Hertfordshire Chorus, formed in 1970, is one of the leading large

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

s in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

with over 130 members from across the county of

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and the surrounding areas, performing across the country and regularly touring. Initially, Hertfordshire Chorus was known as the Hatfield Philharmonic Chorus which, with the Hatfield Philharmonic Orchestra, was conducted by Frank Shipway who was instrumental in founding the Hatfield Philharmonic Society, of which it was a part. Michael Kibblewhite was appointed chorus master in 1973 and, in 1977, Shipway, musical director of the orchestra, moved on. The Society appointed Howard Burrell to conduct the orchestra alongside Kibblewhite's choir. The two groups later split, with the orchestra remaining as the Hatfield Philharmonic Society and the chorus becoming independent. Michael Kibblewhite became the Musical Director and conductor of the new chorus, bringing in professional orchestras for concerts, a trend continued today.

David Temple David Anthony Temple is a British conductor and musical director of Crouch End Festival Chorus and Hertfordshire Chorus. He has conducted at the Barbican Centre, Royal Festival Hall and Symphony Hall, Birmingham, Royal Albert Hall, Sage Ga ...

replaced Michael Kibblewhite as Musical Director in September 2000 and Rufus Frowde is their accompanist. The choir has performed in venues across the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, including the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

, the

Royal Festival Hall The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade I l ...

and

The Sage Gateshead Sage Gateshead is a concert venue and musical education centre in Gateshead on the south side of the River Tyne in North East England. Opened in 2004 and occupied by North Music Trust it is part of the Gateshead Quays development which include ...

. Hertfordshire Chorus is renowned for its innovative programming, frequently involving commissions such as "Mass in Blue" and "Ode to a Nightingale" by

Will Todd Will Todd (b 14 January 1970) is an English musician and composer. He is a pianist, who performs regularly with others in his own works. Biography and work Todd was born in County Durham, attended Durham School and joined the choir of St Oswald ...

, "Ice" by

Orlando Gough Orlando Gough ( ; born 1953 in Brighton, Sussex) is a British composer, educated at Oxford, and noted for projects written for ballet, contemporary dance and theatre. Collaborators have included Siobhan Davies, Alain Platel, Shobana Jeyasingh ...

, "Solaris" by Steve Block and "Codebreaker" by James McCarthy. The choir recorded "Ode to a Nightingale" and Codebreaker", with the

BBC Concert Orchestra The BBC Concert Orchestra is a British concert orchestra based in London, one of the British Broadcasting Corporation's five radio orchestras. With around fifty players, it is the only one of the five BBC orchestras which is not a full-scale symp ...

in 2017, released on Signum Records in October 2017. Hertfordshire Chorus regularly supply choirs to sing at weddings and funerals in the Hertfordshire area. Recently, with an influx of new, younger members, the choir has branched out, with singers providing vocal support for

Ray Davies Sir Raymond Douglas Davies ( ; born 21 June 1944) is an English musician. He was the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, and main songwriter for the rock band the Kinks, which he led with his younger brother Dave on lead guitar and backing voca ...

in live gigs and his '' The Kinks Choral Collection'' album,

Andrea Bocelli Andrea Bocelli (; born 22 September 1958) is an Italian tenor and multi-instrumentalist. He was born visually impaired, with congenital glaucoma, and at the age of 12, Bocelli became completely blind, following a brain hemorrhage resulting fro ...

Goldfrapp Goldfrapp are an English electronic music duo from London, formed in 1999. The duo consists of Alison Goldfrapp (vocals, synthesiser) and Will Gregory (synthesiser). Despite favourable reviews and a short-listing for the Mercury Prize, their ...

Bombay Bicycle Club Bombay Bicycle Club are an English indie rock band from Crouch End, London, consisting of Jack Steadman, Jamie MacColl, Suren de Saram, and Ed Nash. They are guitar-fronted and have experimented with different genres, including folk, electron ...

Noel Gallagher Noel Thomas David Gallagher (born 29 May 1967) is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. He was the chief songwriter, lead guitarist, and co-lead vocalist of the rock band Oasis until their split in 2009. After leaving Oasis, he formed ...

Faryl Smith Faryl Smith (born 23 July 1995) is a British soprano whose performance repertoire includes opera, classical and classical crossover. Her diverse concerts draw a wide range of audiences, and she particularly enjoys introducing new audiences to cl ...

and singing the lead track "

Zadok the Priest ''Zadok the Priest'' ( HWV 258) is a British anthem that was composed by George Frideric Handel for the coronation of King George II in 1727. Alongside '' The King Shall Rejoice'', '' My Heart is Inditing'' and '' Let Thy Hand Be Strengthened' ...

" on the album ''Pride of the Nation''
by the

Band of the Coldstream Guards The Band of the Coldstream Guards is one of the oldest and best known bands in the British Army, having been officially formed on 16 May 1785 under the command of Major C F Eley. History The band of the Coldstream Guards was officially formed un ...

. Hertfordshire Chorus have also provided singers for TV shows including

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

's '' The Choir'' and ''

The One Show ''The One Show'' is a British television magazine and chat show programme. Broadcast live on BBC One weeknights at 7:00 pm, it features topical stories and studio guests. It is currently co-hosted by Alex Jones, Jermaine Jenas, and Ronan K ...

''. It performed Fauré's Requiem mass and several other pieces on BBC Radio 2's Good Friday show: "At the foot of the cross", recorded live in

St Albans Cathedral St Albans Cathedral, officially the Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban but often referred to locally as "the Abbey", is a Church of England cathedral in St Albans, England. Much of its architecture dates from Normans, Norman times. It cease ...

, and has been broadcast many times on BBC Radio and Classic FM.

References

External links

Hertfordshire Chorus
{{authority control Musical groups established in 1970 English choirs Classical music in the United Kingdom Musical groups from London Music in Hertfordshire