Latest choir news
See here for the latest news on dates, rehearsal locations and more.
Summer 2024 Term: Haydn’s Nelson Mass
Rehearsals start on Monday 8th April 2024 for our next concert - newcomers are very welcome! See Join Us for details on rehearsals.
We will be singing Haydn’s Nelson Mass and Salve Regina together with some shorter works: the concert will be on 13th July 2024 at St. Anne’s Church, London SW18 2RS.
Carol Singing
We are Carol Singing on these two dates:
Sunday 10th December in the afternoon at Clapham Common Bandstand, in aid of Royal Trinity Hospice
Monday 18th December in the evening in Balham, in aid of the charity “Ella’s”
Every member should have details in an email, but for ease of reference if you don’t have email to hand here are the arrangements…
Sunday 10th December
We will meet at Clapham Common Bandstand, in the centre of Clapham Common beside the Pear Tree café, from 2.30pm in order to start singing at 3pm. Please arrive no later than 2.45pm!
Martin has very kindly agreed to conduct and we will be using the green 'Carols for Choirs' book (please bring your own copy if you have one).
Mulled wine and mince pies will also be available. Remember to dress warmly (particularly feet and hands!).
We’re hoping the lighting on the bandstand will be operational but you may like to bring a torch too.
Monday 18th December
Singing carols around the streets – you’ll have an email for where we are starting.
Meeting at 6.30pm for a prompt start at 7.00pm. We shall be singing very locally to the starting point, so if you can’t make it for 7.00pm come and join us when you can – with any luck you will hear where we are.
Afterwards we’ll be going back to the starting point for supper (£10 towards costs for those partaking).
Singing from the green “Carols for Choirs”. Please bring your own copy if you have one, but there are some available on the night if you haven’t got a copy.
Diary 2023-4
2023
11 Sep: Autumn term starts
23 Oct: Half term, no rehearsal
4 Dec: Last rehearsal of term
9 Dec: Concert
10 & 18 Dec: Carol-singing
2024
8 Jan: Spring term starts
18 Mar: Last rehearsal of term (no break for half-term)
23 Mar: Concert
8 Apr: Summer term starts
27 May: Half term, no rehearsal
8 Jul: Last rehearsal of term
13 July: Concert
9 Sep: Autumn term starts
11 Oct: Half term, no rehearsal
9 Dec: Last rehearsal of term
14 Dec: Concert
16 & 23 Dec: Carol-singing
Our next concert: Christmas Across Europe
Update: Tickets are now available from Ticketsource: follow this link to book! Price is £10 (+ booking fee). Under-18s can enter for free!
(Some words on our next concert: regular members will have this in the most recent mailshot, but this will also be of interest to potential joiners when rehearsals begin on 11th September.)
Next term’s concert celebrates Christmas through music that has a special place in the traditions of the European countries or regions where it originated. We shall be singing pieces from Finland (one of Sibelius’s very first compositions, En etsi valtaa loistoa), Denmark (Gade’s Bam Jesus - Child Jesus), Catalonia (the traditional carol Les dotze van tocant - the midnight hour has struck) and Ukraine (the ever-popular Carol of the Bells).
Closer to home, the programme will include Three Carols with Medieval Texts by Martin Everett (The Virgin’s Credle Hymn, Quern Pastores Laudavere and Tomorrow shall be my dancing day), Ireland’s The Holy Boy and a lovely version of the familiar hymn See Amid The Winter’s Snow, set as an extended anthem by the prolific composer, conductor and publisher, John Ebeneezer West (1863-1929), who was Chief Editor for Novello & Co for more than 30 years.
The beautiful Latin responsory O Magnum Mysterium recalls the fact that animals were the first creatures to welcome the new-born Jesus. This will be sung in two contrasting settings, by Tomás Luis Victoria and Martin Everett.
The Magnificat in D by Johann Pachelbel (composer of the famous Canon) completes a varied programme of music in a wide range of styles, with something in it for everyone. And you will have the chance to sing in some unusual languages too - Finnish and Catalan are not nearly as hard as you might imagine!
Programme of Performances for 2023-4
We now have our musical programme through to the end of 2024: all concerts will be at St Anne’s Church, Wandsworth, 182 St Ann's Hill, London SW18 2RS.
