A charity concert organised by Perak Society of Performing Arts (PSPA) titled, “The Chimes of Love Volume 2” was held on Saturday, December 15, 2018 at the Wesley Methodist Church. It presented a repertoire of Christmas-themed performances to usher in the festive holidays.
The objective was to collect funds for a number of charities identified by the Church. Among them were Vineyard Keeper, Salvation Children’s Home, Bethany Home, Good Shepherd Family Home, Lighthouse Hope and others.
The backbone of the concert was the hugely talented PSPA Singers consisting of sopranos, tenors, altos and basses. They provided the staggering vocals and dramatic singsongs that drove the Christmas cheers many notches high. Guest performers such as the Kinta Valley Saxophone Ensemble and Din & Phonic were present to complement the show.
Chai Jin Hann, the organiser of the event said, “The purpose of the concert is to spread the message of love, joy and care during the festive season of Christmas. We hope to join hands with the community to spread awareness of the urban poor and to reach out to them. The money and goods that you have donated in kind will be given to the needy through Wesley Methodist Church via its contacts,” he added.
When asked how he managed to organise a large-scale concert for free. He responded, “Organising a concert like this requires a team which is willing to contribute its time and effort. In fact, all the committee members and singers are volunteers.”
Finding a church that could help PSPA handle the donations and had good connections with various charity bodies in Ipoh was imperative, he said. So was the choice of songs and scripts.
“A challenge we faced was marketing the event,” said Chai. “Although this is a free concert, we faced difficulties in giving out tickets and inviting the public, as there are many similar Christmas shows this time of the year.” Despite this the concert was a hit. Chai thanked all those who had helped.
The musical was an adaptation of Charles Dickens’s, ‘The Christmas Carol’ with a local twist. The story describes the meaning of Christmas and how it affects people.
Jack Foo
