Festival Singers of Wellington: 50th Anniversary Celebration

• Date: 06/09/2026 15:00 - 17:00
• Location: Khandallah Presbyterian Church: 33 Ganges Road, Khandallah, Wellington 6035
• Tickets: Adult tickets – Single $25 (+ booking fee). Adult tickets – Group – 2 or more people $20 each (+ booking fee)

Festival Singers of Wellington warmly invites you to join us for a joyful afternoon of music, memories and celebration as we mark 50 years of singing together.

Since its formation in 1976, Festival Singers has brought people together through the shared experience and love of choral music. Over our five decades, the choir has performed a rich and varied repertoire, welcomed many singers and musicians, and contributed to Wellington’s musical and community life. This special Jubilee concert celebrates that history while looking confidently towards the future.

The programme brings together music filled with glory, grace and gladness. At its heart is Mozart’s radiant Vespers, K.339, a work overflowing with energy, lyrical beauty and dramatic contrasts. Its movements range from brilliant choral declarations to moments of tenderness and reflection, including the much-loved Laudate Dominum.

The choir will also perform A Hopkins Gloria by Wellington composer and musician Jonathan Berkahn. Inspired by the vivid and exuberant poetry of Gerard Manley Hopkins, this work offers a contemporary expression of wonder, praise and delight in creation.

Parry’s magnificent I Was Glad When They Said Unto Me brings grandeur and ceremonial splendour to the programme. Written for the coronation of King Edward VII, it has become one of the best-known works in the English choral tradition. Its powerful opening and richly layered harmonies make it an exhilarating experience for singers and audiences alike.

A quieter note of beauty comes through Charles Villiers Stanford’s Beati Quorum Via. This serene motet, setting words from Psalm 119, is admired for its flowing lines, luminous harmonies and sense of peaceful devotion.

The concert concludes with John Rutter’s beloved The Lord Bless You and Keep You. Gentle, warm and deeply reassuring, it offers a fitting musical blessing for the choir, its supporters and the wider community as Festival Singers enters its next chapter.

The concert will be directed by Ingrid Schoenfeld, with Jonathan Berkahn as accompanist. We are also delighted to feature Soprano soloist Sinéad Keane and Peter Liley as our soprano saxophonist.

Koha/Donation to Wellington City Mission

Alongside your ticket purchase, we invite you to make a koha/donation to support the work of Wellington City Mission. Festival Singers will pass these donations to the Mission. (Humanitix transaction fees will apply.)

Afternoon Tea

Following the performance, everyone is invited to stay for afternoon tea. This will be an opportunity for former and present choir members, friends, supporters and audience members to meet, share stories and remember memorable moments from the choir’s first 50 years. A display of concert posters from across the decades will offer a colourful glimpse into Festival Singers’ history, changing repertoire and contribution to Wellington’s musical life.

Come and celebrate this significant milestone with an afternoon of glorious music, warm fellowship and treasured memories.