Welcome
The Monteverdi Singers are a chamber choir based near Bangor, Gwynedd, with members drawn from across North Wales and a proud 50+ year history. We perform “classical” music from the Renaissance to the present day to the best of our collective abilities!
Interested in coming along and singing? Just leave us a message using our Contact form. We’d love to see you at the next suitable rehearsal.
You don’t need to audition, but our conductor may, at some stage, arrange for you to sing through some scales with him and you do need to be able to read music fairly confidently - and enjoy making it with other people!
Rehearsals
Rehearsals are usually held at Llandygai Church Hall, Llandygai, Bangor, LL57 4HU - parking is available. Occasionally, if the hall is unavailable, we rehearse elsewhere in the local area>
We rehearse every Monday from 19:30 to 21:30, including a break for some (sometimes much-needed) caffeine. All sheet music is supplied - there’s no need to buy anything.
In order to fund our musical activities, we do have to ask for an annual subscription - but this can be paid in instalments and is not required until you have made a decision to commit to the choir. Try before you buy!
Conductor
Graeme Cotterill, originally from Newport in South Wales, is a graduate and former lecturer in music of Bangor University, where he completed a PhD on the relevance of the Welsh nation to the life and music of Grace Williams. His published editions of several of her most significant works, including her two symphonies and Missa Cambrensis, have been used by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales in concert and BBC Radio 3 broadcast performances. Since 2012, he has continued to make music alongside working for North Wales Wildlife Trust, including enjoying conducting such works far beyond his technical capability as Walton’s Belshazzar’s Feast and Vaughan Williams’s A Sea Symphony.
Montes History
The choir was formed in 1967 by Reginald Smith Brindle, then Professor of Music at Bangor University, and until the mid-70s was conducted by other university musicians. From 1975 John Huw Davies directed and conducted the choir for over forty years until he retired in 2017. In its early years the choir had between 25 and 30 voices but grew to over 50 singers in the 80s, 90s and 2000s. As well as the standard choral repertoire (Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s Passions and B Minor Mass, Mozart’s Requiem) the choir has introduced rarely performed works in N Wales such as Britten’s War Requiem, Todd’s Mass in Blue, Dohnanyi’s Szeged Mass, Monteverdi’s Vespers, Williamson’s Symphony for Voices. Welsh composers and music have always been prominent in the choir’s programmes including works by William Mathias, Dilys Elwyn Edwards, Mervyn Roberts and the choir also commissioned and performed works by John Hywel and Sebastian Forbes. Under our present conductor, Graeme Cotterill, and with smaller choir numbers our repertoire has focussed largely on a cappella music and works with organ, piano, harp or instrumental accompaniment. The choir has made several European tours including to Sweden, Germany, France and Latvia and has collaborated with other choirs to perform large scale works such as Verdi’s Requiem and Walton’s Belshazzar’s Feast.
