logo
Monmouth Concert Orchestra to host 'Animal Magic' concert

Monmouth Concert Orchestra to host 'Animal Magic' concert

The event, titled "Animal Magic," is set for Sunday, June 15, at St Mary's Priory Church, Monmouth, from 4pm to 6pm.
The audience can expect a programme featuring music from Bach, Handel, and Saint-Saëns.
Tickets are priced at £8, with free entry for under-16s, and are available from orchestra members or at the door.
The orchestra will be raising funds for Cwmbran-based charity, All Creatures Great and Small, which rescues and rehabilitates animals.
The Monmouth Concert Orchestra is made up of amateur musicians from Herefordshire, Monmouthshire, and the Forest of Dean.
They meet fortnightly during term time and are always open to new players, provided they are of Grade V standard or above.
There are no auditions.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

UK-Based Forte Antique Quietly Builds a Global Backbone for Custom Music in the Creator Economy
UK-Based Forte Antique Quietly Builds a Global Backbone for Custom Music in the Creator Economy

Scotsman

time2 hours ago

  • Scotsman

UK-Based Forte Antique Quietly Builds a Global Backbone for Custom Music in the Creator Economy

With content platforms demanding speed, rights, and sonic originality, Forte Antique is becoming a go-to partner for businesses investing in audio as intellectual property. Sign up to our Scotsman Money newsletter, covering all you need to know to help manage your money. Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... The internet's economy is no longer driven by just visuals and code — it's driven by sound. And while consumers are familiar with playlists and streaming hits, the real transformation is happening behind the scenes, where music is being treated less like entertainment and more like infrastructure. At the center of this shift is Forte Antique, a UK-based music production firm that has become a silent force in reshaping how content platforms, creative agencies, and app developers acquire their soundtracks. Unlike licensing-based models, Forte Antique delivers fully owned, custom-produced music — offering companies not access, but asset ownership. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad As digital ecosystems race to create immersive brand experiences, industry experts say that companies are rethinking how they source music — and who controls it. "Composing in the Shadows: A music producer reviews her session in a dimly lit studio — part of the growing workforce behind the fully owned audio economy." A Digital Supply Chain Powered by Sound From Derry to Dubai, platforms today rely on quick-turnaround content for mobile, video, podcasts, and interactive media. But the typical licensing model — often tangled with usage limits and royalty obligations — no longer suits the needs of fast-moving businesses. Enter firms like Forte Antique, whose business model mirrors that of a private-label manufacturer — only for music. Instead of offering searchable libraries to the public, Forte Antique works in the background: Building custom music packs by genre Crafting sonic identities for platforms and startups Delivering white-label soundtracks ready for rebranding Operating recurring supply models for enterprise clients Each track is composed, delivered, and assigned with zero reuse, zero royalties, and zero legal ambiguity. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'What we're seeing is the professionalization of music procurement,' said a UK-based entertainment lawyer. 'Forte Antique isn't selling tracks. It's delivering assets with business utility — like owning a film, codebase, or original design.' Why Business Ownership of Music Is Booming This quiet shift in strategy is rooted in real-world concerns: Avoiding copyright flags on social platforms Securing global usage rights from day one Differentiating brand sound from competitors Integrating music into long-term products and IP portfolios The growing demand spans industries. Royalty-free platforms want exclusive music to protect catalog value. Agencies seek scalable assets for client campaigns. Apps want UX sounds that don't expire. Even AI voice and metaverse developers are sourcing music they can control. Forte Antique, with a team of 50+ composers across Europe and Asia, has capitalized on this demand by offering flexible models that support growth, privacy, and platform-agnostic use. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Originality at Scale — Without Licensing Fatigue Whether it's ten acoustic themes for a mindfulness app or a hundred trap beats for a streaming hub, Forte Antique delivers sound at volume without compromising exclusivity. Clients choose from 14 musical genres and receive audio assets in multiple formats (WAV, MP3, STEMS) with embedded metadata. It's a clean transaction — built for integration, not repetition. 'You can think of them as a silent factory for the global audio layer,' said a creative director at a European content agency. 'They're not just producing music. They're supplying infrastructure.' What This Means for Business in the UK and Beyond Forte Antique's model highlights a larger business trend: the shift from subscription-based digital services to asset acquisition in creative industries. As UK startups and agencies explore ways to own more of their digital supply chain, services like this — invisible to the end-user — are becoming mission-critical. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad

Beauty queen, 30, dies in horror crash as elk smashes through Porsche windscreen and fatally injures newly-married model
Beauty queen, 30, dies in horror crash as elk smashes through Porsche windscreen and fatally injures newly-married model

Scottish Sun

time2 hours ago

  • Scottish Sun

Beauty queen, 30, dies in horror crash as elk smashes through Porsche windscreen and fatally injures newly-married model

Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A NEWLY-wed beauty queen has tragically died following a horror car crash after an elk smashed into her windscreen. Russian model Ksenia Alexandrova, 30, was rushed to hospital after the freak accident - but succumbed to her severe injuries this week. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 6 Beauty queen Ksenia Alexandrova, 30, died after an elk smashed into the Porsche she was in Credit: East2West 6 She suffered a traumatic brain injury Credit: East2West 6 She was a runner up in the Miss Russia pageant, 2017 Credit: East2West 6 She was reportedly recently married Credit: East2West The fatal crash occurred five weeks ago - leaving her fighting for her life at the Sklifosovsky Research Institute in Moscow. Ksenia was a passenger in the Porsche when the vehicle suddenly collided with the animal. She was a runner up in the Miss Russia pageant in 2017, representing Moscow. The beloved model was also a Miss Universe contestant in the same year. The recently married beauty queen reportedly suffered a traumatic brain injury in the collision in the Tver region. At the time of her death she was also a psychologist and psychodrama therapist. The Miss Universe pageant's official account said on social media: 'Her grace, beauty and spirit left an indelible mark on the Miss Universe family." 'May her memory continue to inspire kindness, strength and love in all those fortunate enough to have known her.' Fellow beauty queen Anna Linnikova said tragic Ksenia 'had just got married, settled down, and was happy". The late model married her partner in late March this year, according to her social media. OnlyFans model left for dead after 'Dubai Porta Potty' party breaks silence… and reveals horror aftermath of ordeal Linnikova, who was Miss Russia 2022, said: "This is a reminder to all of us that we need to appreciate every moment of life. 'You never know when an event will happen that will take away your loved ones.' The 43-year-old driver of the Porsche has not been named. But while driving the car with Ksenia in the passenger seat, they were reportedly "unable to avoid the collision". Ksenia's death was confirmed by Moscow-based modelling agency Modus Vivendis. She passed away on Tuesday, August 12, after battling for her life in hospital. The beauty queen was born and raised in Moscow, and had been modelling with the agency since she was 19. She graduated from Moscow Pedagogical State University with a degree in Psychology in 2022. In April, a European beauty queen died after tragically plunging from a bridge onto a motorway while fleeing from police. Güler Erdogan, 27, was caught drunk behind the wheel in Giresun, Turkey, and fell 50ft from the bridge as she tried to flee from cops on April 1. And in October, beauty model Samanta Villarreal Núñez died in a horror crash while she was travelling in a pickup truck. She was in the vehicle with her sister and a friend when the driver lost control of the car before smashing into a ravine. 6 Ksenia succumbed to her severe injuries Credit: East2West

Edinburgh Fringe comedy reviews Kate Dolan The Critic Zoë Coombs Marr The Splash Zone
Edinburgh Fringe comedy reviews Kate Dolan The Critic Zoë Coombs Marr The Splash Zone

Scotsman

time6 hours ago

  • Scotsman

Edinburgh Fringe comedy reviews Kate Dolan The Critic Zoë Coombs Marr The Splash Zone

Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Kate Dolan: The Critic ★★★★ Assembly George Square (Venue 8) until 24 August I witnessed an illustrative moment before this show began, when Kate Dolan joined her own queue and wasn't recognised by the venue's staff. Admittedly, she was sporting the cracking visual pun with which she kicks off her irrepressibly funny second Fringe hour. But the incident fed neatly into the abiding sense of paranoia the Australian-based Brit evinces, even if it perhaps undermined her premise that she is always her harshest critic. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Kate Dolan: The Critic With a tendency to insert a running commentary of self-mocking, quirky vocal tics and inflections into her stories, in a manner I found most reminiscent of Jim Carrey in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective of all things, Dolan adds to her layers of delivery with the conceit of a voice distorting gizmo. Rendered in demonic, distorted tones, expressive of her inner thoughts, the effect could be harsh and destabilising if Dolan didn't weave it so seamlessly into the flow of her narrative. Forever pacing around the stage, noting her physical resemblance to Roald Dahl's vigorously limber Miss Trunchbull, she's got a restless relentlessness that she fills with a steady stream of barbed anecdotes, invariably targeting herself. Less troubled comics might have introduced their recent marriage earlier and more positively in their set. But the insecure Dolan drops this casual aside long after musing on others' speculation about her sexuality. Besides, dogged by her own problems, she resents her husband's relative peace of mind and does anything to unsettle the mental stability of men generally, striking unlikely flails for feminism. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Revealing ever more vulnerability, including her grudgingly admitted, stereotypical female comic's adherence to mystical 'woo woo shit', Dolan ultimately opens up upon the treatment she's receiving. But it's being on stage and bedroom role-play that really allow her to get out of her own head for a bit. Jay Richardson Zoë Coombs Marr: The Splash Zone ★★★★ Monkey Barrel 4 at Monkey Barrel Comedy (Venue 515) until 24 August Zoe Coombs Marr planned to make a pure stand-up show, following the distractions thrown up by her fertile, playful and over-active mind. But she got distracted. First it was the idea of making a T shirt gun, then it was the presence of a couple of unexpected Trump fans in her audience at an invite only gig. She wants to be a comic whose material is accessible to anyone, and she is. But did she really want these people, who are not her people, to be at her gig? Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The question led Coombs Marr to think about audience interaction, and how crowd work changes the sense of connection between a comic and the audience. Don't worry, there isn't really a lot of audience interaction in the show, although if you sit on the front row there is a chance to win a prize. Winding through the show is the story of the teenage Coombs Marr on a solo railway journey across Australia. Will teenage Zoe make it home? Will she talk to any strangers on the way? You'll have to watch the show to find out. Into her wonderfully potent and very funny storytelling mix, she also throws in a conversation with her grandad, some facts about leprechauns and some encounters with conspiracy theorists, whose views threaten to shake her sense of reality. It's a brilliant demonstration of ADHD as a comic super-power, with the laughs supercharged by callback after callback, which ties the whole meandering narrative into a coherent whole. Claire Smith Jonny Pelham: Is It Me? ★★★★ Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Hive 2 at Monkey Barrel Comedy (The Hive) (Venue 313) until 25 August Jonny Pelham was one of the first male comics to talk about being a survivor or child sexual abuse on stage in his ground breaking 2019 show Off Limits. He references the show, and the story, but he isn't letting it define him any more. Pelham has an easy confidence on stage, even though his material contains plenty of things he might be miserable about. Newly single, Pelham talks about his mental health, his bodily imperfections, his erectile dysfunction and his financial insecurity. It's a lot. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad But Pelham subverts the narrative with some excellently written jokes which bring an unexpected jollity to the parade of utter miserabilism. He has a way of giving ordinary everyday struggles a subversively surreal twist which lightens the subject matter and provokes big laughs. This is no pity party. We are laughing at him and with him. I've recently become allergic to the use of the word 'paedo' as a punchline. But given his history, Pelham is uniquely entitled to use it. And he does, sparingly, in a way which is hilarious and entirely appropriate. Pelham has a way of laughing at his troubles which will help you laugh at your own, or just forget them for an hour, which is what comedy can do, if it's done right. We're all in this together, and touring up and down the country as a comic Pelham has found a surprising reason to be cheerful about the perilous state of the world. As he closes his show he moves unexpectedly from the personal to the political. He has a theory about why the current crop of comics are struggling with mental health which is intelligent, insightful and throws the whole thing on its head. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad In a flashback to a psychotherapy session Jonny suddenly comes up with the answer to it all, which is funny, ridiculous but also makes a whole lot of sense. Claire Smith Aideen McQueen: Waiting for Texto ★★★★ Gilded Balloon Patter Hoose (Venue 24) until 25 August Impressively wine-stained and already pleasantly half-cut by early afternoon, Aideen McQueen immediately makes for a friendly hostess as she welcomes the audience to her flat (I.e. show). The Irish comedian immediately strikes up an immediate rapport with her guests as she appears to have almost finished a bottle of red and her inhibitions are dropping, emotions coming closer to the surface. It's an act of course — this show could easily slip into the theatre section of the Fringe programme. It's got the shape of a play but McQueen is an experienced comedian whose crowd work makes for an essential part of her appeal. It's a very clever strategy, McQueen's convincing wine-warmed voice — with the merest hint of a slur — relaxes the audience's guard too. This is a winning hour; comfortably familiar territory about the challenges of single life, the hell of dating apps and the unreasonably long time men take to return text messages but it's seen anew with a sharp eye and easy wit. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad McQueen takes the audience into her confidence, treating them as old friends and before you know it we're complicit in her bad decisions — which is apt because we've all made them ourselves. Her mam is on the phone, should she answer? An almost universal 'yes!' Now it's that guy she slept with who never texted her back: 'No…yes…wait, hang on a minute!' This isn't an audience participation show, but McQueen is so natural that when she asks for advice it seems rude not to answer. This is frequently very funny but it's really distinguished by its willingness to confront the realities of loneliness and regret that underpin all the laughs — and the drinking. Remarkably, this is McQueen's first full-length Fringe show and it's terrifically impressive: a warm and funny debut. Rory Ford Benji Waterhouse: Maddening ★★★ Pleasance Courtyard (venue 33) until 25 August Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad If Benji Waterhouse ever gets sick of being compared to medical colleague, writer and comedian Adam Kay, he hides it well – 'the Adam Kay of mental healthcare' is emblazoned on the front of his best-selling book You Don't Have to Be Mad to Work Here. The consultant psychiatrist seems to be following Kay's career path with the precision of a surgeon's scalpel, offering a similarly cutting indictment of Britain's health system lightened by 'stranger than fiction' stories of life on the wards. A television series is surely on the cards. His show is an odd hybrid of stand-up and promotional tour, with comedy routines alternating with readings of memorable case studies from his book, and finishing with audience questions. You have to remind yourself that you're at the Pleasance and not up the road at the Edinburgh International Book Festival. Any initial unease at him turning real patients' mental illnesses into entertaining anecdotes is swiftly dispelled by his clear passion for the job and his battles with an underfunded and understaffed NHS. He quips that the Q&A is the audience's best chance to speak to a psychiatrist. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad In the end though it's hard to escape the feeling that, despite his polished delivery and fine bedside manner, you'd maybe rather just read the book. Luckily signed copies are available afterwards. David Hepburn

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store