Concerts and other major events
Free concerts in the College Chapel every Wednesday 1.15-1.45pm during term.
Come and relax in the beautiful setting of Royal Holloway Chapel. Each week there is a themed programme featuring a wide variety of music from the Choir of Royal Holloway alongside visiting instrumentalists, instrumental and vocal solos.
Click on the Midweek Music picture on the left to see details of the next concert and programmes for this term.
Or read on to find details of our featured concerts, both at the College and around the UK.
'The Cry' at the Windsor Festival
Friday 28th September 2018, 7:30pm
Windsor Parish Church, High Street, Windsor
First premiered in 2008 in St. Paul’s Cathedral, The Cry by Adrian Snell is a musical production which interpolates poetry of children caught up in conflict with the text of the Requiem. Alongside the Choir of Royal Holloway will be children from local schools, and musicians from Berkshire Maestros.
Click here for more information and to book tickets.
The College Chorus: Parry Centenary
Wednesday 24th October 2018, 8:00pm
College Chapel, Royal Holloway, University of London
The College Chorus present a programme celebrating the work of Sir Charles Hastings Hubert Parry who died in October 1918. As well as a performance of his Songs of Farewell, the programme will also explore the music influenced by and written for Parry’s amanuensis Dr. Emily Daymond, Royal Holloway’s first director of music.
Tickets can be purchased through this link.
Concert for the Hellenic Institute's 25th Anniversary
Saturday 27th October 2018, 7:00pm
College Chapel, Royal Holloway, University of London
The Hellenic Institute, which promotes the study of Greek language, history and literature has commissioned a work by composer and Royal Holloway alumna, Lydia Kakabadse, to mark its' 25th Anniversary. Odyssey is a multi-movement work which takes listeners through a journey of centuries of Greek culture. It draws on a range of texts from Homer through to modern Hellensim. The choir will be accompanied by fellow Royal Holloway alumna, and ex-Choral Scholar, Cecily Beer.
Tickets for this can be found here.
Brandenburg Choral Festival Concert
Friday 16th November 2018, 9:30pm
St. Martin-in-the-Fields, Trafalgar Square, London
The Choir of Royal Holloway make a return to the Brandenburg Choral Festival of London, with a celebration of the life and works of Sir Charles Hastings Hubert Parry, whose centenary is celebrated this year. This late-night concert will include his most famous work, written for the 1902 coronation, I was glad.
To book tickets for this event, please follow this link.
St. Cecilia's Concert & Reception
Saturday 17th November 2018, 6:00pm
College Chapel, Royal Holloway, University of London
Join us for this popular annual event in celebration of the patron saint of music. The Choir of Royal Holloway will perform a programme of sublime Baroque music, including a complete performance of Vivaldi’s Gloria, alongside music by J S Bach, accompanied by instrumentalists. The concert is followed by a reception in the Picture Gallery.
To buy tickets for this event, please click here.
Christmas at Apsley House
Friday 7th December 2018, 6:30pm
Apsley House, Hyde Park, London
In the glorious surroundings of the house's Waterloo Gallery, enjoy a programme of festive music by the Choir of Royal Holloway. It will feature music new and old, sacred and secular, as well as modern reimaginings of classic melodies.
Tickets are limited, and can be bought by calling 0370 333 1181. For more details, follow this link.
Handel's 'Messiah'
Wednesday 12th December 2018, 7:45pm
St. George's, Brandon Hill, Bristol
The Bristol Ensemble and the Choir of Royal Holloway return to St George’s Bristol in another collaboration as they bring to life Handel’s masterpiece, Messiah, in a semi-staged performance. Talented young soloists drawn from the choir will perform the work’s arias from positions around the hall, bringing a freshness and vitality to this astonishing and compelling work.
Tickets can be bought here.
Christmas with the Choir of Royal Holloway
Friday 14th December 2018, 7:30pm
College Chapel, Royal Holloway, University of London
To get yourselves into the Christmas spirit, join Rupert Gough and the Choir of Royal Holloway in an evening of music for the festive season. With music sacred and secular, new and old, there will be something for everyone in this concert, including a chance to join in with some of your favourite carols. Refreshments of wine and mince pies will be available during the interval.
Click here to buy tickets.
Royal Holloway at St. John's, Smith Square
Wednesday 30th January 2019, 7:30pm
St. John's, Smith Square, London
Royal Holloway’s Chamber Orchestra and Choir team up with the London Mozart Players for another concert is the splendour of St. John’s, Smith Square. The music in this concert all celebrates storytelling in various guises. Dorothy Howell’s rarely heard Lamia, is based on Keats’ text which draws its inspiration from the Greek myth. There will also be a performance of Mendelssohn’s Italian Symphony, which, like Keats’ poem, was also inspired by a visit to Rome. Morten Lauridsen, uses five Latin texts to transport us along the church year, and through the Christian faith, in his work for choir and orchestra, Lux Aeterna.
Booking for this concert will be available soon.
The College Chorus: 'O clap your hands'
Wednesday 13th February 2019, 7:30pm
College Chapel, Royal Holloway, University of London
Join the College Chorus for a celebration of music for choir and brass, including Ralph Vaughan Williams’ thrilling setting of Psalm 47 ‘O clap your hands’. The concert will also see recent commissions by Judith Bingham, Jonathan Dove & Gabriel Jackson.
Tickets will be available through this website from November 2018.
City Music Society Lunchtime Concert
Thursday 28th March 2019, 1:05pm
St. Bartholomew-the-Great, West Smithfield, London
Join the Choir of Royal Holloway for a lunchtime concert for the City Music Society, which supports musicians performing and studying in the UK. The 2018-19 season marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the society, and the choir will present a programme to celebrate this.
Entrance is free, with a retiring collection. Please note that seats cannot be guaranteed after 1:00pm. More information can be found here.
Beethoven's Ninth Symphony
Sunday 26th May 2019, 7:30pm
Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London
The choir join with the Britten Sinfonia Voices, and the Britten Sinfonia in the culmination of their Beethoven Symphony Cycle, conducted by Thomas Adès. Often regarded as the finest of Beethoven's Symphonies, the famous 'Ode to Joy' chorus is complemented by Gerald Barry's The Eternal Recurrence, which sets texts from Nietzsche's 'Also sprach Zarathustra'.
More information and tickets can be found through this link.
