudicators' opinion will most benefit from the opportunity. The Masterclass will be held at The Alderley Edge School for Girls on Saturday 2nd July.
Photo: Lydia, Disa, Siri and Hannah make their first appearance at the Festival.
Update: Attached is a complete list of all the winners at the 2010 Alderley Edge Festival.
