City Chamber Choir

30/04/2026

A gala concert of Cecilia McDowall’s music to celebrate her birthday!

Four choirs brought together by their love, partnership and patronage of one the world’s most celebrated contemporary composers, this very special concert will celebrate the breadth and brilliance of Cecilia McDowall in her 75th birthday year. With performances of commissions, a unique collaboration between the choirs and rare chances to hear hidden gems from McDowall’s choral world, this performance promises to enrich and enlighten.

City Chamber Choir will perform McDowall’s Good News from New England, commissioned by our alumnus Geoffrey Smeed, and first performed by the choir on 12 July 2022.

Step into a story of courage, loss and celebration in this vivid, cinematic choral work with soaring solo violin. Inspired by the real-life chronicles of the Mayflower Pilgrims, it traces a perilous ocean voyage, a haunting personal tragedy, and a final outpouring of joy in a radiant Thanksgiving. This gripping three-part journey even invites you to join in the closing hymn—just as it was sung on the Mayflower itself—making this not just a performance, but a shared musical experience.

7.30pm Saturday 9th May 2026,
Holy Trinity Sloane Square,
Sloane Street, London SW1X 9BZ

Tickets available from:
www.londonoriana.com

23/03/2026

Come to our amazing 'Five Seasons' Concert TOMORROW!
TUBE STRIKE CANCELLED!

McDowall | Five Seasons
Radiohead | Pyramid Song
Whitacre | Five Hebrew Love Songs
Gjeilo | The Rose
Roth | Dawn Chorus
Gjeilo | Dark & Luminous Night

From the awakening light of Roth’s Dawn Chorus, alive with the vibrant stir of birdsong, this programme moves through the mysteries and universal patterns of everyday life. At the heart of the programme lies Cecilia McDowall’s Five Seasons, a highly original and wonderfully evocative hymn to the rural British landscape and our farmers, whose unceasing labour feeds us and cares for the health and beauty of our Isles.

Gjeilo’s Dark and Luminous Night depicts the wonders of night, while Radiohead’s magical Pyramid Song reflects on death, rebirth, and the cyclical nature of existence. Gjeilo’s rich setting of Rossetti’s The Rose captures the poem’s bittersweet tone, while Whitacre’s Five Hebrew Love Songs captures treasured moments shared with his wife.

Stephen Jones | conductor
Modulus quartet
Tomos Xerri | harp
Rachel Broadbent | oboe
Tom Jesty | piano

£20 Adult
£10 Student

St Annes and St Agnes Church, Gresham Street, London EC2V 7BX - St Paul's Tube Station
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/city-chamber-choir

23/03/2026

06/02/2026

Looking for superb tenors & second basses!

email Helen at [email protected]

07/01/2026

Warm up your winter by singing Dowland, Weelkes, Schütz and Purcell with us!

10am | Saturday, 24 January 2026
St Mary-at-Hill | Lovat Lane entrance | London EC3R 8EE

Stephen Jones | Music Director
Thomas Dilley | Accompanist
Hosted by City Chamber Choir

Inspired by John Dowland’s famous motto—always grieving—explore the richly textured soundscape that captivated Jacobean audiences at our “Semper Dowland, Semper dolens” workshop day.

Alongside Dowland’s iconic laments, including his celebrated Flow My Tears, we’ll explore a programme of works by Dowland, Weelkes, Schütz and Purcell that also offers moments of brightness and wit.

Whether you are drawn to the quiet intensity of Dowland’s sorrow or the vivid and lively pair of Weelkes’ madrigals, Thule and The Andalusian Merchant, join us for a day of expressive storytelling through song—early music at its most evocative.

The workshop will provide the opportunity to sing the best of Renaissance music (Dowland, Weelkes, Schutz and Purcell) and to hear our Music Director Stephen Jones’ insightful knowledge of this musical genre.

John Dowland (1563-1626)
Flow My Tears
Thou mighty God
Go, Crystal Tears
Come Again, Sweet Love

Thomas Weelkes (c1576-1623)
Thule, the period of cosmography
The Andalusian merchant
Death hath deprived me
Noel adieu, thou court's delight

Heinrich Schütz (1585-1672)
Die Himmel erzählen de Ehre Gottes

Henry Purcell (1659-1695)
Let mine eyes run down with tears

We are excited to announce that, thanks to The D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust, we are able to provide funded free places for 18-30s, young or semi-professional singers to join our workshop. If you know of budding early music singers who would like this experience building opportunity, please forward this to them.

