Future Events
14 December 2024
Christmas Concert
7.30pm St Mary's Church, Haddenham
Join us for our annual festive concert, this year in Haddenham. We are performing Bach's Magnificat, originally composed for Christmas, plus the beautiful O Magnum Mysterium by Morten Lauridsen. There will of course be carols too for choir and audience!
Past Events
22 June 2024
Summer Concert - 'All Creatures Great and Small'
7pm St Mary's Church, Haddenham
Together with Thame Children's Choir we presented an evening of music celebrating nature in its many forms, with a distinctly summery feel! We were also honoured to have the amazing skills of pianist Jonathan French and a wonderful string quartet of local musicians.
27 April 2024
Spring Concert
Faure Requiem, Mozart Te Deum and Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 2
St Mary's Church, Thame
What a fantastic evening - a sold-out audience of over 200 joined us for the glorious Faure Requiem plus Faure's Cantique de Jean Racine and Mozart's Te Deum, accompanied by the Thame Sinfonia. We also had a rousing performance of Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No.2 by Jonathan French.
What a fantastic evening - a sold-out audience of over 200 joined us for the glorious Faure Requiem plus Faure's Cantique de Jean Racine and Mozart's Te Deum, accompanied by the Thame Sinfonia. We also had a rousing performance of Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No.2 by Jonathan French.
27 January 2024
Faure Requiem and Mozart Te Deum Workshop
Haddenham Community Junior School, Woodways, Haddenham HP17 8DS
A fun day of singing these lovely works.
We hold our workshops annually - they are open to all, no prior experience needed, just enthusiasm and a love of singing with others!
A fun day of singing these lovely works.
We hold our workshops annually - they are open to all, no prior experience needed, just enthusiasm and a love of singing with others!
Christmas Concert 9 December 2023
Poulenc Gloria plus carols
St Mary's Church, Thame
Our traditional festive event, with Poulenc's beautiful Gloria followed by a range of carols for choir and audience.
Our traditional festive event, with Poulenc's beautiful Gloria followed by a range of carols for choir and audience.
Summer Concert 1st July 2023
From Shakespeare to Swing
St Mary's Church, Haddenham 7.30pm
A glorious summer evening of music, everything from Shakespeare sonnets set to glorious harmonies, classics of swing, rousing sea shanties and plenty more. We were joined by guests from Towcester Choral Society and professional instrumentalists to make it an evening to remember.
A glorious summer evening of music, everything from Shakespeare sonnets set to glorious harmonies, classics of swing, rousing sea shanties and plenty more. We were joined by guests from Towcester Choral Society and professional instrumentalists to make it an evening to remember.
Spring Concert 29th April 2023
Haydn: Nelson Mass, Handel: Zadok the Priest, Schumann: Piano Concerto
St. Mary's Church, Thame 7.30pm
We performed a couple of wonderful choral works by Haydn and Handel, with orchestral accompaniment. We were also delighted to hear Jonathan French of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire play Schumann's Piano Concerto.
We performed a couple of wonderful choral works by Haydn and Handel, with orchestral accompaniment. We were also delighted to hear Jonathan French of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire play Schumann's Piano Concerto.
Christmas Concert 3rd December 2022
St Mary's Church, Thame
At our traditional festive concert this year we sang Puccini's Messa Di Gloria, a wonderfully operatic and uplifting work, as well as a wide range of carols and other Christmas music. It was a great way to get into the festive spirit in early December, helped by mulled wine and mince pies in the interval.
Open Air Picnic Concert
Saturday 25th June 2022, 3 - 5pm
Haddenham Junior School playing field
We joined forces with the Oxford Welsh Male Voice Choir for a relaxing summer afternoon of music and picnicking! The sun stayed shining, just, and we sang a wide range of traditional and popular music, with something for everyone. There were plenty of strawberries, fizz and ice creams to be enjoyed too.
Haddenham Junior School playing field
We joined forces with the Oxford Welsh Male Voice Choir for a relaxing summer afternoon of music and picnicking! The sun stayed shining, just, and we sang a wide range of traditional and popular music, with something for everyone. There were plenty of strawberries, fizz and ice creams to be enjoyed too.
Spring Concert 2022: Handel's Messiah
On Saturday April 23rd 2022 we performed Handel's Messiah at our 60th Anniversary Concert.
We were joined by the Thame Sinfonia for this glorious choral classic. A belated celebration of our 60th anniversary, the concert was also in memory of David Hayes, who was Director of the choir for 21 years from 1986 to 2007 and remained with us in the bass section for many years afterwards.
A wonderful evening, and we got a standing ovation at the end!
We were joined by the Thame Sinfonia for this glorious choral classic. A belated celebration of our 60th anniversary, the concert was also in memory of David Hayes, who was Director of the choir for 21 years from 1986 to 2007 and remained with us in the bass section for many years afterwards.
