The Leicester Bach Choir has been described as one of Leicester’s best-loved institutions, since it has performed choral concerts here for more than 80 years. We were established by the first Master of Music of Leicester Cathedral, Gordon Slater, and conductors since that time have included Paul Spicer of the Finzi singers, and Robert Hollingworth of I Fagiolini, both of whom are regularly heard on BBC Radio 3.  The reputation of our current conductor and Director of Music, Richard Laing, is growing rapidly too, but we hope he will be with us for a while longer yet.

The collective legacy of our various conductors is an interest and expertise not only in performing the works of JS Bach but also in a wide repertoire of British and European music ranging from the fifteenth to the twenty-first centuries. The Choir has around 55 singers, enabling it to perform both fairly large scale and more intimate works.

We hold singing workshops for members with experienced and respected vocal trainers from time to time, enjoyable sessions which help us to know one another better and to develop our technique and musicianship. We also have relationships with European choirs, which result in exchange visits and choir trips, most recently to Bach’s birthplace in Eisenach, Germany. Further details of these are in Cadenza.

The Choir Today

The choir performs a wide range of both sacred and secular work from the Renaissance to the contemporary: the connecting thread between the music we select is vitality and relevance. LBC enjoy singing Bach as much as audiences love to hear it. We enable Leicester audiences to join re-evaluations of various composers during significant anniversary years, by performing their key works. We also fulfil our charitable purpose, of educating the public, by judicious introduction of new and less well-known works and by innovations in performance practice.

LBC gives four formal concerts per year on Saturdays in November, December, before Easter, and in June. From time to time we come together with other choirs in order to be able to perform larger works, most recently performing Vaughan Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem and Elgar’s The Music Makers with Midlands Chorale. This arrangement reaches new heights on November 7th 2009 when Cantamici and young singers from the Grammar School bring us up to the 100+ singers required to perform Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius.

We also encourage singing in Leicester by inviting others to perform with us. The December concert has involved choirs from local primary schools for a few years now, enabling young singers to have the heady experience of choral singing within a large group of experienced singers. In January as usual we invite anybody who can read music and wishes to give choral singing a try, or those who have been choral singers but for some reason not been able to do so recently, to attend a one-day Come and Sing choral workshop.

The LBC has recently moved its home to St James the Greater, 216 London Road, where it now rehearses on Wednesday evenings and where its November, January and June concerts are performed. We are excited by the prospect of contributing to St James’ goal of being Leicester’s spiritual home for the arts, and look forward to exploring the dimensions of our mutual relationship. We continue our long-running association with Leicester Cathedral by holding our Christmas concerts there.

We are funded mainly by members' subscriptions and ticket sales. We are also fortunate in having financial support from the Florence Turner Trust. We have benefited from sponsorship for individual concerts and events, but are always extremely grateful to hear from individuals or organisations that are willing to help the arts by giving further support. If you wish to assist in this way, please contact our Secretary, Nicki Little.

People at LBC

Richard Laing Director of Music	Mark Batten Accompanist	Jennifer Clegg Chair	Nicki Little Secretary