|
THE FARINGDON SINGERS
Founded by Michael Perkins in September 1975, the Faringdon Singers then consisted mainly of children drawn from the local schools who “just wanted to sing”. Without funds, meeting place or instruments, they had to start absolutely from scratch, first finding a home and then organising rummage sales to pay for it! Our first concert held in a local village hall, consisted entirely of Christmas carols sung unaccompanied. From the beginning it was decided that admission to concerts should be free of charge. Instead, the host (often a local village church) would nominate a charity to which the audience might if they so wished contribute voluntarily. This has remained the policy of the group, and over the years thousands of pounds have been raised for good causes – local national and international.
Our concert programmes have covered a variety of music styles from the grand choral works of Mozart, Fauré, Duruflé, Jenkins and Rutter to lighter and contemporary works including Gilbert and Sullivan, all under the expert musical directorship of first Michael Perkins (1975-1992) , then Terence Carter (1992-2022) and now Clare Woodall (2022- ). We have been most fortunate too in having been able to draw on accompanists such as John Ridgway and Roy Woodhams, and more recently Laurence Mann and Roger Starr, all of whom have had vast experience as accompanists/organists with choral groups .
Despite its inauspicious beginnings, the choir not only survived but has thrived, and in 2025 the Faringdon Singers celebrated its 50th Anniversary. With 45-50 singers typically, it continues to be a friendly choir committed to achieving a high standard of music-making and dedicated to its charitable ethos. In the past 50 years the choir has given more than 270 concerts, and has raised nearly £80,000 for charitable causes. We hope that our varied programme will continue to appeal to singers and listeners alike.
We are always pleased to welcome new members.
|