Concert dates and details are as follows:
SATURDAY 9 DECEMBER 2023
‘CHRISTMAS ACROSS EUROPE’
Works by Pachelbel, Victoria, Sibelius and more
SATURDAY 23 MARCH 2024
HANDEL MESSIAH
SATURDAY 13 JULY 2024
HAYDN NELSON MASS and SALVE REGINA
and other works
SATURDAY 14 DECEMBER 2024
FAURÉ REQUIEM
JANÁČEK OTČENAŠ
and other works
The last term of 2023 starts on Monday 11th September: see you all there!
Rehearsal dates for May
There are a number of Bank Holidays in May, so it’s worth setting out which Mondays we will be rehearsing on!
Out of the Mondays in May:
1st - there will be a rehearsal
8th - no rehearsal
15th, 22nd - there will be a rehersal
29th - no rehearsal
July concert: About the music
From Martin: some more about the music for our next concert on Saturday July 15th…
This term we are singing two settings of the Gloria by Vivaldi and a French (well, nearly French...) Grand Motet, Laudate Dominum de Coelis, by Michel Corrette.
Vivaldi's Gloria is almost as well known as the famous Four Seasons concertos - it is certainly his best known choral work. Much less well known is the fact that Vivaldi actually composed two settings of the Gloria, probably between 1713 and 1715, when he was working as Maestro di Violino at the Ospedale della Pietà, one of the four orphanages for abandoned or illegitimate children in Venice. Vivaldi was then in his mid-30s, famous as the 'Red Priest' because of the colour of his hair, and at the height of his powers as both a composer and a virtuoso violinist, yet afflicted by a severe form of asthma which prevented him from making public appearances either as a priest or as a musician. Nevertheless, between 1715 and 1723 he travelled widely, visiting Mantua, Rome, Amsterdam and Prague and receiving honours from the Grand duke of Tuscany and the Emperor Charles VI among many others. His music began to be published, first by the influential Estienne Roger of Amsterdam, and quickly became familiar to a wide audience throughout Europe. Vivaldi returned to Venice and to work at the Pietà in 1723, remaining there until 1740. Then, finding that his music was no longer fashionable at home, he left for Vienna, hoping to find employment at the court of Charles VI. Sadly the Emperor died only a few months later. Vivaldi soon fell ill again, and died in Vienna in poverty and obscurity.
Some of Vivaldi's music remained popular after his death, most notably the Four Seasons. In 1765 the Parisian composer Michel Corrette (1707 - 1795) wrote a setting of Psalm 148 which turns out to be largely an arrangement for choir and orchestra of the Spring concerto from the Four Seasons. Vivaldi's music is instantly recognisable even in its choral guise, although Corrette sometimes abbreviates it or extends it to suit his purpose. It is a bubbly, joyful piece that is seldom performed (I have spent quite a lot of hours over the last few months transcribing it afresh from an 18th-century score!), but which makes an excellent companion piece sung between Vivaldi's two Gloria settings.
On the death of our President: James Bowman, CBE
The South West London Choral Society is sad to learn of the death of its President, the celebrated counter-tenor James Bowman, CBE, on 27 March 2023.
James became the choir's President following the death of Charles Farncombe in 2006. In addition to being the choir's conductor from 1955 until 1970 and President from 1971 until his death, Charles had established the Handel Opera Society in 1955. Between then and 1985 he gave staged performances of almost all Handel's operas (many for the first time since the 18th century), and James Bowman had taken leading roles in many of them. His willingness to become our President kept alive a tangible connection with Charles Farncombe and thus with almost 70 years of the choir's recent history. We remember with gratitude, too, the performance of Bach's Mass in B MInor in December 2011, marking the culmination of the choir's 125th anniversary season, when James appeared as counter-tenor soloist, despite having officially retired from performing earlier that year. His warmth and kindness on that occasion were as memorable as the eloquence of his singing.
May he rest in peace.
Next concert: Dvořák Mass in D, Saturday 1 April 2023
Our next concert will be on the evening of Saturday 1 April 2023, when we will be performing the Dvořák Mass in D, together with some motets.
The location will be St Anne's Church, Wandsworth, London, SW18 2RS.
For those wanting to get tickets in advance, we will be putting a link on this page as soon as we have set the event details up online.
