A Darlington church has appointed two new faces to lead its choir after the sudden death of its organist.
David Garrood, 61, died while practising on the piano at the parish church of St James the Great in December.
Now, Stephen Edmonds, 25, and Jo Ramadan, 23, hope to fill his shoes as director of music and organist, respectively.
The 127-year-old church, in Albert Hill, attracts singers from all over the North-East into its choir. Mr Edmonds and Mr Ramadan travelled from Durham each Sunday when they first joined the choir.
"Now I have moved to Darlington because I so enjoyed being part of the church," said Mr Edmonds.
"As director of music, I just want to build on what we have started with the choir and maybe record a CD and hold some concerts."
Father Ian Grieves said the church was trying to move on, following Mr Garrood's death.
"I am confident that this line-up of highly accomplished musicians will ensure the ongoing development of music at St James," he said
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