Thanks to The DCT we are also able to offer ‘pay what you can’ policy. The recommended cost, if you are able, is £40 for the day. Electronic copies of the music are free and will be emailed before the day. You can order a printed copy for £5 to pick up on the day.

The timetable for the day is as follows:
10:00 Registration, coffee and music distribution
10:30 Workshop Session 1
12:30 Lunch BYO (there is a Tesco express, Pret, Joe & the Juice nearby)
13:30 Workshop Session 2
15:30 Tea & cake provided
16:30 Informal sing-through - Friends welcome!

St Mary-at-Hill
Lovat Lane Entrance
London EC3R 8EE
Nearest Tube = Monument/Bank

If there are any additional questions, please email [email protected]

16/11/2025

Illuminare! The radiant light of a choral Christmas
7:30pm Tuesday 16 December 2025
St Mary’s Bourne Street SW1W 8JJ | Sloane Square Tube

£17 Early Bird | £20 Adult | £10 Student | Under-12s free​
www.ticketsource.co.uk/city-chamber-choir

Step into the shimmering warmth with a concert that glows with festive joy and timeless beauty.

From the radiant chime of Csányi-Wills’ Christmas Bells to the serene hush of Still, Still, Still and the luminous splendour of Judith Weir’s Illuminare, Jerusalem, this programme sparkles with musical treasures old and new. Journey through centuries of Christmas wonder — from Lassus and Pearsall to the tender mystery of McDowall’s The Magi.

Balulalow | Peter Warlock
Christmas Bells | Michael Csányi-Wills
Christmas Day 1666 | Bob Chilcott
Da pacem Domine | Melchior Franck
Illuminare, Jerusalem | Judith Weir
In dulci jubilo | Robert Lucas Pearsall
Ivy, Chief of Trees | Sarah Cattley
Maria durch ein Dornwald ging | arr. Stefan Claas
No Small Wonder | Paul Edwards
Omnes de Saba venient | Orlande de Lassus
Peace on Earth | Errollyn Wallen
Still, Still, Still | arr. Andrew Gant
The Holly and the Ivy | Matthew Owens
The Magi | Cecilia McDowall

Alongside favourite carols for all to join in and seasonal readings, it’s a celebration of Christmas in all its shining, choral glory.

www.ticketsource.co.uk/city-chamber-choir
£17 Early Bird | £20 Adult | £10 Student | Under-12s free​

7:30pm Tuesday 16 December 2025
St Mary’s Bourne Street SW1W 8JJ | Sloane Square Tube

29/09/2025

LAUDES ORGANI: A celebration of choral & organ masterworks

7:30pm Thursday 6 November 2025
St Mary’s Bourne Street London SW1 W8JJ

City Chamber Choir's Autumn Concert is an exhilarating program of choir and organ music from 19th and 20th century Europe, showcasing St Mary's Bourne Street’s magnificent organ crafted by Henry Willis & Sons in 1928.

Zoltan Kodály | Laudes Organi
Josef Rheinberger | Mass in E flat
Arvo Pärt | The Beatitudes
Kenneth Leighton | Passacaglia
Benjamin Britten | Rejoice in the Lamb

Kodály's Laudes Organi celebrates a virtuosic union of pipes and voices in his brilliant swansong. The ‘19th century’s Palestrina’, Rheinberger's magnificent Mass in E flat is rich in harmony and melody whilst Arvo Pärt's The Beatitudes is an enchanting blend of sound and silence. Recognized as a masterwork, Leighton's solo organ Passacaglia leads us to the conclusion of the program with Britten's beloved gem, Rejoice in the Lamb.

£17 Adult Early bird discount (ends 23 October 2025)
£20 Adult
£10 Student, Under-12s free

ticketsource.co.uk/city-chamber-choir

citychamberchoir.org.uk

24/08/2025

We welcome all great voices! We particularly have spaces for second basses, second sopranos and tenors.

