History

Our story so far...

The Wychwood Chorale was formed in 2008 as a community choir by David Crown when he was Director of Music at Somerville College, Oxford and was living in Chadlington..  Initially a three-section group (sopranos, altos, basses) it rehearsed in the village church and performed its first concerts in 2008.  The choir became a four-part group in 2011 and continued to sing a mixed repertoire including short classical choral works, operatic extracts, spirituals, musical theatre pieces and choral arrangements of popular music.  A smaller chamber choir was also formed for those who wanted to spend more time rehearsing – this became known as the After Nines.  As the choir grew in numbers, a small informal committee was formed to assist David in manageing the choir and its performances.

In 2013, David left the choir to pursue other musical opportunities.  The choir established itself formally to be administered by a committee under the musical direction of Bernard West. Its core membership grew to over 50 singers who live both close-by and who travel from Stow-on-the-Wold, Moreton-in-Marsh, Hook Norton, Banbury and Oxford.

Throughout its existence, The Wychwood Chorale has remained a mixed-ability, non-audition choir that does not charge for tickets to its performances, rather relying upon voluntary collections at its concerts which contributes towards supporting predominatly smaller, local charities.  The choir itself was awarded charitable status in 2018.

The choir has sung at the following venues/events:

Chipping Norton Music Festival 2011, 2015, 2016
Chipping Norton Town Hall
St Nicholas' Church, Chadlington
Chadlington Carols on the Stocks
Chadlington Beer Festival
Chadlington Apple Day
St. Mary's Church, Charlbury
St Mary's Church, Chipping Norton
Chipping Norton Methodist Church
St John the Evangelist, Little Tew
St Kenelm's, Church Enstone
St Michael's and All Angels Church, Leafield
St Simon & St Jude, Milton-under-Wychwood
All Saints' Church, Churchill
Holy Trinity Church, Finstock
All Saints' Church, Spelsbury
Spelsbury Village Hall
Kingham Hill School
Co-Op, Chipping Norton
Kingham Lodge, Kingham
St Ecgwins Church, Church Honeybourne
St Mary the Virgin, Shipton-under-Wychwood