MORE than 200 musicians from across Warwickshire are gathering for a special memorial concert celebrating the life and legacy of conductor and community music pioneer Sebastian Farrall.
Seb Farrall: A Celebration! will take place at Butterworth Hall, Warwick Arts Centre on Sunday May 3 at 4.30pm, bringing together singers, orchestral musicians and community performers whose musical journeys were shaped by Seb’s work.
The concert comes one year after his death in a cycling accident aged 32. Over more than a decade, he became a driving force in community music across Coventry and Warwickshire, creating ensembles where musicians of all abilities – from complete beginners to experienced performers – could sing and play together.
The event will bring together seven ensembles and performers from groups he founded, led or inspired, many of whom will share the stage together for the first time.
All proceeds from the concert will be donated to The Music Man Project, an award-winning international charity providing music education and performance opportunities for people with learning disabilities.
Performing ensembles include Sing It Loud Choir, Coventry City of Culture Orchestra, Bad Vibrations, Stoneleigh Ladies Choir, Burton Green Choir, Coventry Salvation Army Choir and Band, All that Brass and musicians from The Music Man Project.
Together they will perform a varied programme of choral and orchestral music reflecting the breadth of Seb’s musical world and the inclusive spirit that defined his work.
Sebastian was born in Bristol and discovered music through the Salvation Army, where he played drums in the band from a young age.
He moved to Coventry in 2010 to study music composition at Coventry University, graduating with first-class honours and receiving the Robert Ramskill Composition Award.
He is survived by his wife Fran, a music teacher and French horn player, and their two-year-old daughter Maisy.
Fran said: “Seb was a wonder to behold both on and off the stage, and it was an absolute privilege to be his wife. The fact that so many people want to come together to celebrate and remember him through music means such a lot to me, and I hope it will help our little girl to begin to understand what a wonderful daddy she had. My life will be forever incomplete without Seb by my side but I am so grateful for all of the love and support I have received from the musical communities that were such an important part of his life.”
Visit www.tinyurl.com/sebfarrall for tickets.
