Principal Conductor – Vacant

Applications have now closed for the position of Principal Conductor

VACANCY FOR PRINCIPAL CONDUCTOR

Guildford Chamber Choir wishes to appoint a Principal Conductor with effect from September 2025 in succession to Max Barley who has led the choir for the past six highly successful years.

Guildford Chamber Choir is an auditioned project choir, meeting usually for six two-hour rehearsals on different weekday evenings before each concert. The Choir was founded in 1980 and aims to bring to Surrey audiences a wide range of music performed in fresh and exciting ways, all the time aiming for the highest standards.

We normally give three main concerts each season. which are usually on Saturdays. Recent major programmes have featured music of the Italian Baroque, and unforgettable performances of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion and the monumental B Minor Mass. A more unusual piece was The Vespers by a 17th Century Milanese nun, Chiara Cozzolani. We have sung the very different Requiems by Duruflé and Brahms; Romantic German music; Vaughan Williams’ In Memoriam, Mass in G minor and Serenade to Music; Handel’s Israel in Egypt and most recently the ever popular Messiah. Summer Concerts have featured music from Scandinavia including Pãrt, Gjeilo, Rautavaara, Nielsen and Vasks; Britten’s Rejoice in the Lamb; George Shearing and a recent tribute to our founder Richard Fox.

The Choir usually makes a biennial overseas tour, (Freiburg-am-Breisgau in 2023) and often sings services at Cathedrals when their choir is on leave, most recently in Canterbury Cathedral.

The planned timescale is

• Closing date for Applications: 12:00 noon UK time, Friday 11 April 2025.

• Interviews of shortlisted candidates: Saturday 10 May 2025.

• Audition conducting the choir: Thursday 22 May 2025.

• The interviews and audition will take place in Guildford.

• Final offer to the successful applicant: End of June 2025.

• First concert to be conducted: Autumn Concert, Saturday 1 November 2025.

Details of the post are available from the Choir Secretary - Meg Makower

secretary@guildfordchamberchoir.org.uk