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MAKING PROGRESS ... AND HAVING FUN!
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The Weyhill Electronic Organ Society, one of the youngest UK organ clubs in existence, has just completed its first five years and, apart from having maintained excellent concert attendances throughout this time, it is rightly proud of its achievement in having raised over £4,000 for various deserving charities.
Significantly, in recognition of its contribution to the local community, the Society has recently been honoured with a 'Voluntary Groups Awards' certificate by Test Valley Community Services – the third successive year in which the Club has received such an award.
The Society has worked extremely hard in promoting its activities and establishing a healthy reputation with audiences and performers alike. However, despite adopting a serious attitude towards attaining its objectives, the Club presents itself as a relaxed, fun-loving and sociable group; a variety of additional activities supplement the regular monthly concerts to enhance the enjoyment of its loyal supporters. Furthermore, mindful of the dangers of stagnation, the Society continues to seek innovative projects in order to widen its appeal and popularity.
Weyhill is a small Hampshire village situated three miles west of Andover, from where the majority of the Club's supporters are drawn. For several hundred years, until the middle of the twentieth century, the village was famous throughout Britain for a sheep fair which drew enormous crowds and was considered the largest in the land. Weyhill was the fair which provided the information upon which Thomas Hardy based his account of wife-selling in ‘The Mayor of Casterbridge’.
The annual event was famed in both song and story; in fact, a number of folk songs were derived from it and legend once held that Weyhill's was the fair that Johnny, of the old song, was so long at. One particular folk song, 'Weyhill Fair', was adopted by the Society as its signature tune and the music was performed, by Nicholas Martin, at its inaugural concert in July 2002. The tune has since been arranged by Penny Weedon and retitled the 'Weyhill March'.
Understandably, upon its formation, the Society decided to forge a link with history by adopting a sheep as an integral part of its logo and has subsequently acquired three sheep mascots who attend all of the concerts – at the Fairground Hall in Weyhill! Quite naturally, for health and safety reasons, it soon became necessary to introduce some form of control and the Club decided to advertise for a music-loving sheep dog. The appeal was so successful that two well-disciplined border collies have now been recruited!
Obviously, you don't have to be mad to be associated with the Weyhill Electronic Organ Society ... but it probably helps!
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The Latest Special Event at Weyhill
Claudia illuminates The Lights
'The Lights' theatre in Andover proved to be the ideal setting for the Society's October concert, featuring star German player, CLAUDIA HIRSCHFELD. The venue was a complete sell-out (240 tickets) and many late applicants had to be disappointed.
With her three-manual Wersi Louvre organ, Claudia delighted the audience with a wide selection of music, including a few of her own compositions. Her programme contained a number of Classical pieces, a few ballads, film music, a Gospel selection and a couple of marches, whilst a Rock 'n' Roll medley also met with approval.
Having clearly enjoyed her first visit to The Lights, Claudia expressed the wish to return at some future date ... when no doubt there would be a great demand for tickets to see such a charming and talented lady – a performer at the very top of her profession.
The concert was attended by the Mayor of Test Valley, the Deputy Mayor and two previous Mayors.
23.10.07
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EDITORIAL NOTE - The Weyhill Electronic Organ Society was one of four
nominated for the most popular and best run societies in 2006
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