The Millicent Choral Society is celebrating its Golden Jubilee with a celebratory concert at 2pm on October 20 in the Millicent War Memorial Civic and Arts Centre.
The convener and first conductor in 1974 was Judy Bottrill, with inaugural accompanist Elma Willshire, and committee members Lesley Ransley, David Mitchell and Bill Kegel.
The early musicals were with the Company of Seven, with productions of “Desert Song” in 1975 and “Oklahoma” in 1977.
The society initiated the local Community Carols night.
Activities continued and have included regular contributions to local church and civic events; occasional tutorials and workshops; eisteddfods; choral festivals, both in western Victoria and South Australia; membership of SA Country Choral Association and the Australian National Choral Association.
The society’s repertoire is varied and unaccompanied singing, while music performance ranges from the Baroque period to the present day.
Past singers have been invited back to Millicent to join in a celebration dinner on October 19 and then attend the concert on the following afternoon.
The concert will include several visiting choirs from around the Limestone Coast. The Mount Gambier Choral Society, the Coonawarra Community Choir, the Naracoorte Singers and the L.A.S.T. Choir from Mount Gambier will participate in the program.
A commemorative booklet has been produced which records the joys of choral music making in the district which will become a part of Millicent’s social history.
