A musical treat from Lisburn Community Orchestra

The musicians were understandably disappointed when rehearsals for upcoming concerts had to be cancelled but thanks to modern technology they have still been able to share their love of music with a social distancing performance on Youtube,

Stephen McLoughlin, who established and conducts the orchestra, explained: “After our Christmas concerts we have been preparing for a few concerts in April and May but unfortunately we have had to disband the orchestra and cancel the concerts due to our situation.

“The orchestra was only formed in September last year, giving us 14 weeks to prepare for our Home Alone Christmas concerts in December. The rehearsals were quite intense, and during this time we really pulled together as a group and formed a tight community between us all - a group of 70 people, not including the numerous people that logistically make the orchestra happen.

“When the point arose that we knew the orchestra had to be paused we were all saddened, and wanted to continue to make music - for the benefit of the community around us as well as ourselves. Thankfully we have some very technically minded members in the orchestra (thank you Michael McKnight), who volunteered to put the video together.

“The decision to choose the track ‘Children’, was two-fold. Firstly we wanted to play something that would put a smile on peoples faces (and be a blast from the past for those of a certain age), and also as a parent in such a time as this it is always our kids we want to shelter and protect - and so Children was the perfect choice.

“Lisburn Community Orchestra has an eclectic range in style, from light classical to film music and stretching as far as rock and jazz. We have the aim of connecting ourselves and our community with the music we love - all the time smiling and supporting each other.

“So - the group got to work. A guide track was produced and thanks to the marvel of modern mobile phones Michael was able to take mobile video footage and separate the audio and the video, sync it all together and come up with our offering to uplift spirits in our present lockdown.

“We hope everyone enjoys our offering, and LCO looks very much forward to meeting again and sharing our music face to face with everyone at our next concert. For more information visit our website www.lisburncommunityorchestra.com.”