A LOCAL folk music duo will be performing in their first concert since the pandemic began in Tavistock next week alongside their newly-formed folk choir.

The band, called Suthering, will be playing at the Tavistock United Reformed Church on December 17 and will be accompanied by the 45 strong Wheelhouse Folk Choir, which they established just before covid.

Band members Heg and Julu said: ‘The choir stuck with us throughout the pandemic for online zoom rehearsals and so this concert is a huge achivement for such a new choir given the obstacles we have faced to keep going.’

The performance will feature a cappella music and audience members will be offered mulled apple juice and mince pies in keeping with the festive season.

All proceeds from the concert will go to the local refugee charity, West Devon Safe Haven, which helps Syrian refugee families settle in West Devon.

Heg and Julu, who are originally from Bristol, tour nationally but moved to their new base in Tavistock in 2019 and run community groups across Devon, including a second choir, called the Great Sea Choir, based in Plymouth

‘Our choirs sing to a very high standard, we train them in singing techniques and they perform at professional events,’ said the band.

‘Our ethos is to teach our choir members that they can achieve anything with the right tools and as a result, the standard is amazing.

‘It brings great joy to watch our singers flourish from nervous new-comers to accomplished singers.’

The Wheelhouse Folk Choir will support Suthering again in February when the band release their debut album at The Wharf in Tavistock.