A CONCERT will be held in Bolton to commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day.

The Brixi Singers — a leading chamber choir which formed in 1994 — will perform the Holocaust Cantata and excerpts from The Armed Man, by Karl Jenkins.

It will be at St Osmunds R C Church, Long Lane, Breightmet, on Sunday at 7.30pm.

Jeanette Winstanley, an alto singer in the choir, said: "The day stands as a memorial to those who were murdered and attempts to give some meaning to their deaths by encouraging everyone to mark the past and attempt to create a safer future.

"The theme for this year is Keep the Memory Alive.

"The choir will be performing The Holocaust Cantata — a very moving piece with cello and piano accompaniment.

"The songs were written by prisoners while incarcerated in Nazi concentration camps and the readings are based on letters and writings from the camps."

A total of six million people died in the holocaust and January 27 marks the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz concentration camp.

This year also marks the 20th anniversary of the genocide in Srebrenica, Bosnia, when 8,000 people died.

In October, the choir teamed up with other groups to perform at a successful gala concert in Victoria Hall, Knowsley Street.

Along with Bolton Choral Union (BCU), Ladybridge Singers and Bolton Symphony Orchestra's Jazzicle group, they helped raise thousands of pounds for the upkeep of the historic hall.

As well as Sunday’s event, the Brixi Singers are busy rehearsing for their spring concert.

They will perform a programme including the Chichester Psalms — a choral work by American composer Leonard Bernstein.

It was commissioned for the 1965 Southern Cathedrals Festival at Chichester Cathedral but was first performed in the Philharmonic Hall, New York, in July of that year.

Tickets for the Holocaust Cantata cost £8 and are available on the door, concessions are £7 and under 18s free.