Volunteering Abroad Encouraged with Charity Gig held by Original Volunteers

Original Volunteers (http://www.originalvolunteers.co.uk) is organising a tribute concert honouring singer-songwriter Nick Drake in order to raise much-needed funds for worldwide charities and those which help people volunteer abroad with humanitarian projects. The concert will be staged in the magnificent Georgian Assembly House, Norwich, in November 2010.

Original Volunteers sends UK and USA citizens to volunteer abroad with projects as far afield as Paraguay, Nepal, and Tanzania. The concert will have a similarly eclectic feel, as a wide cross-section of more than twenty performers give their own renditions of Drake's songs. The music department of the University of East Anglia may even bring in its string quartet! Drake sold few albums during his lifetime, but after his death, his status has rocketed to musical legend. His haunting, beautiful songs have inspired generations of musicians.

ORIGINAL VOLUNTEERS - 'The concert promises to be one of the musical highlights of 2010, featuring an amazing array of exceptionally talented artists interpreting the songs of one of the most uniquely gifted songwriters of the 20th Century. Not only that – we aim to raise a significant amount of money that will enable a wide range of projects worldwide to sustain, develop, and thrive, over the course of the forthcoming decade and beyond.'

This isn't the first concert the charity has staged; the last one, in the Assembly Hall music room, sold out within a week of tickets going on sale. The November concert will take place in the ornate Noverre Suite, which has a larger capacity, allowing more people to attend, and its luxurious atmosphere – including spectacular chandeliers – will add a sense of occasion to a memorable night.

The first project chosen to receive funds from the evening is the Open Hands scheme in Marrakech, Morocco. Many children in Morocco's capital fend for themselves on the streets; helped by those who choose to volunteer abroad with the scheme, Open Hands aims to feed these kids at least one good, filling meal every week. Original Volunteers hopes to provide them with enough funding to become self-sufficient. When Open Hands organisers can purchase gardening equipment and seeds, they'll be able to cut the costs of meal production, and provide more help for the vulnerable children.