Synergy returned buoyant from their recent visit to the Bangor International Choral Festival last week, having impressed both audience and the adjudicators.

Friday evening saw the chorus loosen up at the festival voncert, lighting up the venue with a blend of close harmony acapella singing in a set designed to entertain under the guidance of MD Owen McCarthy. Synergy opened with ‘King of the Road’ and ‘Beyond the Sea’ before a double injection of Welshness with ‘Myfanwy’ and ‘Calon Lan’ and closed the set with crowd pleasers ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ by Queen, followed by the promise of a sincere classical piece that evolved into ‘Teddy Bears Picnic’, an act that always brings the house down, this time with a standing ovation!

In a final surprise twist the chorus delivered ‘Irish Blessing’ as a thankyou and goodbye, which left some of the locals in tears in the true vaudeville ethos of ‘make them laugh and make them cry’, by compressing those opposite emotions into a ten-minute slice.

This set Synergy up well for the competition section of the tour on Saturday, where they were entered in numerous categories throughout the day.

Off to a flying start, Synergy won the Barbershop Chorus category with renditions of ‘He A’int Heavy He’s My Brother’ and an Elvis number ‘Love Me’.

The Quartet, ‘The Howlers’ then won the Barbershop Ensemble section followed by Octet ‘Shorething’ coming runners up in the Newcomers’ Class under stiff competition.

In the evening Synergy returned to compete in the Festival Gala Concert, resplendent in their newly purchased kit, as colourful and vibrant as their performances.

The Howlers Quartet were placed runners up in the Light Entertainment Section which preceded the main event: the Open Choral Competition containing accomplished choirs. Synergy entered with ‘Africa’, as made famous by TOTO, ‘Only You’, another Elvis number, and ending with ‘The Lion Sleeps Tonight’.

A nervous wait ensued whilst the adjudicators tallied up scores and addressed each competing choir before chief adjudicator Richard Yarr MBE brought the evening to a close with the main awards for the weekend.

Pleasingly, he showed a soft spot for Synergy, complimenting the chorus for being “stylish and engaging” and possessing “great spirit and storytelling”.

He noted Synergy was under superb direction and had an excellent rapport with MD showing fluid movement. He finally gave congratulations for bringing ‘joy to people’s lives’ and hoped it would long continue, summing up Synergy as ‘a band of brothers’. This was soon followed with Synergy being awarded runners up in the Open Choral Competition and a prize of £500.

Finally, Synergy were awarded two bonus prizes, the Marine Court Shield for Best Single Performance of the Festival (The Lion Sleeps Tonight) and an award as The Best Visiting Choir.

Synergy returns to rehearsals as usual on Thursday and every Thursday at 7.30pm at St Michaels Centre, Pen-Y-Pound.

If you are male and between 18 and 80 and feel you could contribute to a ‘happy band of brothers’ who love singing and entertaining, then please call in to our rehearsals. You will be made most welcome.