We have some amazing upcoming repertoire to sing including the rarely performed ‘Five Seasons’ by Cecilia McDowall with string ensemble, Kodaly’s ‘Laudes Organi’, Rheinberger’s Mass in E flat, Radiohead’s Pyramid Song, works by Gjeilo, Victoria, Dowland, Weelkes, Whitacre and much more!!

If you love singing confidently in a chamber sized group, enjoy exploring new, varied, brilliant repertoire, you will find a haven of harmony and inclusivity.

Please do come and meet Steve and do a taster rehearsal.

To book and for any queries, email Helen at [email protected]

24/05/2025

Jacobean Genius: Orlando Gibbons and his legacy

Gibbons | Dering | Purcell | McDowall | Hughes

7pm ~ 8 July 2025
St Vedast-alias-Foster
London EC2V 6HH

Stephen Jones & City Chamber Choir
The Orlando Camerata

This concert showcases the leading composer of the early-Stuart period at the 400th anniversary of Orlando Gibbons’ death, along with works by his contemporaries, and present-day composers he has inspired.

City Chamber Choir, led by conductor Stephen Jones, will perform with period instrument group Orlando Camerata, playing Baroque viols.

Gibbons rose to fame at the Chapel Royal and his rich, polyphonic style earned him the title 'The English Palestrina'. His influence flows through Henry Purcell into the 21st Century to Cecilia McDowall’s new reimagining of ‘O Clap your Hands’ and Bernard Hughes’ ‘Three Swans’.

Walking Tour & Concert with Friends of City Churches
We are delighted to collaborate with the Friends of City Churches to offer a combined walk and concert package. Details of the walk starting point will posted in the ticketsource website.

ticketsource.co.uk/city-chamber-choir

£17.00 - Adult Concert Only - Early Bird - until 24 June 2025
£20.00 - Adult Concert Only
£10.00 - Student Concert Only

£23.00 FCC Member - Walking Tour & Concert
£26.00 Non-FCC member Walking Tour & Concert

12/04/2025

What an amazing evening!

A quite stunning program crafted by Steve drawing together rich, ethereal orchestra and choral music. It was great to see a full house and all our super supportive audience. Thank you for the ‘Bravo’ at the end – that was brilliant to hear!

Jonathan’s rendition of the Finzi was eloquent and beautiful. Richard Pinel’s superlative musicianship brought perfect textures to the Howell’s and the Covent Garden Chamber Orchestra’s rendition of the Rota was both exquisite and uplifting.

Huge congratulations to the City Chamber Choir for their magical singing, the opening of the Finzi was magical as was the spine-tingling end of the Howells.

A big thank you too for the singers stupendous hosting!

26/03/2025

From Darkness To Light: Inspirational choral music from Finzi to Howells

7:30pm Tuesday 1st April 2025
Holy Sepulchre London, Holborn Viaduct, EC1A 2DQ, London, EC1A 2DQ

TICKETS at ticketsource.co.uk/city-chamber-choir

Finzi | Requiem da Camera
Howells | An English Mass
Bob Chilcott | My Prayer
Farrar | Margaritae Sorori
Rota | Sonata per orchestra da camera

Friendship links three of the works in our programme: Farrar, Finzi, Howells, and Harold Darke (organist of St Michael’s Cornhill 1916-1966). Finzi’s beautiful and intimate Requiem da Camera was written in memory of his esteemed teacher Ernest Farrar, killed in the final days of the First World War, and Farrar’s moving and lyrical partsong Margaritae Sorori which follows is a fitting valediction.

Howells wrote his turbulent An English Mass, a work full of agony and ecstasy, for Darke and his The St Michael’s Singers in the year after the disastrous first performances of his vast Missa Sabrinensis.

Full price concert Ticket £25
Students £10, Under-12s free

Announcing an Exciting Collaboration with Friends of City Churches (FCC)

We are offering a combined church walk and concert ticket. Steve Walsh, an experienced FCC guide, will lead an hour's exploration of Smithfield, finishing at Holy Sepulchre in time for City Chamber Choir's concert.

Members of FCC can purchase the special price of £28 for the combined experience, non-members for £32

The walk will start at 5:45pm (for 6pm) meeting outside Barbican tube station and ends at Holy Sepulchre in time for the City Chamber Choir concert starting at 7:30pm.

TICKETS at ticketsource.co.uk/city-chamber-choir