Gala concert at Chatsworth for Ashgate Hospice

Featuring performances from West End star Savannah Stevenson, Nottingham based Equinox Saxophone Ensemble and local Derbyshire musicians Katy Strudwick and Andrew Marples on the flute and piano. Doors open at 7pm on the night for a welcome drink and tickets are £15 each.

Katy Strudwick is a teacher and musician who has lived in Chesterfield for 25 years. She performs regularly in the local area and has organised this Gala concert with a hope that her target of raising £3000 for Ashgate Hospice will aid them in continuing to help those in need.

Katy says “December 2023 marks 10 years since my Mum died and Ashgate Hospice cared for her so brilliantly in her last couple of weeks with us. Mum was a very special person in our family and to her friends, and she supported me and my siblings in any way she could. I realise how lucky I am to be able to do what I do with my music, and a huge part of that is thanks to the encouragement and support she gave me.” The Gala Concert at Edensor is a way for Katy to say thank you to Ashgate Hospice.

Ashgate Hospice is a special place. The Hospice is in Old Brampton, Chesterfield, and offers a whole range of services to the local community. They provide palliative and end-of-life care, free of charge to people aged 18 and over. While their purpose is to provide care to those with life-limiting illnesses, the Hospice doesn’t only begin their work at the very end of someone’s life. They can help improve quality of life soon after a terminal diagnosis as well as supporting people’s loved ones to ensure they get the practical, emotional and bereavement support they need.

“As a family we were lucky to be able to access the help and excellent service of nursing care and knowledge at Ashgate Hospice when Mum’s cancer became too much for us to manage as a family. The care and support that we got every day from everyone who worked or volunteered at the Hospice was something we will not forget.” Katy also benefitted from bereavement counselling at the hospice in the year after her Mum’s death and says that this was hugely helpful in helping to deal with her grief and sadness.

The concert will feature vocal delights from actress and singer Savannah Stevenson who is best known for playing Glinda in Wicked on the West End Stage for 3 years as well as working with Andrew Lloyd Webber in Aspects of Love. She and Katy met 25 years ago when Katy took a teaching job at the school Savannah was a pupil at, and they are both so excited to be reunited for this concert. There will be a range of music from the brilliant Equinox Saxophone Ensemble who perform across the UK and have produced several CDs and the line-up is completed by a mix of beautiful flute and piano music from Katy and Andrew Marples who perform together regularly in concerts around Derbyshire.

The ticket price of £15 includes a glass of fizz on arrival, and delicious festive treats in the interval, generously provided by Libby’s of Chatsworth Road. There will be a raffle with an array of lovely prizes from local businesses, and every penny raised will go towards helping the ongoing costs of running the hospice, which relies solely on charitable donations.

Tickets are already selling well, so get yours soon and come along and support this excellent cause. Tickets available from Katy directly, or on Eventbrite https://concertforashgate.eventbrite.com/