Concert and term dates for spring and summer
As a reminder, here are the remaining dates up to the summer concert:
1 April 2023: Concert - Dvořák Mass in D
17 April: Summer term starts
15 July: Concert - Vivaldi Gloria RV 588 and RV589
Both concerts will be at St Anne’s Church, Wandsworth (SW18 2RS).
New term about to start: Monday 9th January 2023
We’ll be rehearsing the Dvořák Mass in D - see https://www.swlcs.org.uk/news/our-brochure-for-202223 for concert dates.
New members are welcome! See https://www.swlcs.org.uk/join for where and when we rehearse, and mail to contact@swlcs.org.uk if you would like to ask any questions about the SWLCS.
Tickets now on sale for 10 Dec concert: Mozart Requiem
Tickets for our next concert are now on sale - follow the link here
We will be performing the Mozart Requiem alongside some of his motets, which include Ave Verum, Sanctuary Maria, mater Dei, Alma Dei creatoris and Inter natos mulierum.
The concert will be on 10 Dec 2022 at St Anne's Church, London, SW18 2RS: doors open at 7:00pm, with the concert starting at 7:30pm.
No rehearsal on 19th September 2022
Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral will be on 19th September 2022, which has been declared a Bank Holiday.
We’ll skip rehearsals for this date.
To keep the total number of rehearsals over this session constant, we’ll be holding a session over school Half Term.
Our choir programme for 2022\23
Here is our programme for the coming year, containing important dates for the diary and details of our concerts.
Here is our programme for the coming year, containing dates for the diary and details of our concerts.
Download the 2022-23 programme (Acrobat, 328kb)
Rehearsals for our autumn term begin on Monday 12th September and we will be preparing for a performance of Mozart Requiem on Saturday 10th December at St. Anne’s Church, Wandsworth.
Other dates for the diary include:
8 October 2022: Coffee morning
10 December 2022: Concert - Mozart Requiem
12 & 19 December 2022: Carol-singing
9 January 2023: Spring term starts
1 April 2023: Concert - Dvořák Mass in D
17 April: Summer term starts
15 July: Concert - Vivaldi Gloria RV 588 and RV589
If you are interested in joining a choir then come along to a rehearsal and give us a try. We welcome all voices without audition – soprano, alto, tenor and bass. We ask only that you are enthusiastic and committed to attending rehearsals – and sing in tune!
If you would like more information about the choir, please telephone 01252 726001 or you can email us at contact@swlcs.org.uk.
Music for the coming year: Mozart, Dvořák, and Vivaldi
We have finalised our programme of concerts for out first full year back singing after the pandemic.
We have finalised our programme of concerts for our first full year back singing after the pandemic.
On Saturday 10th December 2022 we will be singing Mozart Requiem along with some selected motets. The performance will take place at St Anne’s Church in Wandsworth.
On Saturday 1st April 2022 our spring concern will be a performance of Dvořák Mass in D, also at St Anne’s Church in Wandsworth.
For our summer concert we will be performing Vivaldi Gloria RV 588 and RV589 on Saturday 15th July 2023.
Rehearsals for our autumn term and the Mozart Requiem will begin on Monday 12th September. As usual, music will be provided; but if anyone wants to take an early look we’ll be using the Bärenreiter edition.
We hope everyone has an enjoyable summer and look forward to seeing everybody in September!
If you are interested in joining a choir then come along to a rehearsal and give us a try. We welcome all voices without audition – soprano, alto, tenor and bass. We ask only that you are enthusiastic and committed to attending rehearsals – and sing in tune!
If you would like more information about the choir, please telephone 01252 726001 or you can email us at contact@swlcs.org.uk.
Music for the summer term
Here is a full list of the pieces we will be singing in the summer concert.
Here are the pieces we will be singing in the summer concert, with their dates of first publication and links to their ChoralWiki entries. As usual, all sheet music will be provided.
Dates for the summer term and beyond
Dates for the coming summer term, and all concert dates for the next 18 months
Next term starts on Monday 25th April, and the concert is on Saturday 9th July.
