Choir of St Luke's, Chelsea

London's Choir of St. Luke's, Chelsea, is notable for its all-volunteer, largely youthful makeup. The group sings to a high standard and has made several recordings. The Church of St. Luke's, Chelsea, was consecrated in 1824, and organized music-making became part of its services soon after that. The first director of its choir was organist and composer John Goss, the composer of the familiar hymn Praise my soul, the King of Heaven. He was succeeded by organist Henry Forbes, who served for 20 years before he was dismissed. Between the late 19th century and the middle of the 20th, the Choir of St. Luke's, Chelsea, was a well-funded professional organization that sometimes included orchestral players in its performances; crowds of thousands at Sunday evening services were not uncommon. Notable directors during this period included Everard Hulton, composer John Ireland (1904-1926), and Guy Eldridge. Due to wartime-era funding cuts, the choir fell on hard times for some years, facing difficulties in recruiting enough men and boys to fill its ranks. In 1985, women were admitted for the first time, and the choir was later reconstituted as a volunteer group. Choir directors in the late 20th and early 21st centuries have included Peter Chapman (1967-1985), John Halsey, Jeremy Filsell, Anne Elise Smoot (the choir's first female and first American director), and, since 2011, Jeremy Summerly. Filsell conducted the choir's first recording, Music from St. Luke's Chelsea (1993). That was followed by O be joyful in the Lord (1999), conducted by Smoot. The Choir of St. Luke's, Chelsea, has some 35 singers, with admission by audition. The group includes many singers who have sung as students in collegiate choirs and hope to continue performing in a similar setting that offers social as well as musical attractions. Four of its members are Choral Scholars who receive a stipend and must be enrolled at an educational institution. The choir performs at Parish Eucharist and Choral Evensong services on Sundays, appears at church festivals, gives concerts, and makes cathedral tours twice annually. In addition to Britain, the choir has visited Germany, Belgium, and the U.S. The Choir of St. Luke's, Chelsea, returned to the recording studio, releasing the album Philip W.J. Stopford: Sacred Choral Music in 2024, with Summerly as conductor.
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