FINAL rehearsals are underway for the staging of a special fundraising concert in Chester which organisers hope will help to make classical music more accessible for all.

The concert, set to be staged by Chester Bach Singers at St Werburgh's Church in Chester on Saturday, April 20, at 7.30pm, will feature a performance of Handel's 'Messiah' which also has a surprising Chester connection.

Featuring the well known "Hallelujah Chorus", 'Messiah' was written by George Frideric Handel in 1741 and was first performed in Dublin in April 1742 although Handel famously stopped off in Chester en-route to Dublin in November 1741 when bad weather delayed his sailing from Parkgate.

A hastily arranged rehearsal of 'Messiah' using choristers from Chester Cathedral was held at The Golden Falcon Inn on Northgate Street, where Centurion House now stands.

As part of their mission to make classical music accessible to all, Chester Bach Singers are offering tickets for the concert on a "Pay What You Can" basis, with ticket prices ranging from £30  to just £5.

Speaking about the special ticket offer, Helen Crich, the chair of Chester Bach Singers, said: "Chester Bach Singers recently took part in an amazing performance of Elgar’s 'Dream of Gerontius' with Chester Philharmonic Orchestra and Cantiones, directed by Martin Bussey our MD.

"Our soloists were excellent and we were pleased to see so much support for the choirs and orchestra at Chester Cathedral. We are approaching this concert, Handel's 'Messiah' a little differently and hoping to attract a large audience by experimenting with ticket prices which we have pitched from £30 to £5 .

"We hope this will encourage people who may not usually attend or cannot afford to attend choral concerts to come along. This concert is also to help us raise funds for the choir to enable us to continue to put on quality choral music experiences in Chester. If you can support the choir by buying a higher priced ticket, we would be very grateful for your support."

Bach Singers have opted to perform the work with organ in its performance on April 20.

The magnificent instrument in St Werburgh’s Church will provide a resounding accompaniment to ‘Hallelujah’, but also sensitive sounds in quieter moments such as the beautiful ‘I know that my Redeemer liveth’.

The choir has been fortunate to call on the services of distinguished local organist, Graham Eccles to achieve this. Graham is well known to audiences in the North West and North Wales and he plays regularly with top orchestras such as the Halle and BBC Philharmonic."