Note that:
There will be a rehearsal on Monday 2nd May, but
There will not be a rehearsal on Monday 6th June (the Monday after the Platinum Jubilee weekend)
Concert dates for the next 18 months are:
2022
July 9th
December 10th
2023
April 1st
July 15th
December 9th
New concerts planned for the spring and summer
The South West London Choral Society have started rehearsing towards new concerts planned for April and July 2022.
Following our successful “Coming out of Covid” concert in December, the South West London Choral Society have started rehearsing towards new concerts planned for April and July 2022.
On Saturday April 9th 2022 we will be performing Stainer’s “Crucifixion”. This was originally part of the programme for the last concert that we were planning before the pandemic hit. We are very much looking forward to finally having the opportunity to perform this.
As part of this concert we will also be performing settings of “O vos omnes” by Pablo Casals, Martin Everett, Carlo Gesualdo, Michael Haydn and Tomás Luis de Victoria.
The concert will start at 7.30pm, and will be at St Mary’s Chuch in Battersea: Battersea Church Rd, London SW11 3NA.
From Monday April 25th 2022 we will start rehearsing for our summer concert - “'Garlands and Goddesses'“ - which will take place on Saturday July 9th 2022. The programme will largely consist of madrigals and similar pieces by composers including Luca Marenzio, Robert Pearsall, Thomas Weelkes, and John Wilbye.
We are back to singing at our regular home in Balham and rehearsals are taking place every Monday evening. We welcome all voices without audition – soprano, alto, tenor and bass. We ask only that you are enthusiastic and committed to attending rehearsals – and sing in tune!
If you are interested in joining then contact us on 020 8673 7890 or 01252 726001. Alternatively, you can e-mail us on contact@swlcs.org.uk.
Our next concert: Celebrating singing together again
The choir will be giving a “coming out of covid” performance of Brahms’s German Requiem on Saturday 4th December at St Anne’s Church, Wandsworth.
The choir will be giving a “coming out of covid” performance of Brahms’s German Requiem on Saturday 4th December at St Anne’s Church, Wandsworth.
This will be our first concert since the pandemic began and it will be an opportunity for us to mark our return and celebrate singing together again.
We will ask for a suggested donation of £10, half of which will go to a covid-related charity.
Wine will be available at the beginning of the concert as people take to their seats.
We would prefer audience to wear masks.
The concert will begin at 7.30pm.
St Anne’s Church
182 St Ann's Hill
London
SW18 2RS
Wandsworth Town BR is the nearest station, though many bus run from East Hill, including the 37, 39, 87, 156 and 170.
We hope that in the new year we will be able to continue singing, picking up Stainer’s Crucifixion where we left it two years ago, along with some Passiontide motets.
Returning to singing at last!
It’s been a long eighteen months with no Monday evening singing but at last we are going to start again. Monday 13th September is a red letter day for our diaries!
It’s been a long eighteen months with no Monday evening singing but at last we are going to start again. Monday 13th September is a red letter day for your diary!
This term we will be rehearsing Brahms “Ein Deutsches Requiem” (Peters Edition – sung in German) with a view to giving a performance in December.
There will be some changes that we need to make in order to ensure the safety of each and every member - as far as we are able. We will be very pleased to welcome new members, but given these changes, please ring either 01252 726001 or 0208 874 0334 before coming to a rehearsal.
For the time being we’ll meet at St. Anne’s Church, St Ann’s Crescent, Wandsworth, SW18 2RS. We are very aware that this is not so convenient for many but it offers the best ventilation by way of a bigger space, a higher ceiling, opening windows and two opening doors enabling us to have a through draught for the entire rehearsal.
Rehearsals will be from 7.30pm – 8.45pm, i.e. one and a quarter hours with no break. There will be a brief break for notices which will allow you to have a drink, which you need to bring with you.
For the safety of every member we have to ask that everybody is doubly vaccinated before coming to a rehearsal. At the first rehearsal you attend we would ask that you show proof that you have been doubly vaccinated, or can demonstrate that you have a medical exemption. We will also ask members to wear masks when they are not singing and use the hand sanitiser provided when they arrive.
If you feel at all unwell, however mild and un-Covid-like, please do not come to a rehearsal.
We would also like you to do a lateral flow test in the 24 hours before the rehearsal and show the result when you arrive.
This may sound a little onerous, but the safety of every member is our main concern. The committee will keep this under constant review.