Arts contribution: Hannah Beacom

MUSICIAN Emma Walton couldn’t let Pride of Guernsey 2020 go by with nominating Hannah Beacom for the Moonpig-sponsored Arts Contribution of the Year.

‘Impacted by Covid-19 and the Bailiwick lockdown, arrangements to celebrate Liberation75 changed significantly in 2020,’ said Emma. ‘Conscious that the arts played a significant part in Liberation Day celebrations, Hannah decided to capitalise on the amazing music events that were being arranged and coordinated via Zoom and Teams to put together a completely online afternoon of music and celebration.’

The programme was split into three sections – Commemorate, Celebrate and Reflect – and the afternoon showcased the best of Guernsey musicians and included a world premiere of A Liberation Day Chorale composed by Hanna’s daughter, Elizabeth Beacom, who is currently the musical director of the Cardiff University Brass Band.

‘This event not only brought together local musicians who were unable to perform in public, it also had significant reach around the world as people joined the social media feeds to celebrate,’ said Emma.

‘Hannah was the driving force behind an extremely small team who put the event on for all to enjoy.

‘We couldn’t have done it without people saying “We’ll do it”,’ said Hannah.

‘No one I asked said no, bearing in mind we were in lockdown. That’s 200 people within a week. But I can’t take all the credit, we were a small team. I’m very, very proud of the local music community.’