Our History
The choir has been celebrating the joy and power of music for around half a century. Here are some of the highlights.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 1976 | Foundation of the choir by Ray Calcraft and members of the Havant Choral Society, under the temporary name of The Highbury Singers. |
| 1976 | Inaugural concert at Oaklands in November: Palestrina's Mass 'Aeterna Christi Munera' |
| 1978 | Messiah with the Bournemouth Sinfonietta, Oaklands School |
| 1979 | Tour: Music of the Spanish Renaissance: tour to Granada, Seville & Cordoba |
| 1983 | Tour: Homage to Francisco Guerrero: visit to Salamanca University & Cathedral, as well as at Ciudad Rodrigo, Cáceres and Toledo |
| 1983 | Music from Spain at the Queen Elizabeth Hall & St John’s Smith Square, London |
| 1985 | Recording of pieces by Rodrigo and Vivanco by the Abbey Recording Company in Oxfordshire |
| 1986 | World premiere of the Cántico de San Francisco de Asís by Rodrigo, as part of the Rodrigo Festival, Queen Elizabeth Hall, London |
| 1986 | Sung Eucharist & Mozart Missa Brevis at Guildford Cathedral |
| 1986 | Recording of Christmas music and readings with Gabriel Woolf |
| 1986 | Ray Calcraft retires as MD |
| 1986-1991 | Martin Ham MD |
| 1988 | Tour: Concerts in Germany (Aachen, Sittard, Cologne, Bonn) & Belgium (Brussels) & Holland (Eindhoven) |
| 1989 | Allegri Miserere at St John’s Cathedral, Portsmouth |
| 1989 | A recording with Martin Ham in West Dean church with St Brides Chamber Orchestra |
| 1990 | Sung Eucharist at Southwark Cathedral |
| 1991-1992 | Francis Knights MD |
| 1992 | Cecilia Gordon-Clark MD |
| 1992-to date | Peter Gambie MD |
| 1992 | “Portugal & Imperial Russia” at Beaulieu Abbey |
| 1993 | Tour: Hammerschmidt Missa Ich stund an einem morgen in Prague and Sporilov |
| 1994 | Joint concert in Emsworth with The Akademia Singers from Akademik Stavropol, Russia |
| 1994 | Concerts in Gloucester |
| 1995 | Tour: Four concerts in and around St Aubin, Honfleur, France |
| 1996 | Concerts in Yeovil |
| 1997 | Tour: Four concerts at the Abbé aux hommes, Caen, France, as well as at places in the Cherbourg peninsular |
| 1998 | Concerts in Norfolk |
| 1998 | Tour to Carentan, Normandy |
| 1998 | Recording of "Nocturne" CD - Rachmaninov's Vespers and others in Portsmouth Anglican Cathedral |
| 1999 | Tour: Combined performance of choruses from Messiah with Coro Sudcontrocanto in Bari, Italy plus concerts in Lecce |
| 2001 | Concert in Devizes |
| 2002 | Tour to Jávea, Spain |
| 2002 | Concerts in Romsey Abbey and Boxgrove Priory Church |
| 2002 | Recording in Boxgrove Priory Church |
| 2003 | Concerts in and around Brecon Cathedral |
| 2003 | Recording of "Gloria" CD - Vivaldi Mass in D, Bach, Victoria and others in Portsmouth Anglican Cathedral |
| 2004 | Tour to northern France, including to Chartres, Versailles, Maurepas and Notre-Dame de Paris |
| 2005 | Concerts at Uppark and Battle |
| 2006 | Tour: Concerts in Matyas-Templom and Budapest in Hungary, including a joint performance of Spem in Alium with Budapest Monteverdi Korus |
| 2007 | Martin’s Mass for Double Choir at Canterbury Cathedral |
| 2008 | Tour to Mosteiro de Alcobaça and Mosteiro dos Jerónimos, Belém with Coro de Santa Maria de Belém in Portugal |
| 2009 | Vaughan Williams’ Mass in G at Bath Abbey |
| 2010 | Tour to Krakow in Poland, joining up with the Marianski Choir |
| 2011 | Berkeley’s Missa Brevis, Tallis Lamentations of Jeremiah and Poulenc’s Laudes de Saint Antoine in Exeter Cathedral |
| 2012 | Lassus’ Missa Amfitrit Altera à8 |
| 2012 | Recording of "Reflections" CD - Palestrina, Guerrero, Tavener and others at West Dean |
| 2013 | Tallis’ Spem in Alium and Striggio’s Missa Ecce beatam lucem |
| 2013 | Concerts in Gloucester Cathedral and Highnam Church |
| 2014 | Tour to Galicia, Spain, including singing Zuccante’s Laudes Creataurum and Victoria’s Missa Ave Regina Coelorum in the Cathedral at Santiago de Compostela, to a global audience of over 1,000 pilgrims. |
| 2014 | MacMillan’s Miserere Mei, Allegri’s Miserere, and Moore’s I Saw Him Standing as a Shadow |
| 2015 and 2023 | Rachmaninov's Vespers |
| 2015 | Dream of Gerontius, joining the Southampton Choral Society, in Winchester Cathedral |
| 2016 | Tour to Rome and Palestrina, including singing Palestrina’s Missa Papae Marcelli in Palestrina and St Peter’s Basilica, the Vatican |
| 2016 | Première of Schofield’s Stream of Life, the choir’s 40th anniversary commission |
| 2016 | Poulenc's Gloria at the British Art Show at Southampton Guildhall |
| 2017 | Mozart Missa Trinitatis |
| 2018 | ‘Lest We Forget’ concert in Petersfield: music and poetry to mark the centenary of the end of WW1, including Hindemith Six Chansons, Caplet Messe à Trois Voix and Vaughan Williams’ Donna Nobis Pacem |
| 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2022 | Concerts by Candlelight at Portsmouth Anglican Cathedral for Rowan’s Hospice |
| 2019 | Victoria Missa Salve Regina |
| 2019 | Tour to Utrecht, Nijmegen and Wijk bij Duurstede |
| 2019 | Recording of our 40th anniversary (2016) commission "Stream of Life" - Poulenc Gloria & Schofield Stream of Life at Kingston University. Released on CD and on streaming services |
| 2020 | Rehearsals in a cow barn on Hayling Island during lockdown |
| 2021 | Concert at Quarr Abbey, IOW |
| 2022 and 2024 | Concerts at Douai Abbey |
| 2022 | Byrd's Masses for 3, 4 and 5 voices |
| 2022 | White’s Lamentations of Jeremiah |
| 2023 | Cage Four2 and carols broadcast by Victory Radio |
| 2023 | Concerts in Glastonbury, Bridgwater and Wells Cathedral |
| 2024 | Lobo’s Missa pro Defunctis |
| 2025 | Tour to Malta and Gozo, including a concert in St John’s Co-Cathedral, Valletta |
| 2025 | Palestrina’s Missa Fratres ego enim accepi à 8 |
| 2026 | Première of Schofield’s Songs of Hope, the choir’s 50th anniversary commission |
| 2026 | Catherine Olver appointed as MD |