A Night to Remember: Royston Choral Society in Outstanding Form
What an unforgettable evening of music it proved to be, as Royston Choral Society and East Herts Sinfonia came together for a concert of remarkable ambition and artistry.
The 2023-24 season was arguably the most successful in the society's history. Which was appropriate in that we continued to celebrate having been in existence for 50 years. The choir had the largest number of members - with at least 70 singers in each of the 4 concerts. We also sold out two of the concerts.
Before the start of the season it was agreed that our Musical Director would have a sabbatical for the first term to allow him time to concentrate on some other activities. We were extremely fortunate that Michael Smith, now well established as our permanent accompanist agreed to take charge for the Autumn term and under his guidance we put on two very well received concerts.
First in November in St Mary's Standon we performed Music for Remembrance
It was with some sense of trepidation that Royston Choral Society returned to in-person rehearsals in September 2021 after 18 months of near-silence as a result of the coronovirus pandemic. We began rehearsing just half of the choir each week to allow for social distance but were fortunate after a few weeks to be able to move rehearsals to Bassingbourn Village College where we were able to rehearse in a large and well ventilated hall.
In September we took part in our first concert of the season. This was the Hertfordhsire High Sheriff's Community Choirs concert, held in Haileybury College on September 28th. Sarah Beazley, in her year as High Sheriff, had an idea for a concert that would bring choirs together from across the county to sing together. Music is something that unites us and choirs demonstrate cooperation, inclusivity and the sharing of a positive experience. Sarah wants to have a focus on supporting stronger communities during her term in office, and felt choirs were a good example of this.
In November 2018 we participated in a performance of Benjamin Britten's War Requiem. Held at Haileybury College, it was in collaboration with the college choirs and Hertfordshire Philharmonia and very well received.
We usually hold our Christmas concert in Royston Parish Church. In 2018, because of the dreadful fire that had taken place there, this picture shows us performing at the Meridian school instead.
A link to the review of the concert with pictures and recordings is here.