UK Sacred Harp Convention
https://www.ukshc.org/
Join us for the 28th UK Sacred Harp Convention in County Durham!
We look forward to welcoming you to the Barley Mow Village Hall (DH3 2AJ). The venue is accessible and situated conveniently for trasnport and accommodation.
We are delighted that the convention will also be the European launch of the new revision of the Sacred Harp and we will sing from this book on both days. Details about accessing the new book are still under discussion and we will update this page as soon as there is further information to share.
The singing is open to the public and free to attend, with all welcome and no experience necessary. There will be a collection to cover event costs. All attendees must take a covid lateral flow test before they arrive each day; please scroll down for our guidelines.
We are asking people to pre-register to give us a good idea of numbers and so that we are able to share any vital information closer to the event. Please use this Google form to let us know you are coming:
https://forms.gle/zSbDGtZ1EbkUyte18
Full programme at
https://www.ukshc.org/programme/
Friday 19th September | 7pm-9pm, Barley Mow Village Hall, Birtley, nr. Chester-le-Street, County Durham. DH3 2AJ
The new revision of the Sacred Harp will be launched by the Revision Committee.
There will be a presentation by David Ivey and members of the revision committee to honour those involved in producing the new book, as well as honouring the composers of the new songs. There will also be an opportunity to sing some of the new songs.
Saturday 20th September | 10am-3.30pm: First day of the 28th UK Sacred Harp convention. Registration opens at 10am for 10.30am singing. We’ll sing until about 3.30pm with regular tea breaks and a shared pot luck lunch (dinner on the grounds). Please note that there may not be facilities for reheating food or plugging in slow cookers at the venue; There will be a business meeting after the singing.
Saturday night social | 7:30pm onwards: It is planned that there will be a Cèilidh for part of the evening, as well as space for quiet chat. There will be an honesty bar and we plan to invite a food truck to the venue.
Sunday 21st September | 10am-3.30pm: Second day of the 28th UK Sacred Harp convention. Registration opens at 10am for 10.30am singing. We’ll sing until about 3.30pm with regular tea breaks and a shared pot luck lunch (dinner on the grounds).
See
https://www.ukshc.org/directions-and-transport/
for accessibility information about our singing and social venues.
We will be using the same COVID mitigations as the 2024 UK Convention. These mitigations are subject to updates if levels of infection change in the lead up to the event. We appreciate everyone needs to make their own assessments about attending a large singing event which cannot be made risk free so if you have questions about any of the mitigations below, please contact us.
All attendees must use a lateral flow test on the morning of each day of singing, before they travel to the venue and bring evidence of a negative test with them, for example a photograph of the test read at the time suggested by the manufacturer. If you test positive at any point, please do not attend. For children under 7 lateral flow tests are at the discretion of parents and evidence of their tests will not be asked for. Please get in contact with us if you are having trouble finding or paying for a test. We will have some spares on the door.
We ask that you stay home if you have recently been in close contact with someone who tests positive for Covid or if you or someone in your household has any new, unexplained symptoms.
Masks are not required for singing, but singers are welcome to wear masks if they would like to.
We will be singing in a hollow square with chairs spaced at the usual distance but there will be extra chairs and space in the large hall for singers who would be more comfortable sitting further away from others.
The hall will be ventilated as much as possible throughout the singing so we advise people to bring layers whatever the weather.
We will hold a bring-and-share lunch both days but people are equally welcome to bring their own lunch.
If you test positive for Covid-19 within 7 days after the event, please notify organisers. Your name will not be shared but we would like to let attendees know so that they can make informed decisions to reduce the risk of infections in their household or local area.
Also check out other Food & Drink events in Chester-le-Street, Music events in Chester-le-Street, Meetups in Chester-le-Street.
