Christ Church Community Chorus
The Christ Church Community Chorus is an open-to-all, free-to-join choir that rehearses once a week and performs at the Cathedral. Everyone is welcome to join.
The Community Chorus is founded on the principle that high quality music-making should be available to everyone regardless of experience, religious affiliation, or identity. Everyone is welcome!
We sing a wide variety of music in 2 – 4 parts, from simple rounds and songs to pieces from the classical repertoire. Whether this is your first choir or you’ve been singing for many years, there will be something in our programmes for you. We have 80 – 90 singers each term, so whatever your voice part, you’ll have plenty of friends singing with you.
To join, you just need to come along to one of our rehearsals on Tuesday nights (7:30pm – 9:30pm) during term time. Exact dates for each term can be found on this page below. You don’t need to be able to read music, and it doesn’t matter if you’ve sung in a choir before. You also don’t need to make a long-term commitment; you can join just for one term if you’d like. Membership is completely free – the only requirement is a willingness to give it a try!
The choir is led by an experienced and supportive music team who make sure that new members feel at ease. The Community Chorus is a space where we aim to make everyone feel welcome. If you would like to join or request any more information, please email the conductor, Tomos, on ei.hcruhctsirhc@sniktaw.somot
The Explorers
This term, Christ Church Community Chorus crosses the waves in a programme of music which celebrates exploration, both geographical and philosophical. This term’s project features music by classical composers Randall Thompson and Charles Villiers Stanford, as well as a clutch of sea shanties and folk songs. Thompson’s settings of two favourite poems by Robert Frost, ‘The Road Not Taken’ and ‘Choose Something like a Star’ probe the human condition, while Irish-born Stanford’s ‘The Little Admiral’ and ‘Fare Well’ contrast a rollicking naval tune with a poignant memorial to sailors.
Whether you are a Rear Admiral or your only experience of the sea is listening to ‘The Wellerman’ on TikTok or shanties in Assassin’s Creed, there will be something for you to enjoy in this project.
Rehearsals begin on Tuesday 13th January, 7:30 – 9:30pm, and continue each Tuesday night until Tuesday 24th March. The concert is on Sunday 29th March, 8pm. Admission free. Please see this term’s concert programme below.
- ‘The Road Not Taken’ from Frostiana – Randall Thompson
- ‘The Irish Rover’ – trad. Irish arr. Wenckebach
- ‘Lowlands Away’ – trad. shanty arr. See
- ‘South Australia’ – trad. shanty arr. Tarney
- ‘Bold Riley’ – trad. shanty arr. Tabbush
- ‘Randy Dandy-o’ – trad. Shanty arr. Alexander
- The Northwest Passage – Stan Rogers, arr. Smail
- ‘The Little Admiral’ and ‘Fare Well’ from Songs of the Fleet – Charles Villiers Stanford
- ‘Choose Something like a Star’ from Frostiana – Randall Thompson
Previous Community Chorus Projects
Tales of Christmas
This term, Christ Church Community Chorus invite you to join them around the fire to tell Christmas stories. This project is sure to get you in a Christmassy mood and will feature lots of tunes you already know and some you may not (yet!).
Anyone can join, whether they have sung in a choir before or not, and there is no requirement to read music or complete an audition.
Dido & Aeneas
The Winter 2025 Christ Church Community Chorus project explored the world of opera with a performance of Henry Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas on 13 April.
With a stellar cast of soloists and chorus parts, including witches, sailors, and courtiers, it was an enjoyable and engaging project for everyone involved.
Summer Concert
For their summer project, the choir performed two pieces at the Cathedral’s end-of-term concert: Parry’s Hear my words, ye people and Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus.
They sang alongside the Christ Church Cathedral Choir on Friday, 28 June.
Requiem for the Armed Man
The choir’s spring-term project, Requiem for the Armed Man, ran from January to March 2024.
They performed two choral works with organ and soloists from the Cathedral Choir: selections from The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace by Karl Jenkins, and Gabriel Fauré’s Requiem.
The concert took place on Saturday, 23 March.
