Olympic opera band to play live at Newhailes

The world’s first opera band and Olympic performers, Amici Forever, are performing in a classical showcase alongside The Orchestra of Scottish Opera at one of the National Trust for Scotland’s ‘Live on the Lawn’ concerts, in the grounds of Newhailes, near Edinburgh, on Sunday 7th August.

It is one of six NTS open-air concerts being held this summer at various spectacular properties throughout the country, from Crathes Castle in Aberdeenshire to Culzean Castle in Ayrshire.

The vivacious vocal quintet, who famously sang the Olympic Anthem in Athens, will be belting out arias with attitude along to soaring orchestral arrangements at the stunning 17th-century home.

Newhailes has an audience capacity of 6,000, and a number of tickets are still available from the dedicated NTS booking line on 0870 1181931, or from the website, www.nts.org.uk, priced at £27 each. The gates open at 5pm and the show starts at 7:30pm.

Ian Preece, Head of Marketing at the National Trust for Scotland, said, "We have had a fantastic response to this event so far. Newhailes is a stunning location, and provides the perfect opportunity for show-goers to bring a picnic and feast their senses in what will be a truly magical experience".

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12th July 2005

Contact:
Great Circle Communications, Beverley Kirk – 0131 2254646, 07968 777097 bev.kirk@greatcircle.co.uk,
National Trust for Scotland, Ian Preece – 0131 2439300, David Sharland – 0131 243 9354.
About the National Trust for Scotland
http://www.nts.org.uk
The National Trust for Scotland was established in 1931 to act as guardian of the nation’s magnificent heritage of architectural, scenic and historic treasures and to promote public enjoyment of them. In its care are 127 properties covering 76,000 hectares and representing much of the best of Scotland’s heritage. The National Trust for Scotland is an independent charity and the largest voluntary conservation body in Scotland. It relies heavily on donations, legacies and the subscription of its 250,000 members. Each year the Trust welcomes over 1.7 million visitors to those properties where numbers can be counted. It is estimated that as many again visit the countryside and open areas.

Lloyds TSB Note for Note

http://www.lloydstsb.com/note_for_note.asp

The concert is sponsored by Lloyds TSB Note for Note.
Lisa Stephenson, Director of Marketing for Lloyds TSB Scotland , said: 'Our Note for Note campaign aims to bring more music to young people. We have £10 million pounds to contribute over the next three years and with the help of our customers, we can really work at bringing music to life in schools across the UK. We feel that in addition to being great family occasions, these concerts will offer young people the opportunity to see some of their musical heroes perform live in a fantastic setting.'