GAUDEAMUS

Gaudeamus is a chamber choir of about 28 voices, based in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex.  Since we were founded in 1988 we have grown from strength to strength and have developed a reputation as one of the elite choirs of Essex.  We sing a wide range of music, from the middle ages to the present day, unaccompanied and accompanied by piano, organ, or orchestra, but we are particularly noted for our unaccompanied a cappella singing, be that Byrd, Bach, Stanford, or Cole Porter.  You can hear some of our music here.  In our local area we perform at many churches including St Mary’s Prittlewell in Southend, Highlands Methodist Church, St Clement’s in Leigh-on-Sea, and Barling, and on a lighter note, outdoor concerts at Southend Bandstage.  Further afield we have gone on many well-received international concert tours.

For the latest news and more photos, please see our Facebook page.    

(Please note: we now accept credit cards at the door!)

Our next concert, Sacred Voices: England and Flanders,

will be on

Sunday 17th May at 4pm, at St Alban the Martyr Church, Westcliff

Again, we will be selling any remaining tickets at the door, but you can book in advance and secure your seat please using the link below.

Excitingly, we are taking this repertoire to Flanders with concerts in

St Jacob’s Church, Antwerp and St-Baafs Cathedral in Ghent.  Follow us on Facebook to keep up to date with our travels.

Programme:

O sing unto the Lord                                    Henry Purcell                 

O quam gloriosum                                       Jacobus Vaet   

Justorem animae                                         William Byrd

Hosanna to the son of David                    Thomas Weelkes

Pater Noster                                                  Orlando de Lassus

Agnus Dei from Missa Sexti Toni             Josquin des Prez

INTERVAL                                                    

Tantum ergo                                                  Cesar Franck

Ave Maria                                                        Peter Benoit                    

Nunc dimittis                                                 Geoffrey Burgon                              

Let all mortal flesh keep silence             Edward Bairstow                                         

Hail gladdening light                                   Charles Wood                               

Faire is the heaven                                      William Harris                               

Panis Angelicus                                            Cesar Franck                                   

Lux Aeterna (Nimrod)                                 Edward Elgar, arr. John Cameron

Sing, Choirs Of Angels

Our Christmas concert in 2025 was on Sunday 14th December at St James The Less, Hadleigh.

That concert was in aid of Friends Of Hadleigh Church, and included traditional carols and

Christmas music, along with seasonal refreshments.

A Musical History Tour

A Musical History Tour, was on Saturday 27th September 2025 at 7:30pm at St Michael The Archangel, Woodham Walter.

That concert was in aid of the church building and we celebrated music from the thirteenth century to the present day.   The programme therefore included a wide selection of styles and eras such as Parson’s Ave Maria, the Magnificat from Howell’s Gloucester service, a Beatles arrangement, and a new arrangement by Ruth Brown of Sam Ryder’s Spaceman.

Music And Art Combine

Our Summer concert in 2024 was a really exciting venture with Leigh Art Trail on Thursday July 4th.

Beautiful art and music combined, exploring the themes and ideas of nature and the spiritual.

The music showcased our wide repertoire, including, amongst others,  Lux aurumque (Whitacre), Summertime (Gershwin), Fyer, Fyer  (Morley), As torrents in summer (Elgar), and Blow, Blow thou Winter Wind (Rutter).

Click here for more details on our future concerts.

“The choir had crisp, incisive diction, produced a range of vocal colour, and their faithful attention to dynamic markings was impressive.  You would need to go quite a long way to hear finer a cappella singing in Essex.”

— Essex Chronicle