Sussex Chorus - choir

The choir was formed over 80 years ago as the Ditchling Women's Institute Choral Society, changing its name to Ditchling Choral Society in 1952.Over the past 37 years the choir has grown in numbers and musicalability under the excellent musicianship and unending enthusiasm of its then Musical Director, Janet Canetty-Clarke. The choir performed concerts with the Steinitz Bach Players, The Philharmonia Orchestra, TheHanover Band and Guildford and Brighton Philharmonic Orchestras. Past programmes include works as diverse as Britten War Requiem, Bach St John Passion and St Matthew Passion, and in complete contrast the rhythmical mixture of western tribal and Islamic cultures combined in David Fanshawe African Sanctus. The choir commissioned and gave firstperformances of four works, including the world première of Howard Blake Benedictus in 1980 and Roderick Skeaping Our World of Shopping in 2002.Howard Blake lullaby, which contains the original musical theme, used in"Walking in the Air" from The Snowman was dedicated to Ditchling ChoralSociety, which gave its première in 1976. The choir has participated inthe Brighton Festival since 1986, performing many of the major choralworks to capacity audiences. With a repertoire including the traditionaland contemporary, Ditchling Choral Society also provided the musical launch pad for many young composers and soloists now making regulara ppearances on the international scene.

Through Janet Canetty-Clarke's connection with Austria's All WomenChamber orchestra, the choir added a European dimension to its work in1993. Exchange visits were instigated and these became regular features,with the most recent visit by the choir to Vienna in December 2000. Thefollowing year members of the choir sang at the Cyrium, Cyprus in aconcert in aid of the Army Benevolent Fund and returned last year tosing with the Band of the Light Division. In September 2002 Neil Jenkinswas appointed Musical Director of the choir.

The choir's change of name to Sussex Chorus is the latest landmark inits long history and reflects the modern and wider Sussex scene from which choir members and audience are drawn and in which it is nowperforming. In 2003-4 the choir will have performed as far afield in the county as Rye, Worth Abbey and Lancing as well as in Brighton, HaywardsHeath, Eastbourne and Hurstpierpoint. Works performed have includedSchubert Mass in G, Bach Mass in B Minor (conducted by Sir David Willcocks), Easter Oratorio and semi dramatised St Matthew Passion, Stainer Crucifixion and rarely performed pieces by Mendelssohn, Saint Saëns and other eighteenth-century composers.

See www.sussexchorus.org for more information