BOLTON Chamber Orchestra performs a special concert on Saturday to mark its 40th anniversary.

The concert is at Bolton School Arts Centre, 7.30pm, and will include Schumann's Piano Concerto featuring soloist Cherry Vann, pictured, and Mozart's Symphony No 40.

Roger Whitehouse will conduct and Paul Jarvis, who was the conductor from 1990 to 1993 will be guest leader.

Bolton Chamber Orchestra's first concert took place in December 1961. The group was created by a small team of staff at Bolton School -- making the anniversary location particularly appropriate.

The orchestra has maintained its unbroken record of three annual concerts over its 40 years existence, and has also put on many special concerts in aid of charities.

Many will remember the series of Sunday afternoon "back street" concerts in Lightburne Avenue with the orchestra and its audience dodging the showers beneath umbrellas or in neighbouring garages.

Since 1961 the orchestra has provided playing opportunities for hundreds of instrumentalists and has had about 10 different conductors.

It has expanded to 40 regular members. Many of its younger players and conductors have moved on to make careers in music. In addition there is a strong nucleus which has remained, around which the orchestra has developed.

Cherry Vann has been the orchestra's conductor for the last three years. In addition to continuing the orchestra's main programme of concerts, she has involved the group with other music projects, including a series of workshops for deaf children, at Sharples School earlier this year.

Cherry trained as a concert pianist at the Royal College of Music and has already performed as soloist with the Chamber Orchestra at its thirty-fifth anniversary concert, when she played the Piano Concerto by Shostakovich.

Tickets for the anniversary concert are £5 and are from the Orchestra secretary Roger Whitehouse on 492667.