THE centenary year of the Cleethorpes Festival of Music and Words concluded with a gala concert at the Central Hall.

Lea Peart, a two-time winner of the regional championships, acted as compère and delivered an amusing monologue in the style of a funeral eulogy entitled Ashes to Ashes.

Scunthorpe Co-Operative Junior Choir, under the direction of Susan Hollingsworth and accompanist Lynn Robinson, provided the words element of the concert.

This multi-award winning choir, which has not only performed at the Sydney Olympics and the opening of the Millennium Dome, is also a former BBC Choir of the Year.

Nearly 100 youngsters aged between nine and 18 made the journey to Grimsby and their performance bewitched the audience and left them spellbound.

Their choice of songs showcased the depth of their talent and their harmonies were infused with the sheer joy of singing.

The celebratory Sound of the Trumpet yielded to the inspiring valedictory-style lyrics of Child of Tomorrow.

Can You Hear Me? movingly introduced us to a world though the eyes of a deaf child as the choir combined sign language with their singing.

Traditional spirituals, Latin flavours and songs of optimism all contributed to the choir deservedly receiving prolonged applause.

The equally-talented Swing Band of the Grimsby, Cleethorpes and District Youth Orchestra, under the direction of Leo Solomon, provided the musical contribution.

I'm a fan of this band and they didn't disappoint as they raced through a musical programme, that allowed them to shine both collectively and individually, with music to suit all tastes.

From the movies, there was the gentle As Time Goes By and Over The Rainbow whilst a spirited Pink Panther saw the audience adding a touch of percussion as they rhythmically clicked their fingers.

Land of a Thousand Dances and In The Midnight Hour raised the temperature, whereas YMCA prompted some dancing in the seats.

This band successfully creates a sound bigger than their numbers would suggest and the Star Wars theme proved an excellent demonstration of this ability.

Review and more pictures in today's Grimsby Telegraph.