Cupar Choral Society, arguably Fife’s oldest, established in 1865, is to hold its spring concert in Cupar Corn Exchange on Saturday, 22nd April. For the performances of Mozart’s Requiem and Haydn’s Nelson Mass, “the Choral” has recruited a superb line-up of soloists with some “firsts”. Mozart’s Requiem is a powerful work and anyone who has seen the film “Amadeus” will recognize several of the movements. The Nelson Mass constantly ranks highly with choirs and audiences amongst their favourite choral works. Listeners to the BBC Radio Scotland programme “Classics Unwrapped” will instantly recognize its presenter, Jamie MacDougall, himself an accomplished worldwide concert and operatic performer, who is filling the tenor spot, a first for the Choral. Jamie has regularly presented on BBC Radio 3 and in 2017 was the Artist in Residence at the St Andrews Voices Festival. He will also be known to many as a presenter of, and performer with, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. The local theme continues with mezzo-soprano Nicola Wemyss as alto soloist making her second appearance with The Choral. Nicola, who hails from Strathkinness, began her solo career by winning the first Chimay International Competition for Baroque Singing and has broadened her repertoire into oratorio, concert and opera, performing both at home and abroad. She has also recorded several discs for a variety of recording labels.  Another first is the appearance together of Elizabeth Thomson, soprano, and Peter Thomson, bass, her father. Following completion of a degree course at the Royal Northern College of Music, Elizabeth graduated with Distinction in her Masters Degree from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. An outstanding vocal talent, Elizabeth has already performed with many choral societies and in operatic roles at the likes of The Barbican Centre and the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London with, amongst others, the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Her father, Peter Thomson, is the recently-retired Head of the Music Faculty and Director of Music at St George’s School in Edinburgh, now resident in Freuchie. Peter, like Jamie MacDougall, is a graduate of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (now the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland) and has sung major operatic roles for Scottish Opera and in the likes of The Royal Opera House, Covent Garden and Alberta, Canada. He has performed extensively for choral societies throughout Scotland, including Cupar, and taught singing at the Conservatoire. He continues his musical input teaching singing and piano and as conductor of the Markinch and District Community Choir. The Choral continues under the leadership of its Musical Director, Michael Segaud, who has been an inspiration, keeping the choir together through the pandemic and now back to the Corn Exchange for its first major concert. The Choral still has members who performed with it for the first time forty four years ago singing the Nelson Mass, so this concert also has considerable nostalgia. Tickets may be bought from members or at the door. They are £15; £5 for students; £2 for unwaged and accompanied children under 16 are free. The concert starts at 7.30 pm.