Fire Fears Disrupt Truro Concert

Fire fears disrupted a Truro concert held to mark 30 years of the city being twinned with Morlaix in France.

Organised by the Truro Morlaix Twinning Associaton, the concert was due to start at 3pm on April 18 in the Mayor's Parlour at Truro City Hall. However, just as the conductor stood with baton poised for the music to begin, the hall’s fire alarm sounded.

The audience, along with musicians from France and Cornwall, hastily evacuated the building. The concerned crowd then waited for half an hour in Boscawen Street whilst the fire brigade searched the building.

Finally the all clear was given and the rest of the concert passed off without a hitch, except for local cellist David Hoskin being temporarily stuck in a lift with one of the more mature French female musicians.

The orchestra – composed of members of renowned string group the St Mewan Sinfonia and Morlaix’s L’Orchestre de Patio – played a well received programme of works by Bach, Grieg, Vivaldi and Brahms.

The concert, which was free to attend, was the first of a series of events taking place this year to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the twinning of Truro with Morlaix in Brittany.

Sinfonia and Twinning Association members warmly accommodated the Gallic visitors during their three-day stay in Cornwall’s capital. In June the St Mewan Sinfonia will travel to Morlaix to give a return concert and enjoy the famous hospitality of the French Twinning Association.

Monsieur J. J. Cléach of Morlaix and Mrs D. M. Ansari of Truro instigated the twinning of the two towns in 1979. As a result of the union L’Avenue de Truro was opened in Morlaix in 1983 and Truro created Morlaix Avenue. Truro is also twinned with the German town of Boppard.

For more information on the St Mewan Sinfonia please call Sarah on 07817 746581 or visit www.myspace.com/stmewansinfonia.

To find out more about the Truro Morlaix Twinning Association please visit our website or call Ann Burnett on 01726 68896.