Bedford has a thriving, diverse and lively music scene, including one group that has been singing together for almost 160 years.
Bedford Choral Society was founded in 1867, and now has 130 active members producing three or more concerts a year. As well as performing classic choral works, they also challenge themselves with more contemporary pieces.
In 2025, they sang everything from jazz to traditional African music, including a piece commissioned from a local composer, Gregory May. At Proms in the Park, they performed all the traditional crowd-pleasers, and at the end of the year, they gave two Christmas concerts.
“Our choir is friendly and sociable, members include long-servers and new joiners, of all ages and walks of life,” said the choir’s Ellie Gamble.
“We prove that ‘the whole is more than the sum of the parts’ – a perfect description of choral singing.
“Monday evening rehearsals are highlights of the week, and we feel the joy of mastering beautiful music to perform for our audiences.”
As part of the local community, members support local charities, and this year, ‘Food etc’ has taken the baton from the Kings’ Arms Project (now HopeWorks), which was the beneficiary last year.
To encourage the next generation, the choir sponsors the Junior Choir prize at the annual Bedfordshire Music, Drama and Speech Festival and invites local school choirs to perform with them at the Christmas concert.
“In 2025, it was a delight to be joined by choirs from Sharnbrook and Great Denham primary schools,” said Ellie.
“The joyful enthusiasm of the young singers brought the Christmas spirit to a large audience.”
Verdi’s Requiem
The choir’s next performance is of Verdi’s Requiem, on Saturday, 21 March at 7.30 pm at the Corn Exchange, joined by Bedford Sinfonia and four wonderful soloists.
Musical director Ian Smith, who has been at the heart of music in Bedford for almost 50 years as a conductor and educator, said: “The Verdi Requiem is one of the most loved and dramatic settings of the Requiem Mass you will ever hear.
“Its sheer complexity means that it is not often performed, so the opportunity to hear it in Bedford is rare. It can claim to be the most operatic Requiem ever written.”
Describing the experience of being part of the choir, one of the newer members declared: “It’s a wonderful opportunity for music lovers to become part of the process of bringing musical masterpieces to life.”
A long-serving member described it as “hard work in friendly and good-humoured company and wonderful when it comes right”, and chair Carole Bell says she feels honoured to continue the choir’s legacy.
“It is a pleasure to help ensure we are carrying on the tradition, so that new generations can discover beautiful music like Verdi’s Requiem,” she said.
“We welcome new members, so if you would like to join our choir, please see our website for more information.”
To share in what will be an exceptional evening of music, tickets to Verdi’s Requiem can be bought by emailing tickets@bedfordchoralsociety.org.uk or by visiting their ticket website here. You can also call the Box Office at Bedford Corn Exchange on 01234 718044.
