A Stroud-based community choir will sing Bach’s stunning St. John Passion on Palm Sunday, April 14, at St. Laurence Church, hoping to raise over £5,000 for refugees in Yemen and Syria and local charities – and to beat last year’s record.

The 100 strong Stroud Refugee Aid Choir and Orchestra will meet altogether for the first time on the day having contributed to the appeal in order to take part in the exciting performance.

Members of Stroud Choral Society, who have sung the work before, will be joined by singers of all abilities some of whom will never have sung, or maybe even listened to Bach’s piece before. Warm-up rehearsals will be available for those unfamiliar with the piece.

Hugh Barton, who directed last year’s sell-out performance of Mozart’s Requiem to huge acclaim joins the excellent soloists and players who will be donating their time to the event.

This year the performance will be in St. Laurence church, Stroud, in order to be able to accommodate even more people, organiser says that they hope that this will be another packed event.

St John Passion is considered an extra-ordinary work, telling the story of Jesus’ last hours in dramatic and powerful fashion.

For this performance the work will be shortened and in English, to be practical for a community choir, and very immediate for the audience.

The event is supported by Nailsworth Quakers and Stroud Sacred Music Festival.

Any surplus funds raised will go to Stroud Women’s Refuge, Stroud Centre for Peace and the Arts at St Laurence’s Church, as well as the Yemen and Syria Appeal.

  • St John Passion, 7-9pm , April 14, St Laurence Church, Stroud. Tickets: £12 (children free) from the Made in Stroud shop and on-line at eventbrite.co.uk