Two Elmbridge choirs will be singing their way to Italy for their third European Choral Festival.

Elmbridge Choir and Elmbridge Ladies Choir will travel to the Veneto region for the first Veneto Canta choral festival from May 16 to May 19, which is open to choirs of all repertoires.

Cliff van Tonder, musical director of Elmbridge Choir, is thrilled to be conducting the choir in Italy, having previously taken part in festivals in Prague and Krakow.

He said: “We are so looking forward to experiencing the sights and sounds of Italy.

“Together with the ladies choir we have a group of 174 members and we have planned sightseeing, cheese and wine tasting and of course, lots of singing.”

The choir will be singing in Treviso, Vicenza, Verona and at the finale concert in St Mark’s Square, Venice, alongside more than 60 other choirs.

The two choirs have also received an invitation to perform in the 25th Incontri Corali Internazionali taking place in Marostica, which is regarded as an important cultural event for the area.

Dale Thomas, musical director of Elmbridge Ladies Choir, says: “This will undoubtedly be the choral highlight of the trip for us.

“We are especially excited and honoured to be part of this concert and to be performing before and with this award-winning youth choir in such an important festival.”

The Italian experience of the choirs will be shared on their return at their Con Amore concert on Saturday, June 17, at Christ Church, Esher.

Tickets cost between £4 to £10 and are available from ticketbasket.co.uk