Coventry has always been a City of Culture

FURTHER to the article by Lucy Lynch (July 15), it is understandable that much of the promotion/ publicity surrounding the 2021 bid refers to current or recent events.

I do hope the judges are made aware that we have been a City of Culture since medieval times (e.g. Thew Coventry Mystery Plays and Coventry Carol).

In my lifetime, decades ago, postWW2 and Cathedral consecration, there were three very different venues providing diverse music before we had the university arts centre.

I recall the Cathedral artists as different as Ravi Shankar, Tangerine Dream, Duke Ellington and international orchestras like the Halle and Berlin Philharmonic.

The Central Hall provided fans of brass bands some wonderful concerts, including Alex and Harry Mortimer with the famous CWS Manchester Band and our own Albert Chappell and the City of Coventry Band. The third venue we sadly miss was the Coventry Theatre, with music as diverse as Welsh National Opera and pop and country stars.

Just in case I appear to be living in the past, I would add that more recently I have enjoyed many wonderful organ recitals given by international organists in the cathedral plus the music of John Rutter, Harry Christopher’s Sixteen and Karl Jenkins and our own St Michael’s Singers, who regularly appear on Songs of Praise without Coventry getting a mention. Then of course I have enjoyed some wonderful concerts in Butterworth Hall. Barry Greener Green Lane, Coventry