Call for Burns Festival entries

Aug 29 2008 by Our Correspondent, Perthshire Advertiser Friday

CAN you sing a traditional Scottish song? Recite a Scots poem? Play the accordion or fiddle? Do you attend a primary or secondary school in Perthshire or Kinross-shire?

If so, you are invited to put your talents to the test at the annual festival organised by Perth Burns Club.

The festival, now in its 22nd year, will be held in the Salutation Hotel, Perth, during the afternoon of Sunday, November 23. Competitors may enter individually or through their school and are free to choose their own competition pieces.

Awards will be made to the winners in each class and there are also 11 special trophies to be won withinthe four categories of singing, verse speaking, accordion playing andfiddle playing.

This year, two additional trophies are being awarded – The Grampian Cup, donated by past president Stella Cormie, for the winner of the secondary schools’ under-15 verse speaking section and the President's Cup for the best overall performance in the festival of a Robert Burns poem, song or music piece.

The latter trophy has been donated by the club's past president and current committee member Bill Dawson who, in two weeks’ time, will be installed as the new president of the Robert Burns World Federation.

Certificates of achievement will be presented to all competitors in the festival.

The closing date for the return of entries is October 31 and entry forms are now available from Waterstone's Bookshop, St John's Centre, Perth; Wilkie's Music House, 2 Canal Crescent, Perth; AK Bell Library, York Place, Perth and library branches throughout Perth and Kinross; head teachers of Perth and Kinross schools or directly from the festival secretary, Anna Merry, telephone 01738 440168.

Get the competition rules and entry form from Perth Burns Club website at www.geocities.com/perthburnsclub/ and clicking onto to the Schools Festival link.

This year's adjudicators are Henry C. Neil (singing), Lovina Roe (verse speaking), Jimmy Lindsay (accordion) and John Napier (fiddle).