Anne Frank concert in Budleigh Salterton

Annalies, a choral piece based on the life of Anne Frank, is the forthcoming concert in the St Peter's Music series.

It's the first-ever adaptation of the diary of Anne Frank as a full-length choral work.

Melanie Challenger, who wrote the libretto, bases it entirely on Anne's descriptions of her family's hidden confinement in an Amsterdam warehouse between 1942 and 1944, and of their subsequent removal to a concentration camp.

The part of Anne, above, is sung by a solo soprano, in this case, Amy Haworth who has sung at St Peter’s twice before. The chorus plays a highly dramatic role underlining her vivid descriptions of what is taking place.

Annalies is the largest musical piece by James Whitbourn, a versatile composer with an international reputation for choral music and music for film, television and concert hall. The work was premiered by Leonard Slatkin at London's Cadogan Hall in 2005. It uses Jewish folk tunes, chorales in the style of Bach and a wealth of melody, making the work extraordinarily beautiful to listen to and heart-rending in its poignancy.

After studying music at Oxford University, James Whitbourne began his career as a BBC producer. His compositional output has been influenced by that background and is admired for its direct connection with performers and audiences worldwide. Artists who have performed and broadcast Whitbourn's music include Katherine Jenkins, Daniel Hope, Arianna Zukerman, BBC Philharmonic and the choirs of King's College Cambridge and Westminster Abbey.

Annalies is being performed on Wednesday 6 October at 7.30 pm. Amy Haworth will be accompanied by St Peter's Church Choir and friends with a chamber ensemble conducted by Sylvia Pritchard.

Tickets are £12. For information on how to obtain tickets click on http://budleighbrewsterunited.blogspot.com/2010/04/tickets-for-2010-st-peters-music.html