About UsSterndale Singers is a Sheffield-based mixed chamber choir of currently around 26 members, and has the reputation of being one of the best choirs in the city.
As a choir we enjoy singing both a cappella repertoire but also collaborating in performance with soloists, and other local choral, instrumental and orchestral groups on occasion as well. The choir's repertoire spans music of different periods from renaissance to contemporary, but is united in achieving performances of a high standard.
We enjoy singing under the stretching but good-humoured direction of Robert Webb, our Musical Director, and rehearse regularly on Monday nights throughout the year, performing 3-4 concerts annually in and around Sheffield.
The choir looks forward to continuing not only to deliver an excellent standard of music making, but also the pleasure, fun and friendship which are part of singing in a choir.
Our HistoryAs Gill Llewellyn, one of our Vice-Presidents and a former Sterndale Singers member herself said “we’ve been on quite a journey!”. From being a small informal madrigal group gathered together in September 1977 in members’ front rooms or church rooms at Millhouses….it has developed to become a chamber choir performing a wide range of music from a cappella songs to accompanied large choral works, in all sorts of different venues and places here and abroad.
There have been many memorable adventures along the way. Singing days at Bretton Hall in the early 1980s where we met our second musical director, Jim Wild. Overseas trips in the late 80s and 90s to Boulogne, Berlin (still complete with wall), Switzerland, Belgium and Holland. Two Millenium concerts with the Nottingham Sinfonia Chorale under Richard Roddis, another of our previous musical directors.
Robert Webb took over as Musical Director in 2004, and ensured the choir's repertoire continued to expand, enabling the choir to develop a reputation for interesting and imaginative programming, examples of which include: the first performance in Sheffield of Scottish composer James Macmillan's Seven Last Words from the Cross; an exciting programme of contemporary music influenced by African culture and accompanied by African drumming ensemble Unbeatable Energy; a concert of choral music entitled “A Fragile Peace” recalling 30 years since the Berlin wall came down; and recently a very well-received concert showcasing Britten’s Ceremony of Carols with harpist Alley Bridge-York.
Under Robert’s directorship we’ve also undertaken several trips to south-west France in 2007, 2013, 2016 and 2018 to sing music in some beautiful settings, from ancient medieval abbeys to nineteenth century town halls. A flavour of this is shown in choir photos below.
We celebrated our 40th anniversary in 2017 with current and many former members coming together for a workshop and evening concert to sing Tallis' 40-part motet 'Spem in Alium' along with other choir favourites. We are currently planning a celebration of our 50th anniversary in 2027.
