A MUSIC group will perform a tribute to a famous saint during a September tour.

Opus Anglicanum, a small, professional early music group, has developed a programme dedicated to the 8th Century Northumbrian saint, Bede.

In a tour comprising four recitals and two workshops, it aims to bring alive a time in the North-East's early history.

A group spokesman said: "Bede is a patchwork of new music, spoken word and Gregorian chant, including a 22-minute work by Judith Bingham.

"It will be performed on Holy Island on Thursday, September 19; in Durham Cathedral, where he is buried, on Friday, September 20; in Jarrow, where he worked as a monk all his life, on Saturday, September 21; and in Gibside Chapel on Sunday, September 22.

"Opus Anglicanum is described by South West Arts as 'most thought-provoking, very professional, and exuding enthusiasm at all times', and has performed on BBC Radio Three, at the Three Choirs Festival and at Festival de Wallonie.

"Teaching workshops for colleges, universities, choirs and informal groups, especially in Gregorian chant, are now a regular part of its activities."

A day's workshop on Holy Island, Lindisfarne, on September 19, is open to everyone, and will explore the monastic chant from Bede's time. It will be repeated in Jarrow on September 21, at St Paul's Church.

The tour is being supported by The Paul Hamlyn Foundation, Bede's World and The National Trust.

Tickets are available from the venues.