A wonderful evening, and we got a standing ovation at the end!
Christmas Concert 2021
A festive evening of music, held on Saturday 4th December 2021, 7.30pm at St Mary's Church, Thame. The programme included Vivaldi's Gloria and carols for both choir and audience.
It was a joyous return to performing for the choir after a gap of 2 years, and our audience seemed to thoroughly enjoy it too!
It was a joyous return to performing for the choir after a gap of 2 years, and our audience seemed to thoroughly enjoy it too!
Handel's Messiah Workshop, 8 February 2020
In February, Thame Choral Society hosted one of its popular workshop events to celebrate Handel's iconic work, Messiah. The session was led by our fabulous Musical Director, Helen Swift, and saw the choir joined by a group of enthusiastic local singers who all benefited from Helen's in-depth knowledge of this piece.
Highlights included the interactive Hallelujah Chorus and, not forgetting, the amazing array of cakes on offer!
Highlights included the interactive Hallelujah Chorus and, not forgetting, the amazing array of cakes on offer!
In the Mood, 22 June 2019
For our final concert of the season, Helen introduced us to something we had not tried before, at least not in concert - JAZZ! Featuring evergreen songs from composers like Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, the Gershwins and Rogers & Hart from the Great American Songbook, the choir sang to an accompaniment by jazz quartet - keyboard, clarinet (Steve Morris making a welcome return), bass and percussion - and Helen, in a rare solo performance with the choir, sang Summertime and It ain't necessarily so from Gershwin's Porgy and Bess.
Choir member John gave entertaining renditions of Frankie and Johnny and Please don't talk about me when I'm gone, Judith sang A nightingale sang in Berkley Square, while Steve displayed his skill with the clarinet in a number of solo pieces including Gerchwin's Walking the dog and a setting of Pagannini's Caprice. A particular highlight in the first half was a virtuoso performance of the Rhapsody in Blue in its complete version for solo piano by Jon French. The choir and audience together closed the concert by singing Porter's Let's do it.
Choir member John gave entertaining renditions of Frankie and Johnny and Please don't talk about me when I'm gone, Judith sang A nightingale sang in Berkley Square, while Steve displayed his skill with the clarinet in a number of solo pieces including Gerchwin's Walking the dog and a setting of Pagannini's Caprice. A particular highlight in the first half was a virtuoso performance of the Rhapsody in Blue in its complete version for solo piano by Jon French. The choir and audience together closed the concert by singing Porter's Let's do it.
Mostly Mozart Concert, 11 May 2019
For the 2019 Spring Concert, we returned to the picturesque church of St Mary's in Haddenham where we had performed the previous year in a joint concert with the Oxford Welsh Male Voice Choir. After some short choral setting by Elgar, Fauré and Mozart, the first half concluded with a sparkling performance of Mozart's Clarinet Concerto in A from Steve Morris with the Thame Sinfonia conducted by Helen Swift.
Steve took the stage again in the second half, kindly playing one of the basset horn orchestral parts in Mozart's Requiem. The Thame Sinfonia again accompanied us and we were joined by soprano Claire Turner, mezzo-soprano Rebecca Anstey, tenor Christoper Lemmings and bass Edward Price. It wasn't easy fitting a 60-strong choir and its staging, four soloists and a 28-piece orchestra into the chancel but we did it and the audience were treated to a performance that was a tribute to the work MD Helen had done to develop the choir's confidence, strength and ability.
Steve took the stage again in the second half, kindly playing one of the basset horn orchestral parts in Mozart's Requiem. The Thame Sinfonia again accompanied us and we were joined by soprano Claire Turner, mezzo-soprano Rebecca Anstey, tenor Christoper Lemmings and bass Edward Price. It wasn't easy fitting a 60-strong choir and its staging, four soloists and a 28-piece orchestra into the chancel but we did it and the audience were treated to a performance that was a tribute to the work MD Helen had done to develop the choir's confidence, strength and ability.
Rossini at Thame, 8 December 2018
The main item in our Christmas offering this year was a performance of Rossini's Petite Messe Solennelle, a name that does not refer to nature of the work but to the form of the mass. Rossini, by calling it 'little', was alluding to its original scoring for just 12 singers plus two pianos and harmonium.
Much of the choral writing was very demanding but the choir rose to the occasion and delivered a spirited performance, ably supported by Jon French, piano, and Rowena Gibbons, harmonium. The audience had an opportunity to sing some Christmas carols with the choir and to enjoy some seasonal readings by society members.
Much of the choral writing was very demanding but the choir rose to the occasion and delivered a spirited performance, ably supported by Jon French, piano, and Rowena Gibbons, harmonium. The audience had an opportunity to sing some Christmas carols with the choir and to enjoy some seasonal readings by society members.