Charity album to raise funds for Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY)

A group of talented musicians from Ellesmere have created a charity CD in memory of their friend. Former and current students John Paul, Daisy Clarke, Kate Perry, Alice Tow and Luke Taylor made The Hard Yards, a CD of acapella music in memory of their school friend Mathew Dewhirst.

Mathew, 17 collapsed and died during a rugby training session in July 2012 from an undetected cardiac condition. Funds raised from the CDs will go to Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY), a charity that raises awareness of conditions that can lead to cardiac deaths.

John said "we have wanted to do something like this for a long time to celebrate all the things Matt did. The name The Hard Yards was inspired by my friend's dad who wrote a poem about Matt. It included how he played a prop in rugby and how he played the saxophone, because he always had these essential parts to play but was never at the centre of it all, so it reflected that".

The 18-year-old explained that the five group members selected songs they liked such as Don't Worry Child by Swedish House Mafia and Pompeii by Bastille, and transformed them into all-vocal performances. 200 copies of The Hard Yards have been produced and each CD will help CRY's awareness campaigns and develop counselling and screening programmes.

John, who was awarded a place to study music at Oxford University, added "We are all in between university and school at the moment but we are hoping to do something for the charity again". For more Information on CRY visit www.c-r-y.org.uk

11th December 2013  Back to News