Not sure about something ? Find out here what to expect at a St Peter’s Singers concert!
Who are St Peter’s Singers?
St Peter’s Singers is a choir of about 40 singers that sings concerts of classical music for choirs. We sometimes sing with an orchestra or organ accompaniment, sometimes on our own. Despite our name, we’re not a church choir and the events we promote are concerts, not church services.
Many of our concerts take place in the beautiful setting of Leeds Minster. We were founded and have always been based there, and this explains our name: Leeds Minster is also known as ‘St Peters’. But we are not the Choir of Leeds Minster, which exists as a separate choir in its own right and sings at the Minster’s Services.
What are your concerts like?
Our concerts are quite relaxed; dress code for the audience is informal. Seats are not numbered, so you can choose where to sit (first come, first served). You will be greeted on arrival and given a programme booklet which will tell you about the music and the performers, provide English translations of the texts where appropriate, as well providing house notices such as indicating where applause would be welcome.
The only expectation is that you will be considerate and respectful towards others in the audience and to the performers.
Refreshments will usually be offered (by donation) during the interval or at the end.
We would be delighted if you told us afterwards how you found the concert; feedback forms and links will be available.
What sort of music do you sing?
The music we sing is usually sacred, which means it uses religious words for the lyrics. The main reason for this is that, historically, over the last 500 years in Western Europe, choirs have often been affiliated to churches, and much of the music written for choirs was intended for church services. The Church has often been able to attract top composers resulting in a significant amount of high-quality sacred choral music.
Over the centuries a tradition of Western Church Music has grown up that is still growing and flourishing, with contemporary composers still drawn to religious texts. So we perform music composed by some of the earliest composers, such as Palestrina (born in 1525), as well as works by contemporary composers, and by composers from any of the intervening five centuries. This makes for a wonderful variety of musical styles and sounds.
Do you always sing in churches?
No. We have given a number of concerts in Leeds Town Hall, and in 2014 gave a concert in Leeds’ Victoria Quarter, a shopping mall with quite stunning acoustics! But a lot of choral music was written to be sung in large Churches, Abbeys and Cathedrals, taking advantage of the resonant acoustics, organs and lofty architecture these buildings offer. And so it feels appropriate to sing the music in the type of setting for which it was written.
Do I have to be religious to come to one of our concerts?
Absolutely not! You will be made welcome whoever you are and whatever you believe. Just come and enjoy the music and the surroundings. If you’re not familiar with being in church don’t worry, we will do our best to put you at your ease. Many of the choir do not identify as religious but enjoy performing this beautiful music. The programme notes may provide some explanations of the religious texts for you if you’re interested. You will not be preached at. Our main aim is for you to have an amazing musical experience.
Do I need to book in advance?
Not usually. Normally you can pay for admission at the door, and it will be made quite clear on the event page if this is not so. But by booking in advance you enable us to be better prepared, to save you queuing when you arrive, and also to contact you ahead of time with a link to an on-line version of the programme notes, and to contact you should any unforeseen event arise. You can book online through the Home page of our website.
Are your concerts accessible to people with physical disabilities?
We make every effort to ensure that we sing in buildings with good accessibility arrangements, but are not always able to control this. Please consult the webpage advertising the event, or the website of the venue itself, or you can contact us if you wish to check out or make arrangements with us – we will always try to accommodate your needs.