THISTLE Hill Nursing Home in Knaresborough will be alive with the sound of Bev Jones’ music tomorrow for the enjoyment of his fellow residents and their families.

Bev, the doyen of York musical producers, suffers from dementia, an illness that has “cruelly stripped his brain of 90 per cent of his lifetime”, according to his wife Lesley.

“Staff at the home have agreed that a concert would be good for Bev and will hopefully bring back many musical memories for him,” she says.

Sing To Bev will feature performers with a long association with York’s Mr Music Man. “Since the Bev Jones: My Life In Music tribute show in York last April for his 73rd birthday, many of his old performers from the past 40 years have got in touch to say they would love the opportunity to sing to Bev’s arrangements if the chance arose,” says Lesley.

“Such is the magic of his work, that even now, people say ‘Once you have sung a Bev Jones arrangement, you never forget it, and nothing else comes close’.”

Plans are in place already for a second concert on April 13, Bev’s 74th birthday.

“We’ll be limited to 20 singers a time, and the first one tomorrow will feature, in general, older musical memories from music hall to Kismet and Broadway to Hollywood,” says Lesley.

“There’ll be a medley from Les Miserables, of course, and a light-hearted feature called Seventies Sing-A-Long, in which we’ll encourage the residents to join in and have a little boogie, and the programme will culminate in the signature finale of The Power Of Love.”

The first concert involves York Light Opera Company members Beryl Long, John Fryer, Mavis Fryer, Maureen Belt, Pixie Parker and Maggie Prosser and Tadcaster Theatre Company’s Clare Meadley, Celia Olroyd, Sue Cole, Carolyn Waterfield, Diane Ayers, Sue Parker and Alison French.

Leeds Amateur Operatic Society will be represented by Jack Robson, John Fairfoot and Jonty Wilson and Harrogate Operatic Players by Christine Littlewood, Bill Waller and Jilly-Ann Wilson. West End performers Jamie Marcus and Julie Fox will be taking part too.

A new, younger cast will perform songs from Adele, Take That, Hairspray, Chicago, Miss Saigon and Disco Fever next month.

“Barchester Healthcare, who run the home, are delighted that we’re organising these events, which will be seen by residents and their families and provide an excellent showcase for their facilities,” says Lesley.

“It all chimes very well with the Government’s Dementia Forward programme, which is all about increasing awareness.”

Looking ahead to tomorrow’s concert, Lesley found the hardest challenge was choosing from more than 7,000 of Bev’s harmony arrangements. “I then had to process this into a concert with music books, which all have to be created from scratch, as it’s a unique event,” she says.

“The singing tomorrow will be accompanied by a full orchestral backing on CD, but in April we’ll welcome York’s very own Malcolm Maddock, who has offered to play for soloists as well as accompany the CD.”

Bev will have the opportunity to join in as much or as little as he wishes. “We’ll set up his piano in the concert room – the nursing home’s dining room – and leave it up to him,” says Lesley.