John's Church is Xiao-Dong Wang, who brought cheering audiences to their feet at the end of the Bruch Violin Concerto last year.

This time, the 25-year old, hailed as "possibly the most talented violinist ever to emerge from China'' and whose recent return to his home in Shanghai occasioned a celebratory day off for the entire city, will be playing the popular E minor Concerto by Mendelssohn.

Presented by the Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Bermuda, the concert will be directed by Mrs. Marjorie Pettit.

Her hand-picked orchestra and chorus will also perform Mendelssohn's "Hymn of Praise,'' Mozart's "Regina Coeli'' and two pieces from Elgar's "Sea Pictures.'' Also returning home specially to appear in the concert, is Bermudian tenor Gary Burgess who, along with well known local singer, Peter Nash and guest artists Barbara Peters (soprano) and Trudy Weaver (mezzo soprano) will be the four soloists in the Mozart work.

Admitting that she is looking forward to the opportunity of conducting Xiao-Dong Wang again this year, Mrs. Pettit comments, "It's inspiring both for the orchestra and for me to conduct an artist of Xiao-Dong Wang's calibre.

It certainly helps the orchestra to play `up'. If the players are accompanying sub-standard work, it can be a grim business! I think we were all really inspired by him last year.'' Noting that while the standard of recorded music seems to improve every year, Mrs. Pettit believes that audiences have become desensitised, listening to performances that may very well be near-perfect in a clinical sense, "but we do tend to forget, or lose sight of the excitement of a live performance.

Someone gave me a tape of last year's performance of him playing the Bruch for us, and I was thrilled by how good it sounded. That was quite a surprise. We were on our way home after quite a late night, so we took the tape and sat down at Spanish Point, in the moonlight, listening to the whole thing -- and I must say it sounded wonderful!'' Mrs. Pettit is especially gratified that the 25-year old, two-time winner of the famed Yehudi Menuhin Competition and now on the threshold of international fame, has chosen to return to play here in Bermuda.

"He really seemed to fall in love with Bermuda and I think he was actually thrilled to be asked back,'' she muses, adding that, last year, when she realised just how huge a star he had already become in China, she had a few "worrying'' moments: "Would we be good enough?'' Xiao-Dong Wang plays a Guanarius violin on loan from the Juilliard School -- in itself a potent sign that he is being groomed for an international career and absolutely vital, says Mrs. Pettit. "You have to have the best possible instrument.'' Studying violin from the age of three under his father who was concert master of the Shanghai Symphony, Wang was playing the Prokoviev Second Concerto at the Royal Festival Hall with Menuhin as conductor by the time he was 16. He also won Poland's international competition and while studying at Juilliard, was the violin soloist during the School Orchestra's tour of Asia. He has twice toured Australia under the auspices of the Australian Broadcasting Commission.

Mrs. Pettit recalls that earlier this year, Lord Menuhin brought one of his own students, the gifted Wei-Wei-Lee to play in the Bermuda Festival's Anniversary Gala Performance.

"She is also from Shanghai and when I told her that Xiao-Dong was coming back, her eyes shot out like organ steps and she said, `He's very, very famous in China!' She was only 16 and there was not a hint of professional jealousy.

She was genuinely thrilled about his success.'' The Mendelssohn Concerto No. 2, one of the best loved in the violin repertoire, was described by the great violinist Joachim, as "the dearest of all German violin concertos.'' The other Mendelssohn work, his "Hymn of Praise,'' is actually part of his 2nd Symphony, for orchestra, chorus and soloists and is based on Beethoven's Choral Symphony. "But we're not doing the orchestral section of the work. The Hymn of Praise is often performed as a separate choral work. It's beautiful -- full of melody and very bright,'' says Mrs. Pettit.

Felix Mendelssohn, who was born into a wealthy and artistic family in 1809, made his public debut as a pianist at the age of nine, and as a composer, at ten years old. As an already famous 23-year-old, he perhaps found his greatest success during his ten visits to Britain, becoming a favourite of Queen Victoria. In a now famous letter, he related how he had accompanied her on the piano as she sang his songs at Buckingham Palace.

"There is a magical quality to Mendelssohn -- no doubt about it,'' says Mrs.

Pettit. "He grew up in a magical setting, a wonderful house with lakes and wooded glens, and with the very best academic and music teachers. Mendelssohn was a Jew, who was also one of the great crusaders of Christian music and it was he who, almost single-handedly, revived interest in Bach.'' The concert opens with Mozart's "Regina Coeli,'' a festive work, says Mrs.

Pettit, of "great joy and celebration,'' having been composed in 1779 for the Easter season. It is set for orchestra, choir and four soloists and "provides a wonderful opening for a concert.'' English composer Edward Elgar is represented with two of the most popular songs from his "Sea Pictures'' suite. Guest artist, mezzo-soprano Trudy Weaver, who returns here after her debut in last year's "Stabat Mater,'' has also sung at Carnegie Hall, as well as the Avery Fisher and Alice Tully Halls.

"These songs, nautical in theme, are very beautiful and should have real local appeal, '' says Mrs. Pettit.

Tenor soloist, Gary Burgess, who returns to sing in the Mozart and Mendelssohn, needs little introduction. One of the relatively few Bermudian singers and teachers of voice to achieve national recognition in the US, he has appeared with the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Philadelphia Opera as well as with the Greek National Opera. Winner of the Claude Debussy Prize in Paris in 1984, Mr. Burgess also toured China in a series of performances, lectures and master classes.

American soprano Barbara Peters has appeared in the US and Europe, singing in opera, oratoria and recitals. She has sung at Carnegie Hall, with the New York Chamber Symphony, the Dallas and Springfield Symphony Orchestras and the Manhattan String Quartet. She is also well known as a popular soloist for "Pops'' concerts and "Broadway Showstoppers.'' The quartet of soloists for this concert is completed by Peter Nash whose bass voice has been heard in such diverse settings as "That Somerset Lot,'' leading roles in most of the Gilbert & Sullivan classics, and of course, in oratoria. These have included the solo bass leads in Handel's "Messiah,'' the Requiems of Mozart, Faure and Brahms and Bach's "St. John Passion.'' With an orchestra of 42 players (12 guest instrumentalists) led by Kerry Haslam, the choir will number 80. Says Mrs. Pettit, "We have 29 men this year and so far as the choir is concerned, all the sections are strong, but this is the very best group of male singers that I've ever had.'' There will be two performances of the Heritage Concert at St. John's Church, on Friday, May 19 and Saturday, May 20 at 8 p.m. Admission is by programme at $20 and proceeds from all Gilbert & Sullivan Society productions go to charity. Programmes are available at the Visitors Service Bureau on Front Street from Wednesday, May 17 to Friday, May 19 from 10 a.m to 2 p.m., or at the door.