Walton Voices, UK

Walton Voices, formerly known as Walton and Oatlands Choral Society, has been performing locally since 1934. Relaunched in 2013, the choir has gone from strength to strength, fulfilling our ambition to perform challenging choral works, while also introducing modern composers to a wider audience. In March 2020, we were busy rehearsing for our Messiah Easter concert when Covid struck, and like everyone else the choir went into lockdown. But this did not stop us performing! Through the irresistible enthusiasm and innovation of our inspirational conductor, Jonathan Kilhams, and using the magic of Zoom, we continued with weekly rehearsals and managed to produce six videos – all posted on YouTube. This initiative led to our musical director being nominated for a Making Music National Award and being shortlisted to the final three candidates. 

Our repertoire has included choral works such as Karl Jenkins’ The Armed Man, Bob Chilcott’s St John Passion, and Poulenc’s Gloria, as well as shorter, delicate works like Eric Whitacre’s ‘Sleep’ and John Williams’ ‘Hymn to the Fallen’. We also sing the more familiar works like Parry’s ‘I Was Glad’, Mozart’s Requiem, and Handel’s ‘Zadok the Priest.’ Now, post-Covid, we hope to continue our outreach programme, bringing music to groups and schools within the local community. We sing in support of charitable causes and have been privileged to perform and raise money for many local and national charities. Some of our biggest fundraising events have been £4,000 for The Marine Conservation Society from our ‘Concert for Conservation’ in 2019 and over £10,000 through our ‘Concert for Ukraine’ in 2023.

Our accompanist is Anna-Maria Raffa, has been accompanying choirs, singers and instrumentalists since the age of nine, as well working as an orchestral pianist, vocal coach and musical theatre accompanist. She also has a love of West Africa and studied djembe drumming in Senegal, France and Germany.

In 2024, the choir performed Palmeri’s Misatango for the first time and fell in love with it! We were accompanied by an incredible group of musicians including renowned, Julian Rowlands on Bandoneon. The choir are incredibly excited to be performing at Cadogan Hall with Palmeri himself! 

Being in Walton Voices is a delight and a challenge. The eclectic repertoire keeps us on our toes, and it is great fun anticipating what is in store for us each term. There is a friendly team spirit and we are always keen to welcome new members – there is no audition, so just come and enjoy yourself. If you would like to know more about the choir or about joining, then contact us through our website www.waltonvoices.co.uk.