Our 40th Anniversary Recording of Elgar’s The Kingdom

2024 is a special year for Crouch End Festival Chorus: Our 40th Anniversary.

Forty years ago, in 1984 David Temple and John Gregson created a scratch choir to perform Verdi’s Requiem in their local Crouch End Arts Festival, and Crouch End Festival Chorus was born.

Recording has been an important part of the Crouch End Festival Chorus story so far – beginning with a vinyl ’single’ of our first commission to our most recent release of the music of Fanny and Felix Mendelssohn in January 2024. 

Under conductor David Temple, the chorus has been prolific in the recording studio and appears on well over 150 recordings. The variety of genres is remarkable and sets us apart from all other choirs.

So what better way to celebrate our next significant birthday than with a new recording of Elgar’s monumental work The Kingdom with Signum Records.  Elgar is a particular favourite of our Music Director David Temple who believes passionately that this is Elgar’s greatest choral work. In reviewing a previous performance, the editor (Martin Bird) of The Elgar Society wrote: 

‘Put simply, it was the finest performance of The Kingdom that I have ever heard, or can ever hope to hear. In David Temple there was, for once, a conductor who actually took notice of the directions Elgar has given in his score, and the result was a revelation.’ 

Thank you for supporting this recording!

We are delighted to announce that thanks to the generosity of our supporters the recording took place as planned in February 2024.

Check back later in the year for news on the release date of this exciting album.

As a charity, we rely on donations to allow us to continue our work showcasing the best of choral music.
You can support us by making on-line donations using this button.  

Donate securely by credit or debit card.  
Adding Gift Aid to your donation means we can claim tax back and make your gift go even further.