A CONCERT at Malvern Theatres raised more than £1,000 for the Association for Rehabilitation of Communication and Oral Skills.

The concert, which featured Sovereign Brass, was one of the highlights of this year’s Autumn in Malvern Festival, which once again received glowing accolades from audiences and the press.

Peter Smith, the festival’s founder and artistic director, said: “The exhibitions were very popular, and, as usual, several talks were sold out weeks before.’’

Musical highlights this year included the Simovic String Quartet, made up of the leader and members of the London Symphony Orchestra, performing the Elgar and Debussy string quartets.

Both works are associated with the year 1918.

The centenary of the ending of the First World War was marked in a concert given by Malvern’s distinguished chamber choir, Aldwyn Voices, now in its 50th year, held in the Great Hall, Malvern College.

Miriam Kramer and Nicholas Durcan performed the Elgar Violin Sonata of 1918 as a centre-piece.

The commemorative sequence of music, poetry and prose was specially devised by Peter Smith with a memorable delivery of the readings given by Peter Sutton.

Mr Smith is already planning the 30th festival. He said: "I am very grateful to all those sponsors and grant making bodies, and not least the loyal core audience, who have sustained the festival since 1989.”