The Cantate Choir

The Cantate Choir was formed at the beginning of 2002 since when it has performed varied music programmes to a high standard at venues in the Sevenoaks area. As a local amenity the choir aims to produce high quality work which gives it the opportunity to attract high calibre professionals to work alongside it. The choir was registered as a charity in 2004.

In 2006 the Choir’s versatility was demonstrated with a performance of Mozart’s Requiem in March as part of the celebration of the 250th anniversary of the composer’s birth, followed in June by Poetry in Music, a concert of settings of poems by well-known poets. On Armistice Day, November 11 the choir staged Remember! featuring music and readings on the theme of remembrance and recollection. To round off the year it joined the Voce orchestra in December for the performance of all six parts of Bach’s Christmas Oratorio.

In March 2007, the choir teamed up with the period-instrument ensemble Vivace! for Baroque Masterworks including Vivaldi's Magnificat and Handel's Dixit Dominus. In June they performed the Rachmaninov Vespers, and concluded the year with a family Christmas concert.

Bach’s St John’s Passion in March, 2008 again saw the choir working with Vivace! and in June a concert was staged featuring first performances of pieces written for the choir by Nimrod Bernstein. The year ended with a concert of Christmas music including O Magnum Mysterium, a contemporary oratorio by Norwegian composer Kjell Mørk Karlsen.

Cantate’s contribution to the 250th anniversary year of Handel’s death was a performance of Messiah in March, 2009, again working with Vivace! In June the choir’s concert in St Bartholomew’s Church, Otford included an eclectic variety of music by Part, Parry, Purcell and Palestrina. The year-end concert, Celebrate! featured music by Haydn, Mendelssohn and Bruckner.

In March 2010 the Choir was again joined by Vivace! to perform Haydn’s Creation with international soloists. Summer Serenade in June was an evening of lighter music performed, in part, outdoors on a pleasant summer’s evening. The year ended with a candlelit Christmas concert to a capacity audience at St Mary’s Platt Church.

At the end of May 2011 Cantate made their first overseas trip to Tuscany. The choir gave three concerts with music from Renaissance Italian and 19th century Europe under the title Auguri Italia!, celebrating the 150th anniversary of the unification of the country. Three historic churches hosted the concerts: Florence Methodist Church, first built in the 12th century, St. Augustine’s church in the famous mediaeval hilltop town of San Gimignano, and S. Assunta della Badia Fiorentina (Florence Abbey), one of the oldest churches in Florence, built in 978. The tour programme was repeated at St Martin’s Church, Brasted and St Margaret Pattens’ Church, London in June 2011.

Members of The Cantate Choir are singers with some training and/or experience. Admission to the choir is by audition with the Music Director. Please see the How to join section for details of how to apply to join the choir.